Passenger Side Locking Problems

[TieNN89]

Hi all
I'm having problems with my passenger side locking on my NB8A

Sometimes it locks and unlocks

Anyone got any pointers on what to look for ... and how to fix my problem ?

[sliq]

maybe the actuator is on the way out. might have to visit some wreckers.

[Ando]

My NB8A does this too.

[Wuey]

Easy-peasy. The two rods - one from the actuator and the other one to the door locking mechanism are held together by an adjustable clamp. That clamp could have worked loose and you need to find the neutral spot to reposition it and tighten it. Use Loctite blue threadlocker on the clamp screws and they will never work loose again. The other possibility is you might have an electrical short in the actuator ground wire. Find that wire and cover any exposed area with insulation tape.

[Steampunk]

Is it just me, or does your post not make sense?
Are you saying that the door lock engages and disengages at random, without any intervention from you?

Who you gonna call?

[Okibi]

My NB8A does the same, been to busy to fix it.

[TieNN89]

Is it just me, or does your post not make sense?
Are you saying that the door lock engages and disengages at random, without any intervention from you?

Who you gonna call?

lol

no it doesn't do it at random
most of the time doesn't do it the moment i lock or unlock it does whatever I did on the driver side a few mins later on the passenger side

[Juffa]

If all this talk of actuators is confusing you....when you remove the door trim and fight your way through the sticky black goo you should find one of these



There should be one in each door. Normally the drivers door is the master and the passenger door is the slave... this means when you lock/unlock the drivers door it will do the same on the other side, but locking/unlocking the passenger door does not do the same on the drivers side....got it?

The actuator has a rod coming from it, this rod is clamped to the actual door lock mechanisim. By inserting and turning the key...or using a remote fob the actuator will pull the rod in, or push it out and this moves the door lock mechanisim, which then locks or unlocks the door. The rod does not have to move very far to operate the lock. However if the the actuator rod clamp becomes loose it will no longer work properly. As Wuey said, tighten the clamp, use a thread lock and it should be good again.

J

[Okibi]

Nope there isn't one of those in the door.

Mine has one of these ..

[Okibi]

I found my old thread ..

http://mx5cartalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=55&t=34235

[bruce]

I gotta ask - why do they use that horrible black goo?

[manga_blue]

I gotta ask - why do they use that horrible black goo?

x2

... and thanks, Wuey, you just helped me to fix the auto-unlock problem that's been bugging me for months. It took about 5 minutes to re-position the actuator rod. Then it took another 10 to get the black goo off my jeans.

[Wuey]

x3 on the black goo but this is one goo that will adhere to plastic and will consistently stay soft and sticky over many years.

Okibi's actuators are no doubt oem stuffs found in later models. Most aftermarket actuators look like the one Juffa linked above. If probably installed and waterproofed, they should last forever. I had loose clamp problem but that was an easy fix with threadlock. My first master actuator stopped working when water got into it. It still worked after I tipped the rusty water out but I junked it nonetheless. I wrapped both the master and slave actuators with plastic sheet so that settled the water issue. However a few years later, one of the cheap connectors on a signal wire(not a ground wire as I mentioned above) worked loose and was occasionally shorting against the door metal when I closed the door or when I drove over a railway crossing so the doors will lock themselves. I was temporarily locked out one day when I left the key in the ignition with both windows closed when I shut the door. I had to do a rear plastic window zipper trick and used a small fallen tree branch found in the car park to push the door lock under what must be dozens of curious eyes up in a few blocks of surrounding 20-storey flats. If there wasn't something handy like a tree branch, I might just have to suffer the indignity of removing my belt so I wouldn't scratch the paintwork if I needed to crawled into the car head first.

Jaycar's actuators differ from one batch to the next in terms of wire colour coding. If you need to replace one of yours, you just might need to read the diagram carefully and work out which wire is which in order to sync the new actuator with an old one in the other door. It's also wise to tape over those cheap connectors that have loose plastic sleeves.

[TieNN89]

Mine seems to be working most of the time now :S