ok guys, i tried searching, and i couldnt Find a thing!! I think my door handle, or lock, or the Little Hinge thing that holds the door closed when you close it might need some type of lubrication but im not sure. I have NEVER had a problem with my Lock, then last night, i got home, Closed my door, and went in the house, then 5 minutes later i went back to the car to get my cell phone which i left inside. I Put the KEY IN, TURNED IT BOTH WAYS, And IT Does NOTHING! My Security light Wont Come on, and i CAN'T Lock or Unlock the Door with my Key!! But i can Lock it and Unlock it with the Button on the Inside! So i have to open my Passenger door to unlock the Driver, I dont understand. The only thing i can assume is that mabeye it is acting Odd due to the Fact It is Absolutley Freezing here, lots of Snow . But it has always worked Fine Untill now!????
Please Help me out Guys!
- Ben

 

I know that the door handles always seem to have a prolbem with breaking but I havent heard of any locking prolbems. The best thing to do is remove the door panel and check things out. Maybe with the cold weather the plastic is now getting brittle and it just broke. Shouldn't be that big of a deal to fix.

 

Had the same problem. Except I couldn't open from Inside either!

Your door latch/striker plate assembly Is either jammed or, In my case, a spring broke off.

I had to buy this assembly before I determained that was at fault. You own a s4 GXL. The part # FB05-59-310. It cost $101.17 can with discount and tax Included. Easy to repair. Just remove handle which Is retained by 2 10mm nuts and obviously the door skin too.

 

There is a bar that runs from the door key mechanism to the door latching assembly. It is held in place at either end with a plastic swing type snap. I just sent one of these bars to a Forum member in a regular envelope, to give you an idea of it's length.

Go to any place that installs auto alarms. The snap for installing aftermarket power sylinoids is the same snap that works for the door lock assembly.

This is something you should find easy to do, so all you need is to get a couple of snaps from them and do it yourself. I'd advise you take the bar out WITH THE REMAINING SNAP ON IT and have it in hand to remove any confusion of which snap you need.

Alternatively, if you go there with the door panel already off (hopefully you have a garage to do this in considering your cold weather), it will take them about 5 minutes to replace the swing snaps. Thus, minimized the cost of repair to probably a 6 pack of beer.

Good luck!

 

is it that your key is having a hrd time tuning in the keyhole, or that its turning easily and nothing's happeneing? i had the problem that my key was aobut to snap everytime i un/locked my drivers side. A tablespoon of 10W-30 into the lock hole, a couple of turns to get the iol worked in, now it turns smooth as my girlfriends.... face

 

I have the same exisiting problem now too. Except It's with Passengers Door. I doubt It Is the Striker/Latch Plate assembly, like the one on the Drivers door I replaced. I give It a shot of WD-40 but the next day, especially In the cold, It will reoccur. So tight, when I'm rotating the key to unlock It, It feels like It's going to snap. Could It be the Lock Cylinder? Has anybody else had simular problems with success on correcting It?

 

The original poster's problem sounds like a broken plastic clip, or broken rod. There are several that come off the handle assembly, and removing the door panel and inspecting will make the fault obvious.

As for lubrication, you should not use WD-40 to lube a lock. Powered white lithium grease should be used. WD-40 attracts dirt, which is murder on the lock cylinder.