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Sat Mar 05, 2011 3:09 pm

Just got my 53 back from the workshop and the drivers door lock has got issues :roll:

Have searched but not found any info on the cab door lock mechanism.

Can anyone help me out with pics of inside lock and what may be causing the prob? Can other bd owners share their experience :?:

When u shut the door it will lock itself??

U can lean thru window and use inside door handle to open door.

The key will not open the door. and the ice pick handle will not open the door??

I swapped ice pick handles over and the other door will open as it should with key.

still have the problem with drivers door so guess it is something in the mech thats not quite right. what would cause this and how can I fix it?

thanks

Sat Mar 05, 2011 11:06 pm

I'm not totally sure what you are asking but here's a basic run-down:

The door does not lock just by shutting the door, meaning you can still open the door from the inside if the door handle is locked.

The door handle lock and unlocks but this changes the door handle only.
When it is locked, the handle does not push on the door mechanism to make it open when you pull on it.
If you remove the handle from the door and lock/unlock it with the key, you can see how it activates or deactivates the part that moves to push on the door mechanism inside the door. The is a pin that moves in and out to cause the other part of the outside door handle to move or not move.

The above is really basic so if this is obvious to you, I apologize, and please explain your trouble further.

Sun Mar 06, 2011 3:25 am

My guess is you have a passenger side door mechanism installed in your driver's door.

Driver's side and passenger side door mechanisms are different. The former are not lockable, the latter are lockable via the inner door handle. In other words: You lock the driver's door by turning the key and "deactivating" the outer door handle, while you lock the passenger door by pushing the inner handle forwards so that the door cannot be opened from the outside.

So you have either mixed up your door mechanisms or you have passenger side door mechanisms installed in both doors.

Sun Mar 06, 2011 3:30 am

Thanks EverettB :oops:

I had a pair of bullterriers on my case at the time of writing :roll:

What I was after was a pic of lock and inside and any info on what would cause the problem.

I will remove the lock today and take a proper look.

Sun Mar 06, 2011 10:50 am

Post a photo of your lock mechanism inside the door after you remove the door handle so we can see it.

This will tell us if you have a driver's side or passenger side mechanism on the driver's door.

One way to tell is with the passenger side, you can move the inside handle forward to lock it as someone mentioned above. It sort of pops back and forth locked and unlocked. It will go forward more than a correct driver's side handle.

If necessary I can make a video...

This is a 61-64 driver door mechanism. Different year but same general look as a Barndoor one:

The passenger one will look different if you remove the handle because there is a piece that moves up and down when you move the inside handle forward and back like you are locking/unlocking it.

Sun Mar 06, 2011 11:33 am

Ok removed the drivers (LHD) door lock mechanism today. part no. 211837016B .

The door opened fine and locked with the key, and when shut it would not automatically lock itself. the problem was only there when I collected the bus from a garage after having some other unrelated work done.

So what happens now is when u shut the door you are unable to open with the ice pick door handle, or even the key :? :shock: u have to put arm thru window and use internal handle.

From what I can work out from looking into the lock, the hook in the door mech moves up into the locked position, it does not move along horizontally :?: is something broke inside.

When you release the internal handle after opening the door the latch that secures door shut to the b post does not seem to return out fully. (sorry hard to explain).

I have taken some pics What are your thoughts?

back of lock mech

The hook ends up in this locked position

push latch in and the hook returns, it should stay level and move across horizontally ? am I right.

the door spindle faces upwards when looking at the back of lock mech/ part numbers.

Do I need a new mech ? can a later bus one be used?

thanks

Sun Mar 06, 2011 12:38 pm

211 837 016 is a passenger door lock mechanism (LHD). Driver's side is 211 837 015. The letter "B" reveals that it is the latest version used in combination with the ice pick handle.

Judging from your pictures it's working okay. Make sure that the inside handle is not in the most forward position before you shut the door.

Still, it might be better to buy a new (driver's side) lock mechanism so as not to lock yourself out accidentially. They are fairly easy to find and not expensive.

Sun Mar 06, 2011 12:48 pm

Thanks Crashbox for the part no. info

What I don't understand is why it no longer works using the key :?

The lock mechanism has been in this door for many years.
and it opened and locked all ok with the key.

anyone have any ideas or pics of what the internals of the lock look like?

Sun Mar 06, 2011 10:25 pm

It looks shot in this photo, the locking tab should be sticking straight out.

vwsplitvan wrote:

push latch in and the hook returns, it should stay level and move across horizontally ? am I right.

This is correct. It should move left and right horizontally when you push on the piece on the right that locks the door shut. This is also the piece the outer door handle presses on to open the door.

If it's broken, it doesn't matter if the outer handle is locked or unlocked, the piece on the outer handle that pushes against the tab on the inner mechanism pictured above may not be pushing against anything so it won't work.

I think you need a new mechanism. You have a "B" which is already a post-Barndoor mechanism as far as I know so you can find another one of those.

If I remember right Barndoors have an "A" mechanism.

Mon Mar 07, 2011 9:51 am

vwsplitvan wrote: Thanks Crashbox for the part no. info

What I don't understand is why it no longer works using the key :?
The lock mechanism has been in this door for many years.
and it opened and locked all ok with the key.

anyone have any ideas or pics of what the internals of the lock look like?

The 2 locking mechanisims work seperate from each other. If it is locked by pushing the inner handle down the key will not unlock the door using the outside handle.

Like EB said your latch is FUBAR'd.

Mon Mar 07, 2011 3:28 pm

Is a post 55 ice pick door handle different to a barndoor bus one?
and in what way?

anyone got pics of the 2 types together please?

and Can the post 55 handle be used on a barndoor?

also any info on the part no. of a barndoor locking one?

thanks

Mon Mar 07, 2011 3:56 pm

vwsplitvan wrote: Is a post 55 ice pick door handle different to a barndoor bus one? and in what way?

and Can the post 55 handle be used on a barndoor?

also any info on the part no. of a barndoor locking one?

You can use a handle up through 1961.

The difference is cosmetic only - Barndoor handles are thicker on the backside and more crude-looking.

You understand that your problem is not the outside door handle though, right?

Mon Mar 07, 2011 3:59 pm

Here's a couple photos of the passenger side (right side) of my '55 Barndoor.

Locked:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=782665

You can see how the hook would just move to the right and totally miss the mechanism, preventing the door from opening

Unlocked:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=782666

Now the mechanism is in line with where the hook from the door handle will be, so when you pull the handle, the hook will press against the mechanism and open the door.

Mon Mar 07, 2011 4:04 pm

Thanks Everett

Yes I know that was not the prob :wink: but I found that the ice pick handle had been fractured also, So looking to replace as it wont last much longer.

A post 55 locking one would be easier to find

But if anyone has a locking bd one then please pm

Mon Mar 07, 2011 4:29 pm

Can you post photos of your outside door handle too?

Include the part number if it is not visible in the photos.

I'm interested to see what is cracked.
I noticed my outer door handle base has a crack when I removed it to take those photos.

Tue Mar 08, 2011 2:02 pm

It looked like a crack but when I removed the handle it was where the inner and outer part of the handle met, there was some wear/play which along with the crusty chrome surround looked very much like a crack :roll:

it was hard to read the part no. on handle due to pitting, looked like ***837295 VW logo BUM (* =what I could not make out)

red line shows what I thought was break :oops:

Do I have a later handle?

Where is the crack on your handle Everett?

Tue Mar 08, 2011 6:22 pm

Yes, you have a later handle.

My handle is cracked between the 2 mounting screws.
I have seen other handles cracked there too, I think it's common.

Here's an example of a '54 handle

Tue Mar 08, 2011 7:29 pm

This guy in the Split Bus what did you do today thread posted some photos of his door latch he repaired:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=5183262#5183262

This may be the issue with your latch as well.

From that post:
Quote: Before:

After:

Tue Mar 08, 2011 10:09 pm

I had to do the same thing to mine