Drivers door will not open from inside

bullithead · October 24, 2006

Hi,

I have a 1996 Sierra SLE 1500 ext cab. The drivers door started to play up, it was hard to get the door to open. After a few days of sticking, it will not open at all from the inside. Nothing has happened to the truck to cause this problem. It opens fine from the outside, I have to open the window and open it from the outside, to get out.

Can someone A. give me some advice on removing the door trim, I had a look but was worried that I might damage the trim. Not sure what I need to do to remove it.

B. Give me a clue as to what has happened to the door opener, and how to fix it, please.

Thank you.

carneyman · October 25, 2006

I had this happen on my 88 cheyenne. A piece of the door handle broke on the inside, and the whole inner door handle had to be replaced (about 20 bucks). The trim should just pull off, but be carefull. Odds are you will probably break some of the white plastic things that hold the trim on. You can also get some more of those for really cheap. Its actually an easy install, just make sure you got a case of beer (actually, good for any repair).

Now, I am not sure if this is the same thing that has happened to yours, but that should give you an idea.

rick2005 · October 25, 2006

HEY STEVE,

JUST PLAIN WEAR AND TEAR CAN CAUSE BROKEN HANDLES. MOSTLY A BAD DESIGN ON GM'S PART. YOU MIGHT CHECK THE HINGE PINS ON THE DOOR, THEY HAVE REPLACEABLE PINS AND BUSHING'S (AVAILABLE AT MOST PARTS STORES IN THE HELP! SECTION) THE PINS AREN'T TO DIFFICULT TO REPLACE, BUT YOU DO NEED A SPRING COMPRESSION TOOL FOR HINGE SPRINGS. ALSO OIL THE MECHANICAL PARTS OF DOOR (HINGES, LATCHES). AS FOR THE DOOR HANDLE, THE HANDLES ARE MADE OUT OF PEWTER AND OFTEN BREAK WHERE THE ROD THAT MOVES DOOR LATCH IS ATTACHED. NEW HANDLES ARE AVAILABLE AT THE DEALER( YOU MIGHT HAVE TO ORDER THE HANDLE). IT HAS BEEN ABOUT A YEAR SINCE I'VE REPAIRED 1 OF MY 96 2500, SO I'M A LITTLE FUZZY ON THE EXACT DETAILS. JUST MAKE SURE YOU REMOVE ALL THE SCREWS. SOME ARE LOCATED ON THE ARM REST. BE CAREFUL OF THE PLASTIC RETAINERS THAT ARE MADE ONTO THE DOOR PANEL. REMOVE THE ELECTRIC WINDOW/DOOR LOCK PANEL BY PULLING UP ON THE PLASTIC SURROUNDING SWITCHES. PROCEDE WITH CAUTION AND YOU'LL BE ALRIGHT. CHANGING THE HANDLE IS A BREEZE AFTER YOU REMOVE THE DOOR PANEL. BE CAREFUL

GM-Tech · October 25, 2006

I don't usually pick on a particular opinion, but jeez, something that fails after 10 year of constant use is because of "GM's bad design?" Come on now. Things break, well or poorly designed. Sure, everything should last forever, but in the real world, that just doesn't happen. And door handle parts are definitely not made of PEWTER! Pewter is a metal used in sculptures, etc., not car parts.

bullithead · November 3, 2006

Just thought I would let you know that I fixed the door handle, thank you for your help. I was unsure what needed to be done but once I started things went almost OK. I broke a lug of the interior handle cover trying to remove it, I have super glued it and will try it tomorrow.

Our local Part Soucre stock the replacement handle, and said its a very common problem. $23 got me a new one, but not colour coded. I even changed the light bulb on the inside of the door.

Great site with lots of good info, well done.