# Focus door latch



## TheBobmanNH (Oct 23, 2012)

Do you know why it won't latch? It may just need to be broken free from some sort of rust and lubricated.


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## WillK (Aug 29, 2010)

I do sort of suspect some sort of rust issue, it started after it had been sitting up inclined from some work I was doing replacing gas tank straps. I started removing the latch assembly but needed to put it back together because I needed to drive the car. It worked for a little while, but flew open in a left turn again so I've kept it belted since. Have not had time to get into it.


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## 95PGTTech (Jun 24, 2014)

Will it not latch because it's stuck in the full closed position or full open position?


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## WillK (Aug 29, 2010)

It will not latch because it won't stick in any position.


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## 95PGTTech (Jun 24, 2014)

Not the door itself, the latch. It sounds like you are describing it being stuck open. If you actuate it with a flathead screwdriver, what happens?


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## WillK (Aug 29, 2010)

Oh cripes... I'm an engineer, and while I've never been responsible yet for door latches (it is a job for which I've recently had a job interview, and the company is known for moving slow on filling jobs) I've worked with all kinds of parts and it's a matter of getting the time for me to figure this out myself. But I thought I was describing the problem in a manner that it's clear what is happening. The problem is fixed now.

It's not an especially complicated mechanism really. Generally speaking though, it's serviced as an assembly where the electric actuator, the latch mechanism, the linkage to the exterior handle and the mechanism at the handle are all one assembly. 

The failure was in the actual latch mechanism. There's a latch pawl, the piece that actually contacts the striker. This is simply a piece of metal that pivots and except for when either the interior or exterior handle is being pulled (when the vehicle is unlocked) it is supposed to catch on the striker then not rotate in the open position. This is prevented by a second piece that catches on the pawl to lock it in place.

This second piece is that which gets pulled on by the linkage from the door handles. It's spring loaded to catch by default. The problem was that this link was not returning to the latched position.

There was a lot of surface rust, so I simply sprayed everything with penetrating oil, confirmed it was functioning correctly, then sprayed everything down with white lithium grease, reassembled the latch then reassembled the assembly and reinstalled it.

By the way, yes I took the assembly apart down as far as I could without grinding off rivets. This wouldn't be for everyone, but if anyone else happens across a similar problem you can probably do this yourself as long as you cover any electrical contacts in the electric actuator.


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## 95PGTTech (Jun 24, 2014)

WillK said:


> Oh cripes... I'm an engineer, and while I've never been responsible yet for door latches (it is a job for which I've recently had a job interview, and the company is known for moving slow on filling jobs) I've worked with all kinds of parts and it's a matter of getting the time for me to figure this out myself. But I thought I was describing the problem in a manner that it's clear what is happening. The problem is fixed now.
> 
> It's not an especially complicated mechanism really. Generally speaking though, it's serviced as an assembly where the electric actuator, the latch mechanism, the linkage to the exterior handle and the mechanism at the handle are all one assembly.
> 
> ...


Nice fix. Yes, we service this as an assembly at the dealer, partly because Ford does not trust technicians anymore with internal diagnostic and repair, partly because it's ineffective use of time when you are billing $109/hr.

Typically in Fords, it's the electronics in these that fail, either the actuator itself or (in cases where apply) the door ajar indicator failing, causing havoc on interior lighting, security system, warning, chimes, etc. Nice DIY fix where one was capable. You could also pack it with red wheel bearing grease, helps keep the water out and really tends to stick on whatever you are trying to lubricate.


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