Passenger door won't open

Passenger door won't open

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Discussion

Toilet Duck

Original Poster:

1,329 posts

186 months

Sunday 17th August 2014
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Morning gang,

I've already posted over in the VAG ( http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...)section but I'm not getting any response; I'm hoping you knowledgeable chaps can help me out.

56 Plate 1.9tdi Polo (two door), passenger door is refusing to unlock. Makes no difference if I use the remote fob, internal "master" door lock/unlock button (for both driver and passenger doors), key in drivers door or pulling on the passenger door internal/external handle. There is no key hole in the passenger door (never noticed before, what a great idea).

I can't get the door card off to start poking around as the door won't open. I'm assuming the fault will be inside the passenger door? Unless there is some "master" solenoid type thing in the drivers side that has gone tits up? When I operate the remote or use the key, I can hear something trying to happen on the passenger side, but the pop up button at the edge of the door panel/glass remains down (the thing that pops up when the door unlocks). I tried putting some long nose pliers on this button and lifting it up but it does not make any difference.

Any help much appreciated!

Toilet Duck

Original Poster:

1,329 posts

186 months

Tuesday 9th September 2014
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Just to update this thread.......

The passenger door miraculously unlocked and I was able to open the door. I removed the doorcard etc and eventually got to the solenoid thing. It seems the lock is a two piece affair, part mechanical, part electrickery. It seemed to me that the electronic part was kaput, so I tried looking inside it. After it flew apart in a shower of springs and small plastic kinder egg type bits, I ended up getting a brand new unit for £40 off eBay, its all fitted and working now. However, when the doors "auto lock" once over about 10mph, the passenger door locks then unlocks itself. Everything else works fine.

I'm surprised this design is "legal.' If the electronic side of the lock fails in this way, the passenger door cannot open from inside or outside. If I crashed and the car was on fire, the passenger wouldn't be able to get out.

Toilet Duck

Original Poster:

1,329 posts

186 months

Tuesday 9th September 2014
quotequote all
It had been locked "normally." The car auto locks when you go over about 10mph, it wasn't manually locked. When it was intermittently failing to unlock, you simply couldn't open the passenger door from the inside or outside, pressing the remote didn't unlock it, nor did the "master" lock/unlock button on the inside of the drivers door. I don't know if it would "auto unlock" in the event of a crash, but unless it somehow bypasses the broken solenoid thing I don't see how.

Toilet Duck

Original Poster:

1,329 posts

186 months

Tuesday 9th September 2014
quotequote all
feef said:
When you lock the car at night, do you deadlock it. When I said 'normally' I meant locking without deadlocking.
I always use the remote to lock/unlock, just one press of the respective button each time. Does that activate a deadlock? Or do I have to do something else to activate that? Sometimes (when the fault was originally intermittent) the passenger door would unlock using the remote and a passenger could get in. Drive off and the doors all auto lock. Get to where I'm going and the passenger door would play up and not open, so they had to climb across and out the drivers side. The missus loved it frown