Door Lock Stuck - Fix with Pics!!!
 

Quite a few of us have experienced problems with the door locks sticking whereby either (a) the door cannot latch closed (pull the door closed and it just swings open again - the latch will not catch) or (b) the door has latched closed and now cannot be opened from either the inside or outside handles even though the door pin/operating rod pops up and down ok with the central locking.

Although there are various things that can go wrong with the lock and outside handle carrier - a common problem can be caused by the door lock mechanism sticking due to corrosion of the moving parts where the cable from the outside handle carrier connects to the door lock. Pulling the outside handle causes the lock mechanism to move up but then it sticks in the up position and it's return spring does not reset it to the resting position when the handle is released. This situation leaves the inner lock mechanism in a position where neither the outside or inside handle can release the catch to open the door.

Lubricating the sticking part involves accessing the door lock which of course involves removing the door card, side airbag and then the lock. Sounds a bit daunting but it's actually strightforward enough and the whole job took me about an hour not having done it before.

Of course if the situation is as (b) above then the lock mechanism must be unstuck before the door can be opened to remove the lock.
The good news is that it is possible to free the stuck mechanism without risking any damage or attempting to remove the door card with the door still closed!!!
Once you know in your minds eye the whereabouts of the stuck parts within the door cavity - a little "keyhole surgery" is all that's needed to get the door open.

You will need the following:
20 inches of wire coat hanger or welding rod or similar thin but stiff wire to free the stuck lock mechanism.
T20 Torx driver/wrench to remove door card.
T30 Torx driver/wrench to remove door lock.
4mm Hex wrench to remove the key cylinder (only required if working on the drivers door).
10mm Socket/wrench to remove the side airbag.
Flat head driver to pry door card clips, window switch and footwell light.
Spray on grease to lubricate the lock mechanism.

I used a welding rod which is quite thin but also very stiff. A wire coat hanger should work just as well. Put a small right angle bend about 8mm on one end and mark the wire about 10 inches from this bend with some tape (as a depth gauge). Bend the other end of the wire in the same or opposite direction (so you can tell which way the other end is pointing when it's in the door).

With the window open - the wire can be pushed down into the door cavity where the inner window channel cover ends. By pure chance, this entry point will drop the wire down exactly where you need it to go!
DO NOT PUT THE WIRE DOWN BETWEEN THE GLASS AND THE INNER SEAL - THIS WILL SCRATCH THE WINDOW TINT!!!

Here is a link to the RealOEM parts diagram of the front door control. Part #1 is the focus of our attention.

Here is a pic of the welding rod I prepared for the job and illustrates how far the wire will need to go down into the door cavity.
Attachment 34751

1. Okay - let's get started!
Open the window and insert the wire between the rubber channel cover and window frame as shown and push it down vertically about 9 to 10 inches with the bent end pointing towards the door jamb. Use the bend at the other end of the wire as a direction reference.
Attachment 34752

2. Raise the outside handle slightly as you prod downwards with the wire. When you feel the handle being pulled back in as you prod down - you know the wire is hitting the right spot. Prod down frimly a few times and then try the inside handle to release the door. Persist with this method until the inner handle releases the catch and the door opens. I got the door open in about a minute. The following pics from inside the door will show you what you are aiming to achieve.
Pic "A" shows the lock mechanism stuck in the raised position.
Pic "B" shows the wire successfully pushing the mechanism down to it's rest position. The door can now be opened with the inside door handle.
Pic "C" shows the wire as it rests on the now reset mechanism.
Pic "D" shows the wire rising as the outside handle is pulled.
Attachment 34753

3. Now that you have the door open, close the window and remove the door card as follows.
First remove the upper trim as shown below and pop off the "Airbag" sign.
Carefully pry up the window switch and disconnect the wiring as shown.
Attachment 34754

4. Remove the 4 T20 torx screws arrowed red and remove and disconnect the footwell light.
Attachment 34755

5. Starting at the lower inner corner carefully pry free the plastic retaining clips holding on the door card using the flathead driver (use a cloth between the tool and paintwork to avoid scratching).
Now use your fingers working along the bottom and then up the sides to free the remaining clips.
Pull the door card firmly away from the metal clips along the top edge.
Unclip the inner handle bowden cable clip as shown and remove the LED light from the inner door release lever.
Attachment 34756

6. Put the door card out of the way and the door now looks like this.
Unfix the airbag by removing the 3 bolts - DO NOT DISCONNECT THE CABLE (this could store an SRS fault code).
Gently peel back the foam lining as shown.
Refix the airbag temporarily to the lower fixing point using one bolt as shown.
Attachment 34757

7. Here is a view into the cavity towards the lock (the welding rod used free the mechanism is still in situ).
Release the inner handle bowden cable clip and push out and unhook the cable from the lock.
Use a flathead driver to pop the outer handle cable off the lock at the points shown below.
Attachment 34758

8. If working on the drivers side lock you will need to next remove the key
cylinder.
Pop off the blind plug in the door jamb (centre piece first) and remove the hex screw as shown below.
Attachment 34759

9. Pry out the key cylinder (the pic shows the passenger door so this is a cylinder blank).
Now remove the 3 T30 torx screws to release the lock.
Rotate the lock in the door cavity to access and remove the wiring connector
Remove the lock from the door cavity as shown.
Attachment 34760

10. Here is a pic of the now removed lock.
Attachment 34761

11. Below we can see the rust on the moving joints of the exposed mechanism causing the problem.
Apply a good coat of the spray on grease and work it in until the mechanism operates smoothly.
Attachment 34762

Reassemble everything in the reverse order.

[MODS - CAN THIS POST BE PUT IN THE X5 TIPS & TRICKS PAGE?]

To Also Remove the Handle Carrier
 

I didn't have a problem with the door handle carrier but I read here it's another common failure point so I may as well practise how to remove it now that I've come this far.

You will also need:
4mm hex wrench
8mm socket/wrench
Philips head screwdriver

Thanks to PersonaNonGrata who covers this item in more detail here.

You will have to perform step 8 above first if you have not already done so.
1. Looking inside the door at the Handle Carrier - we see that the handle at one end is retained by a "bayonet" socket.
Attachment 34763

2. Remove the lock cylinder or blank.
Remove the 8mm hex nut securing the handle to the other end of the Carrier.
Draw out and rotate the handle down as shown below.
Attachment 34764

3. Now we see the "bayonet" is in the free position and the handle can be drawn away from this end of the Carrier.
Attachment 34765

4. After removing the plastic bases - the Carrier retaining screw is revealed.
Attachment 34766

5. Remove the screw and the Carrier can be removed.
Attachment 34767
Attachment 34768

Reverse these steps to refit.

nice write up

I think this is articles worthy. Good writeup with good pics.

That was an excellent write-up. Great picture diagrams and captions. Kudos.

Thanks Brian,
Excellent, easy to follow write up along with plenty of quality pics.

Note to self: File under 'Doors n Stuff'

I have tried to change my handle mecanisme, but no luck. Cant it back together again. Any tricks to get back again?

Is this of any help, Chris.?

http://www.xoutpost.com/articles/x5/...andle-fix.html

Lykke til..:)

Great write up :) I have stripped the door card down on mine but the mechanism is free but the lock will still not release, is there a way of removing the mechanism without opening the door.

Nice Work.

Excellent!

OK I had to break the back off the locking mechanism ince I had done this I had access to the lock itself and could move it.

Just got redirected here from another thread, and just wanted to say this is a beautiful write up with great detail. Thanks for sharing this.

cable tension
 

i love this forum. always find good and accurate info.

i'm having the same problem and this thread has answered most of questions. BUT...

are you sure you can just move the cable bowden up one notch per this thread?- http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...e-carrier.html

looks like the plastic clip has two different thicknesses. i cannot seem to get it to go back in on the second slot.

hate the replace the entire thing with zero rust just because the cable has stretched a little.

also; i popped the cap off of the ball at the end of the cable. looks like there should be a way to shorten or adjust cable length at this point as well but it escapes me.

anyone have any ideas or suggestions?

Just want to thank you guys for the detail in this thread. I just changed my carrier out because of it.

Second that.:iagree:
I just replaced my carrier yesterday.

I could have done it in about 1hour and 15 min, from start to finish. If i hadn't started fuxxing around with how to put in the new carrier before screwing the first screw in..


I did not put the little wedge out through the hole, and let it rest against the car door. (The part furthest back where the door lock comes on..


I could never get the little hole for securing the door lock lined up, and messed around for nearly 1,5 hours, before i took the door carrier off again, and had a look at it...

Great guide in any case...

Thanks.

Describe how you got the screw (for the ext. lock) to line up because I had the same damn problem and it took me far too long to get it in and dont even know how in the end. :popcorn:

:thumbup:

Well.. It is hard for me to describe this in english.

What i failed to do initally, was to put the little black plastic that sticks out right next to the little hole, and rest it on the outside of the car door... The black pllastic is part of the plastic which also is in the hole described.....

What i did was screw it in the front first, which led to the other side to be dangeling... And i thought as soon as i got the screw fastened, it would hold the carrier in place.. It almost drove me nuts trying to get the screw into the lock...


when i finally put the carrier in properly, it only took minutes to get everthing fitted..


I'm sure this wasn't easy to understand. But my english gets limited describing details like this..

"you are a g@d damn%d genius pile!" the best description so far. made it a piece of cake to change out
thanks!

Great post guys, it worked perfectly for me...really appreciate your time to write this post

Any help with the back door/quarter window?
 

Hi All- this is a great write up and pretty straight forward. I am the 1,000,000,000th victim of this BMW crime against windows and doors. MY problem however is it is the back door. This write up shows the front door being opened with the the wire. ANYBODY had any luck with the back door and getting around the quarter window once the rod is inserted into the door?

To belabor the facts, my locking pin on my back driver's side door pops up and down when the central locking unit is depressed, the window is fully operable, but I cannot open the door. I cannot even access the panels to get into the door because (obviously) it is shut closed. Any ideas / advice / thoughts are welcomed.

Thanks

PS- Huge fan of this site and all that contribute.

anybody had to open a locked back door before?
 

any advice on how to get the back door open without having to go to an indy or the dealer?

I have the same problem too! Any ideas how to open the rear door to fix the issue?
I have a baby sitting in the car seat and its hard for the mother to try to climb up the car seat in order to enter/exit the car.
thx

Did u try removing the door panel?

I'm trying doing that right now! Hopefully it will come out due to the closed door...

I haven't tried yet because it appears you cannot access the bottom of the door/panel to get to it without major damage to the panel (cracking, breaking, etc...). The trim piece where the inside door handle can easily be removed, but any help/suggestions on the rest would be great.

Just finished!!
Here it goes..... U will have to open the door somehow. I tried by locking and unlocking with remote and at the same time pulling the outside handle. After 5-6 times the door opened up and I was free and clear to do the cleaning and greasing.
When u take all the screws necessary and the side curtain if u have one, the u will feel that the door panel is been stuck in its place somewhere in the middle top of the door. Just grab the panel and pull out and towards up. There is a clip right in the middle of the door holding it. U cannot access it by hand. Then after u take the door panel out u will see that middle clip in the middle. Right on top of it there is a plastic surround piece. Take it off and apply it to the door panel for easier installation back together. The rest, how to take out the door lick mechanism just follow the other guys instructions in this post. Same apply for the rear doors too.
Good luck!

OK
 

OK - Thanks. Just to be clear though, you (1) First were able to open the door by utilizing the lock/unlock feature and essentially getting lucky, not by accessing the panel? Then, after getting the door to fortunately unlock, and then open, you were able to access the door panel and work on greasing the carrier? Let me know if I have that correct or not at your convenience and thanks.

Yes, first I managed to open up the door, and then I pulled out the door panel, as there is no way you can pull off the door panel with the door closed.
I hope that will work for u too. Lock/unlock with remote one one hand and the other trying to open the door from outside. I didn't try do that from inside just in case the door pull handle may brake. But u can try inside and while u pulling the door pull, try to push against the door to open!?
Let us know what happen. Good luck

OK- Thanks for the update. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

If anyone out there has any additional ideas/input in case I don't get lucky, I'm all ears.

frozen door handle
 

Thank you very much for the post. Great pictures as well.

I just fixed my door last night. We had a heavy rainfall followed by a deep freeze and I could only get into my car from the back doors. I believe the problem is the door handle carrier. Picture

Water penetrates from the outer cable due to a nipple which has a flat top. The newer assembly has a rounded nipple which you can see in the picture. When I took mine apart the assembly was in perfect condition and my car is 10 years old. I smeared the end with grease, so we'll see if that fixes the problem. If not, I'll have to replace it or try to find a new cover.

One other thing, I looked at some after market replacement parts and most of them still have the flat top nipple. The only I saw that doesn't is one made from EZ.

EZ Door handle carrier

How to open the rear door when the outside and the inside handles don't work? I just changed the carrier on my right rear door with an aftermarket one. It worked well initially for several time then suddenly both handles don't work. When I put the after market one in, I noticed the cable is had a little more tension in rest position than the original one. I think the lock arm was stuck in middle position and did not go all the way down. I was happy when seeing this write-up and tried on my rear door but I think the position of lock is different on rear door. Appreciate if anyone can point me to the direction on how to open the rear door

I think you will need to remove the door card to access the lock . Sounds like one of the levers is not positioning properly .
The rear seat bench just pulls up from the front edge , no screw fixings , this will allow the door card removal with the door closed .

is there a write up for a fix for the inside door handle?

my passenger side door handle is has stopped working. it doesnt op the door and is just flimsy (it moves all over) but the door handle on the outside still works fine...

Wow nice thread. Subscribed.

Great thread, the tip with the wire saved me hours of headscratching, door was open in 10 seconds. Thank you again

Thanks for the write-up. great pics.

Kevin

Awesome write up, managed to fix my brother-in-laws X5 today by following the excellent explanation. The step by step description was spot on.

Many thanks, saved him a pretty penny.

Hello,

In my car I needed to replace the driver door actuator, some plastic thiny broke, so the inside door handle wasn't working anymore.
After replacement the driver door was not working anymore on the key or console button.
I removed fuses 20 and 24, next it was working again.

Hope this helps some one...
Greetings!

Brian, my 2003 X5 passenger door will not unlock from either the inside or outside door handle. However I am unable to get the door open, I've tried your procedure over and over to no avail. History: the power lock was intermittant for a while then just quit a few weeks ago ( I had planned on replacing the actuator )
Any thoughts? Is there another way to get the door open?

Very nice write up, I like it

If I understand you correctly - your passenger door lock will not unlock electrically? The door pin does not pop up on this door when you unlock the central locking?
Can you use a thin sharp tool to try pry up the plastic door pin to manually unlock the door? If this works then you can change out the actuator.

Yes that is correct - and my local Indy was not or was not willing to attempt the panel removal as he feared damaging it. I then scheduled an appointment with the local BMW dealer. But continued to research alternatives, when another post mentioned a body shop! A good friend has a large body shop business, so I discussed the problem with him, canceled my BMW appointment and brought there today. His tech had the door panel off in 20 minutes with no damage! Unfortunately I was unable to see how he did it. He them replaced the actuator and I was on my way I spent about 3 hours there, much was while we waited for the actuator delivery.

So in cases like mine where the actuator isn't working and the door won't open from inside or out and the lock button remains down the door panel must be removed with the door closed and, at least in my 2003 it is possible!

My X5 E53 drivers front door stuck shut inside and out
 

Thanks to Brian in Ireland for this fantastic post, I was able to open up the door using his coat hanger device.

I then played with the striker mechanism with the barrel of a screwdriver and noticed that it was a bit gummed up with dirt/dust and sometimes didn't release when pulling on the handles.

So, I sprayed a liberal amount of INOX lanolin spray into the moving parts of the striker mechanism from the side of the door......then tested repeatedly, using the screwdriver barrel to reset the latch.

Now all fixed..............took 10 minutes!

CRAIG.

Quick question... I am trying to open the drivers side door. The lock is in the lock position and won't unlock from the key hole, fob, unlock button, or inside handle. I ordered the carrier and had it over nighted. Does this sound like a door carrier issue? And with the door locked, will that trick to pop the door open work for me? Thanks!

Hello 215kid,

Yes, the coathanger method to open the door lock should work, whether the problem is a broken carrier or simply a dirty/gummed-up mechanism.

Either way, you will probably have to take the door lining (etc.) off to service the mechanism and fix the fault.

My quick fix worked for a few weeks, but now is still playing up occasionally.....looks like I'll have to take it all apart myself and clean and lubricate it from the inside.

Good luck with your lock.....

Thanks for the reply! I must be doing something wrong because I can't get it. I also just dropped my 18 inch metal ruler that I was using in the door. Great!

Hi again 215kid,

Just follow Brian's post with pics exactly and you should be able to open the door. Remember to make a steel rod with a 90 deg turn at the top and bottom as shown in his pics.... with a 10" mark, so you know where to stop and push firmly. Also, insert it in the spot as shown, and remember to open the door using the inside handle. It takes a little bit of fiddling, but shouldn't take long.

Anyway, your enquiry inspired me to do the job properly. So today I did the whole job myself, following Brian's instructions and it all worked perfectly. The outside door carrier wasn't broken, and the lock mechanism had a lot of rust and corrosion on the levers as indicated in Brian's last photos. The lock unit had to be removed, rust and blistered paint removed, then lanolin spray and grease added to moving surfaces of the levers,, particularly around the pivot points.

All now fixed....... took about 2 1/2 hours! :thumbup:

How did you go??

My problem turned out to be with the lock actuator. That was the reason why I wasn't able to simply pop the lock. So if your having a problem doing as mentioned above, lock actuator.

first off sorry i did not read the 5 pages in this thread.

my question is... i believe i have a bad door lock actuator. the door opens from the both sides and locks also. but the key mechanism and lock indicator do not work.
would this fix this? by lubing the actuator?

Hello ake53,

As you will see from Pics 10 and 11 of Brian's first post, the lock actuator is a 'sealed unit'.

So, if you can still open/close and lock the door with the central locking, the cleaning/lubricating solution discussed in this thread, may not be for you.

Nevertheless, you will have to follow Brian's instructions to remove it and replace it.

I suggest you find out if you can quickly source a spare one (maybe from a motor wrecker) and be prepared to swap it over, if you can't fix your one. Maybe your problem relates to the point where the key barrel joins the actuator unit? You will have to remove it and see.

Good luck..........

Brilliant
 

Brian,
Thank you for the million dollar tip!!!!
I used a spoke from a bicycle wheel as a tool.
It worked perfectly, it took me 3 minutes to open the door.
Thanks again,
Regards, Floris

PASSENGER DOOR WONT OPEN FROM INSIDE OR OUTSIDE
 

Hi all, first off a big thank you to this forum and its members. The assistance you have provided has been invaluable. And am therefore please to contribute as well.

PASSENGER DOOR WONT OPEN FROM INSIDE OR OUTSIDE
First determine by listening if the actuator is working or not. In my case it was not. So there was no signal from the door module (located on passenger door window switch) to the actuator.
I could therefore not open the door from either the inside or outside. THERE IS NO NEED TO REMOVE DOOR CARD INSITU IN THIS CASE.
What you need to do is “hot wire “ the actuator;
Remove the door switch, using a flat tool, preferably plastic.



Undo all the connectors on the bottom of the unit.
The white connector feeds power to the actuator motors.
You need to find the BLUE, WHITE and BLACK wires on this connector (PINS 12, 6 & 7)
The BLUE is the common wire with WHITE and BLACK going to the motors in the actuator.
LOCK: +12V to the WHITE/ BLACK wire and –ve/ ground on the BLUE wire
UNLOCK: +12V on the BLUE wire and –ve/ground on the WHITE/ BLACK wire
You have to reverse polarity to LOCK and UNLOCK.

TIP: I simply used a small jumper wire and used the existing +12V and –ve available on the big black connector to pulse the actuator.
WARNING: There are BUS cables amongst these – SO PLEASE DO NOT ATTEMPT UNLESS YOU ARE COMPETENT AND ABSOLUTELY SURE OF WHAT YOU ARE DOING!!
PM if I have not been clear on any issue and I can also send you a copy of the schematic. I will try to load pics, but don’t really know how.
Attachment 60424

Attachment 60425

Attachment 60426

First thanks to this thread. Two posts here really helped me. The one above, and the one about pulling fuses 20 and 24.

I changed the drivers side lock actuator. I was testing the door and then tried to lock and unlock it and it got stuck. The double lock would not disengage. With the fuse trick i got the door open. The post above clued me in that the window switch had something to do with the locks too, even though there is not lock switch on it. What I believe caused my door to be stuck locked was testing it without the window switch unit plugged back in.

Now the fix worked as advertised.

So to sum up, DO NOT TEST THE LOCK UNTIL EVERYTHING IS PLUGGED BACK IN.

"fuse trick"??

maybe this resets the module?

Aaaah, will try that.

Muj,

I Wish I could tell you the technical reason why it works, but I can only assume it resets the module.

Not sure how she did it, but three days ago the wife managed to get the passenger door stuck in the closed position and neither inner or outer door handle would open door. Locking system would respond to both key fob and console master button, but door would not open. Did a search, and found this thread. Once I made the 'tool', it took 30 seconds to get the door open. I worked the inner and outer handles a few times, and it now opens without a hitch. Once the weather clears up, I will remove the inner door skin and clean and lube the lever and pivot to hopefully keep it from happening again. Kudos to Brian for figuring this out and posting the great info.

Thanks again.

:thumbup::bow::beerchug:

THANKS A MILLION BRIAN!
Few days ago the door of my 2004 X5 3.0D stayed unlocked after opening it.
Meaning I could close it but it would not latch.
After trying to close it a few times it did close but would not open anymore....
Had to enter the car via the passenger door.
When pulling on the outside door handle I did not feel any resistance anymore and the inside door handle didn't do anything either.
The electric lock did work as usual.
A search on youtube revealed some vids on how to replace the door lock actuator and how to repair a door handle.
The BMW dealer told me it could be a tough job to replace the lock mechanism with the door being closed...
Managed to get the panel partly loose without damaging it but could not do anything further apart from trying to push/pull every metal item I could feel.
Decided to order a new door lock in the mean time (51218402537).

In the evening I started searching again for a fix and came across this topic.
Made a stiff rod as per Brian's specs and within a minute the door was open!
removed the inside panel completely and could open/close/lock/open the door as usual.
Will remove the lock tomorrow and apply a good coat of grease on the moving joints.
Thanks again Brian!

Im having the same issue i mad the jig and have tryed and tryed to unlock the passenger door but have had no luck.
I have got the jig down where it needs to be and i can open the latch by pushing down on the rod but can not get the door open. Any suggestions?

Is the electric lock actuator still working?
If all the doors are locked, can you unlock them all by pulling on the inside of the door handle of the affected door?
Do you feel resistance when you pull on the inside door handle?
Do you feel resistance when you lift the outside door handle?
I mean the same resistance as on the other doors.
Can you move the welding rod up/down by pulling on the outside door handle (to be sure that it rests on the correct lever)?

The dealer told me that if it's the inside of the lock not working properly it might help if someone pushes on the door while trying to open it.
It would release the pressure on the locking part of the doorlock.

I just read the first page so far, but I'd like to add my findings too lol.

This happened to me yesterday, and it luckily isn't my first stuck hinge/handle situation.

All I did was move the latch in the door by hand so it locks (door will bounce off the car if you try to close it now) then you just lift up on the handle and it opens the latch assembly again, and the door will close.

I shot some undercoating in the hinge assembly later on, but here's hoping I can avoid this by SLOOOWLY opening my door haha.

Thank you ...Thank you...Thank you...I fixed my door carrier and the door would not open once I used the key fob to lock it. It would not open from the outside or the inside. But using a coat hangar and pushing down on the carrier cable finally worked.

I would not call that a fix. A fix is when you repair something so it will operates as designed. :rofl:

Fully agreed. It is not a fix. But now I can fix it...I can now remove the door pad easily without destroying anything.

Well I just read 7 pages of excellent material.My problemis the rear drivers side door is closed ,lock mechanism works with both central locking switch,key fob ,and by pulling the inside handle. The only problem, the door will not open .. This happened about 3 weeks ago and it was freezing out so I figured I would just wait out the weather and fix it when it got warmer. One day I took the truck to the car wash and after the guys were done drying it one of them went to open the door and BINGO the door opened. Luckily I had some WD-40 and I sprayed the crap outta the door latch area and it worked fine till last night. Now I'm scratching my head like WTF? I guess I'll wait (or go to car wash again ,LOL) . Should I remove the mechanism and grease it up ? Or could it be the cable as described not having enough "tension"? Thanks

Well done Brian.
 

Thanks Brian. My wife had a knee replacement operation and I picked her up from hospital in my 2006 3.0D. Once in, I could not get her out as neither the internal or external door handles would work. I lowered the front passenger seat as far as possible and she slid into the back seat and out the back door. Not easy 5 days after the op. Anyway, next day I read this article (I was forwarded to it by Xdrivers.co.uk). I found an old bicycle mudguard stay and bent it as advised and the door was open in about a minute. After opening, the mechanism clicked back into gear so no further action needed at this stage. The new tool (mudguard stay) is now in the door compartment in case of need. Your guide really was a lifesaver. Thanks again.

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

I just did this on the front passenger side. One thing to note that will help others. If you look at step 2 of the door handle carrier steps, you can see that as you remove the blank or the lock, there are small indents in the straight profiles of it. When re-installing, you need to insert the blank/lock as far as it will go, press the carrier tight from behind and slide the blank/lock towards the handle. So, squeeze together tight, slide blank/lock towards the handle. This will lock the two together in alignment, but it will also align properly to get that screw mentioned in step 8 of the first post to line up.

Hope that helps.

BrianX54.4is, thank you so much for the fantastic article, used it to replace 2 different locks yesterday! I had to slim-jim the one door as you detailed, as it stopped opening from inside and outside and central, and replace the lock. Your post made it go super easy! Thank you so much!

Hi

Not sure if anyone monitoring this thread, if yes may I know your inputs.

On a cold day, my door carrier got struck and with immature knowledge, I pull the handle inside Black wire circular knob off from the place.

Here is the problem, I replace carrier first since I have an issue with key fob does not lock but I use to have rest all like side mirrors all door mirrors and lights are working.

I thought it could Actuator issue then I replace that one.

since then, door mirror will not up and down, key fob will not work, left mirror does not work, only things are working are all lights and driver side door works.

I can here sometimes first unlock on key fob make noise at the door that tells actuator has been working.

after checking further I realized below connectors are loose. If I press on top and then hit the buttons then they are working otherwise they are not

white-gray/green ==> connector for lights and door mirror
Black ==> Side Mirrors

and another switch it seems one of the metal rounds is missing in one of the female port. I do not know to post the pics here.

May I know how will I able to fix this issue and post images

I have been hovering here for a while but I thought this was worthy of a response, I am 5 months into X5 ownership.

This is a very old thread but I am sure its still helping lots of people. It helped me complete a seemingly impossible and expensive task - how do you fix the lock if you can't open the door to get the door card off?!

I followed the instructions and it worked perfectly for me. Two things I will say - make sure you read step 1 properly, I originally put the rod down the wrong gap and had no luck but in the right spot the door was open in seconds!

Second thing is I had a can of copper grease spray and I used this to lube the lock, I took it out the door to do this but realised that you can spray the lock in situ and work the handle a few times until it moves freely. It doesn't save much time but its worth noting, might be worth a precautionary spray on all other locks!

The hardest part for me was getting that stupid plastic clip in the middle of the door car back in to the bracket when putting the door card back on!

Hi all,
Just read through this excellent post(great write-up!)! FYI---that little black plastic dealio in the middle of the inside of door panel is called a "Grip Support"(Part #51418156532). They break cuz they get brittle and when you give a yank to get panel off after detaching all clips/wires/connections/etc., they will crack sometimes.

Steve

Stumped
 

Firstly this is a brilliant post but it has not worked for me pushed down hard on the rod as it says but still wont open .Completely stumped don't what to do next ??
Any suggestions most welcome can't think what to try next
Thanks

Great write up worked absolutely perfectly. Thank you. Door now back in operation.
Took the handle carrier out for a quick check and lub job, just in case, having had to replace the one of the drivers side a while back.
One point, it may be worth placing a small block of wood in the door jamb, to prevent you inadvertently knocking the door closed whilst manoeuvring around it, like what I did. Both handles were disconnected at the time!!!!!:banghead:

My passenger door has been stuck since we had that bad weather a few months ago,some days the door took 2 or 3 attempts to lock or unlock until eventually it stayed stuck locked.

I have managed to get the door panel off and when looking inside the recess my lock is actually stuck in the position in figure B rather than figure A.

I have pulled on interior door release cable whilst pushing the mechanism up and down but the door still won't open.


My car is in for its MOT tomorrow so I can only hope they can sort it otherwise it won't pass

PS What a bad head trying to get the panel off:swear:

Excellent post. Just went through this for the first time on my '02.

I've done a lot of things on this car, and this ranks right up there in the PIA factor. I used a genuine part and even then had a problem with the new allen head bolt not easily aligning and screwing in to the lock tumbler. Ended up grabbing my original one and it screwed in just fine.

I lost my mind for a good period of time as I went to insert the handle during the reassembly. Got the pivot in just fine (push hard from inside while pushing in hard on the handle to easily insert pivot as well as add some lube). But what jammed me up was that the bolt on the outer part of the handle that has the small nut had moved back a bit and I could no longer lift up on the handle. The screw was apparently catching on the inside of the handle with the door carrier.

Pricing was all over the place with the dealers that ranged from $150-250. I mentioned to 4th dealer I called, who wanted $210 and at least had in stock, and he matched at $150.

Thank you Brian for the post!! I was searching on a fix for this problem and some said to remove the door inside panel and nearly gave up before I started. Until I saw this and God send I opened the door in less then 5 min. It's only my second time I ever worked on my BMW. Very clear and precise pictures and instructions!!! Thanks again!!!

This really works!
 

Thank you,

I have now twice solved this locking problem on the passenger door of my X5. I must now carry out the rest of the advice and grease the offending links.

Thank you so much. This would have been an expensive garage job otherwise.

😀

Kind regards,

Tim

great write up btw, had this happen recently and referred to this post for help!

Hi everyone,

I am having an issue where I replaced the door carrier on the rear passenger. It was a pain to remove the old one so I unbolted the lock actuator to give me more space. Also had removed the metal lock/unlock rod that comes out of the door to show it is locked or not.

After reinstalling everything I went to do a test with the panel still off. Now the door will not open at all. It is not stuck in lock either.

Does anyone know of a way to get the actuator to open besides interior cable? It definitely unlocked just seems stuck closed like the actuator is not releasing and allowing the door to open.

Thank you in advance!

Sent from my GM1917 using Tapatalk

Excellent instructions from Brian which saved me considerable time and effort, thank you Sir. I have previously changed two drivers door handle carrier mechanisms on my X5’s (2005 & 2006) which thankfully both failed “door open” condition so it was only necessary to follow the door card off and replace door handle carrier procedure, not a pleasant job but take your time and it can be done. Last week the front passenger door handle carrier mechanism on one of my X5’s failed but in “door shut” condition and I have to admit until I read the comprehensive instructions from Brian I was concerned it would necessitate sacrificing the door card to gain access to the internals but the wire tool and depth tape saved the day and after following the instructions to the letter the door was open and I breathed a sigh of relief. A few hours later all was back together and fully functional.I was just reading the post by Draztik and may have had the same problem, everything refitted and thought I would test before refitting the door card but the lock would not operate or allow me to close the door so I refitted the window switch mechanism to the wiring ( three plugs) without the door card and the door lock worked normally allowing me to refit everything . I presume the circuit for the door lock is routed through the window switch?Hope this helps.

This is all fine and dandy. But I can't even open the fucking inside of the door because my ex-boyfriend broke it so I can't open it from the inside or the fucking outside so now what??? How do you take the door panel off from the fucking inside when you can't open the door at all? There's no way to open it from the inside or the outside the driver's door is fucked I have to climb in through the passenger side and I'm tired of it help me fix it please

Mizzroxy69, the very first post on this thread explains one method for resolving your problem. Slow down, take a deep breath and take the time time to understand what Brian is doing with the bent peice of wire.

Once you have the door open using Brian's wire method, you can use some of the rest of the thread info. to fix the lock/latch.

Wishing you lots of luck... ssems like that is something you're kinda short of lately... ;)

Passenger Window jammed inside frame
 

Hi there, i used this thread to open passenger door on my X5 e53 door which would not open (it worked, thank you) and while trying to fix the window (which was stuck in the bottom position) discovered the window was actually jammed inside the frame of the door. See pix 1.
Attachment 79861 in the photo, you can see that the window goes under the metal frame of the window as opposed to keeping clear of it.
My handle stays partly open because the latch(?) sits on the window itself because the window is probably 1.5cm too much towards the jamb of the door. (Pix 3)
Attachment 79862
The bottom hinge is actually dislodged and the window is completely stuck in its position. See pix 2
Attachment 79864
Even with my 2 hands i could not move it a millimeter.
I removed all the bolts securing the 2 guides and the bolt securing the motor. I can now move the window 5mm up and down but not sideways(which you need to unjam it). Any help would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

The front vertical edge of the window is supposed to slide up and down inside a rubber-lined U-shaped channel as a guide.

I will guess that due to other failures, the window shifted rearwards and the front edge is now hung up on one of the tops of the U, rather than being settled in at the bottom of it.

So I'd focus on the front edge of the window, moving it in and out (towards the vehicle left and vehicle right), hoping it can get unstuck and fall into the U channel. At that point, the rear problem will be fixed as well.

Brian - Thank You
 

Link to Post - https://xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-forums/...-fix-pics.html

Thanks so much for this Brian - Piaras here in Perth Western Australia.

Completely in the dark on this one - no way to open the passenger door.

Your clear and concise instruction with pics made it possible.

PS: Does need something like a welding rod though (which I had) - tried for some time with wire coat hanger (not enough rigidity)

This has been said before but just wanted to add my own experience. I needed to open the door on a X5 at Pick'N Pull to remove the side passenger mirror.

I can confirm as other have said that it is possible to remove the door panel with the door closed (front passenger).

The rod trick wouldn't work for me. After removing the side airbag, I had good access to the mechanism but was unable to push it.

What finally worked for me was to apply 12V current to the actuator. I believe it was the blue wire and one of the white one. That finally unlocked the door and I was able to open it.

Thanks!

one of my three torx bolts is stripped inside the lock, it just spins but won’t back out. any ideas on how to remove?

Put inward pressure on the lock assembly (via the main aperture) while spinning the stripped bolt...

This job was pure hell !! I'm a DIY mechanic I do everything suspension brakes, intake manifolds, brakes, etc this was the worse car experience I ever had and I'm over 50 years old. I want to punch the BMW engineer in the face who created this over complicated door mechanism that is junk and prone to failure. A few days ago 12/23/22 very cold freeze days, opening the door I broke my handle carrier passenger side. Common problem, simple replace the door carrier right? After replacing the door carrier (that took about 6 hours of hell) upon the door locking, I couldn't get it open from outside or inside. I found this thread, luckily I didn't have to resort to this method as trying it maybe 30 times the door finally opened. The root cause thanks to amazon reviews, was the cable on the aftermarket part was like a 2 millimeters short causing the unlock not to work. I could write a book, tons of videos on youtube and no one tells you the finer details of likely problems you will face. My recommendation to most people, pay someone it will worth the money.

So I’ve been having a similar issue but if I could lay out all details to see if anyone has a tip
Three weeks ago I began replacing a drivers side door handle carrier. This is my third x5 and is always a recurring issue so I’m very comfortable now replacing them. Hadn’t put the door panel back on and went to go somewhere and my battery/alternator quit.
So then after a new alternator and battery I’m up and running again. Back to the door project!
Door was opening and closing fine with new carrier, door card still off and window switch attached. Locks working with key fob, and still do. I locked the door with fob and then No!! Cannot open door. Door stuck shut.
The door card is open so I can easily see carrier is attached with ball clip properly seated. It moves the levers and I’ve manually moved them in the manner of the slim Jim trick to see if it just isn’t getting far enough but it seems that part is working properly. The inside handle wire also seems to be working fine.
So I’m thinking all I have left to try is the 12v to the actuator? Is there any other manual flipping of the levers I can try being that the door card is open?

Glad I found this post, thank you Brian!

Couldn't open passenger door so ordered new handle carrier from BMW.

Went to carry out job and found it wouldn't open from inside either.

Quick search I found this post and after making a tool from a metal coat hanger door was open in seconds!

Has worked ok since but I'm going to have to get the card off and grease up the points shown.

Thank you Brian!! It worked, took me 5 minutes,
 

;)

Hi All -

Replying to this thread because it was my turn to have door lock problems. Looks like I'm in good company. :-)

A couple of months ago I started noticing problems with the central locking on the front passenger’s side door of my 2005 X5 3.0. At that point, the lock didn’t seem to want to go down to the locked position consistently when locking the doors with the key fob, but it could still be locked and opened manually.

I bought an OEM door lock actuator assembly (ouch! $$) and had made a mental note to just live with it until the weather gets a little cooler. Apparently that was not a great plan, as last week the passenger side door became stuck in the closed position. The door lock knob stayed down, and neither the inner or outer door latch would open the door.

I first tried using the bent rod tip described in the original post of the thread. I was able to find the position of the lock mechanism pretty easily (I could feel the handle being pulled back as I pushed down with the rod, as described in the procedure) but no amount of prodding/pushing with the rod made the door able to be opened with either the inner or outer latch.

The next thing I tried was pulling fuse #20 and #24 as suggested in post #40. No luck there, unfortunately.

In my case, the only thing that worked for me was the approach suggested in posts #41 and #44: taking the door card off with door closed to access the actuator. It wasn't especially easy to do, but it can be done (at least on my 05) if you're slow and careful. Once I had access, I was able to start prying the plastic cover off of the actuator assembly (as suggested way back in post #12). Almost immediately, something gave internally and the door popped open.

So as others have suggested, if your actuator is the problem the bent rod trick probably isn't going to help you. Thanks to all who contributed to this thread - lots of helpful information. The job was still a real PITA, but surely could have been worse.

Best regards,
Chris
Lockhart TX