Door Locking Weirdness

[susiestout]

Three different times this has happened. First time. Unlocked car. Passenger and myself climb in. Driver's door will not close--it hits and bounces back. So I unlocked, locked, unlocked, opened all the doors, closed them and repeated and driver's door shut.

2nd time. About three weeks later. This time daughter was driving. Same thing. Driver's door won't close. Open, close, lock, unlock etc. No luck. Husband went to car, open, close, lock, unlock, repeat and driver's door shut.

3rd time. About three weeks later. This time I was driving again. Driver's door bounced, wouldn't shut. Did all of the above over and over. Called triple A to tow to dealer kinda hoping it would actually stay messed up so dealer could fix this time. AAA was scared to tow smart car--he'd never seen anything like that. So... I bungeed the driver's door to the passenger door and drove it to dealer. I hit 8 mph and click. All doors locked. So when I arrived at dealer, everything worked just fine. (Rats)

Now... about two weeks later. I noticed that the doors aren't locking at 8 mph any more. Everything is unlocked when I arrive at my destination. Manual lock/unlock works just fine. I don't think these issues are related-- but at least THIS one is a consistent issue so maybe they can fix it.

Anyone else had any door locking issues?

[DowneasTTer]

Yes, been there, done that. A search for door problems will show a few of us. The only "real" fix is a trip to the dealer and a replacement of the latch. The condition will only get worse. So call a smartcenter soon.

DowneasTTer
Orrington, ME

[JPaul]

Like in:
door won't shut!
Hope it gives you a better idea, even if it doesn't help...

[susiestout]

Hey Thanks!! I've been to the dealer three times--they can't ever get the problem to occur. I just printed out that whole thread--maybe they will fix it this time!!

[msjohnson1974]

Did you check for water in the battery compartment? Another thread mentioned that one of the computers was there and moisture could cause odd behavior. Just a thought since everything on this car goes through the computer.

(the water in that area happens when the A/C condensate hose is disconnected - for some reason the engineers ran the hose through the battery compartment.)

[bshul_aol]

Hello,
I had the same problem with my smart. The driver's door wouldn't latch...sometimes and the door would just bounce of the latch. The problem is that the plastic exterior door handle gets stuck in the pulled position, when you enter and keeps the latching mechanism from operating properly. I just lubricated the handle, especially where it enters the door. I used a dry lubricant for plastics. Other lubricants might melt the plastic.

Burt

[cinqg]

Originally Posted by bshul_aol

Hello,
I had the same problem with my smart. The driver's door wouldn't latch...sometimes and the door would just bounce of the latch. The problem is that the plastic exterior door handle gets stuck in the pulled position, when you enter and keeps the latching mechanism from operating properly. I just lubricated the handle, especially where it enters the door. I used a dry lubricant for plastics. Other lubricants might melt the plastic.

Burt

Is it the latch or the cable in the door panel stretches when heated by the sun, my smart did it one afternoon and if you pull the inside door latch gently all the way then shut the door that seemed to do the trick. But if you pull real hard you are just stretching an already stretched cable that may be the cause not the door latch itself. I called my dealer in Devon Pa and they had one complaint and replaced the latch itself, which I do not think is the culprit.

[doenut]

Don't mean to hijack this thread, but I have a different issue. Sometimes (not frequently) I will be in my kitchen (very near the garage) and I have been home for perhaps two hours or so and I hear my car doors lock! Just out of the blue! Only does it rarely. Has anyone else had this happen?

[JPaul]

Originally Posted by doenut

Don't mean to hijack this thread, but I have a different issue. Sometimes (not frequently) I will be in my kitchen (very near the garage) and I have been home for perhaps two hours or so and I hear my car doors lock! Just out of the blue! Only does it rarely. Has anyone else had this happen?

Probably too obvious: where is your key when that happens? In our pocket? You guess what I'm hinting at...

[John_H]

Just when I have my keys in my pocket.