NEED INPUT ON STUCK FJ40 door (1 Viewer)

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love2fly

Flying the Mountains of the NW
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Sep 7, 2004
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Asking for some input on possible what to try next on a new FJ40 door latch that was just installed and now is hard to open. Sticks closed, hard to release.
To open now one has to push real hard on the inside of the door while holding the inside latch in the open position to get the latch to release. The latch is an after market brand (no name). Maybe one of you folks have gone through this before and may have a fix or ? The the door pillow catch is also new.

Things done so far:
Set the pillow latch to were it is center of the doors latch "C" catch.
Checked the doors hinged pins by lifting on the outer end of the door for movement- none found.
Looked in the latch to see the pull travel from the doors inside pull rod and it looks to be okay
Sprayed a small amount of lube in the latch - no change

MAybe the latches are just cheap and it is a crap shoot with these latches.

Old latch is well worn and rattles so not an option.

Any input is welcome.

Thanks



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is the door panel off? can you see the linkages flexing?
just to understand, from inside, you push out on the door while having the lever open?
how does it work from outside? any issues?
 
Aren't OEM latches still available? I had similar issues with one of my doors, replaced it with OEM and it's good as new. I can't tell if my old latch was after market or not. I swapped mine out as purely a troubleshooting step and it worked.
 

3_puppies , yes I have the latch side of the inside panel undone and can view the inside of the latch area as it works and it looks just fine and yes when the handle on the outside is pulled the latch works as it should, perfact ??

I have not seen any OEM latches for a while hence thats why the aftermarket.

 
OEM catch and latches are available and spendy as expected. The doors usually get sticky when the pull handle does not "pull enough" or when the latch rests on the catch or if the catch goes too deep into the latch or if the outer door handle and the latch are not synching.

Start by adjusting the inner door pull to see if it can pull more. Otherwise, it's a case of adjusting in/out/up/down on the catch to get a smooth as possible action exerted on the catch by the latch. OEM does limit the amount of playing needed.
 
I did place a vice grip onto the pull rod of the door handle and pulled while looking at the release mechanisms travel within the latch and it shows that does reach it max travel without any obstructions and bottoms out in its stop. So without the grip in place and just using the inside release handle it also has the the same results as stated above were the catch does not release. I even add a small amount of body weight from outside the door pushing in to see if taking pressure of the latch will help bur with no results, still will not release. Again I can with one finger lift on the outside on the door handle and the door opens without and restrictions.
At this point and I do appreciate the input but I now am convinced that the latch is faulty and will pull it an find another one and try again hopefully without any problems.
It was from Cool Cruisers of so it s heading back to them.


Cheers guys -thanks
 
I did place a vice grip onto the pull rod of the door handle and pulled while looking at the release mechanisms travel within the latch and it shows that does reach it max travel without any obstructions and bottoms out in its stop. So without the grip in place and just using the inside release handle it also has the the same results as stated above were the catch does not release. I even add a small amount of body weight from outside the door pushing in to see if taking pressure of the latch will help bur with no results, still will not release. Again I can with one finger lift on the outside on the door handle and the door opens without and restrictions.
At this point and I do appreciate the input but I now am convinced that the latch is faulty and will pull it an find another one and try again hopefully without any problems.
It was from Cool Cruisers of so it s heading back to them.


Cheers guys -thanks


maybe you need a new one of these ?




1 promo shot 1 - Copy.png

 
Sorry but do not follow your posting?
 
I did place a vice grip onto the pull rod of the door handle and pulled while looking at the release mechanisms travel within the latch and it shows that does reach it max travel without any obstructions and bottoms out in its stop. So without the grip in place and just using the inside release handle it also has the the same results as stated above were the catch does not release. I even add a small amount of body weight from outside the door pushing in to see if taking pressure of the latch will help bur with no results, still will not release. Again I can with one finger lift on the outside on the door handle and the door opens without and restrictions.
At this point and I do appreciate the input but I now am convinced that the latch is faulty and will pull it an find another one and try again hopefully without any problems.
It was from Cool Cruisers of so it s heading back to them.


Cheers guys -thanks

So if the latch works using the outside handle but doesn't work with inside handle then linkage length for the inside handle seems to be the issue. You might need to shorten it as the outside handle unlatches the door but the inside isn't.
 
So if the latch works using the outside handle but doesn't work with inside handle then linkage length for the inside handle seems to be the issue. You might need to shorten it as the outside handle unlatches the door but the inside isn't.
This was my exact issue recently and shortening that rod did the trick. I cut at the 90 degree bend, then bent a new 90 degree at the same length. Easy fix
 
So if the latch works using the outside handle but doesn't work with inside handle then linkage length for the inside handle seems to be the issue. You might need to shorten it as the outside handle unlatches the door but the inside isn't.

This was my exact issue recently and shortening that rod did the trick. I cut at the 90 degree bend, then bent a new 90 degree at the same length. Easy fix


The interior handle is OEM and OP was not complaining about the problem before the aftermarket part was installed. I wouldn't be adjusting the interior handle to made a aftermarket part work when OEM is still available. Years ago Toyota would make it hard to find part numbers online. Today it's simple. This part has always been available by going to a dealer. Even if it wasn't being a RHD vehicle in a LHD market good used one would be easier to find. Probably been twenty years ago bought both latches and interior handles used on eBay planning for a time OEM would be NLA. But I have also bought complete spare doors because I did like the early two piece rattle trap doors that much.
 
I had it out of the truck to do some more investigating and it seems as the plastic (dark in color) part that rides on the bottom area and has a slot in it so when the lock is engaged it slides in place, well it seems to not do anything so a bit more snooping into that to see if that can be fixed or if some lube will help it move into place.
I have moved the linkage several times to see if that was the problem but with no positive results.
Thanks
 
Thanks Byron yep seen that no change, I am now pretty sure the latch is trash aftermarket. Will start looking for a used OE replacement from a 40/45.

Thanks for the picture.
 
Yesterday I sat down again with a nice beer and took a shot at the latch again with much better results so I do need to pass the findings along just in case someone else has a this experience.
Found that the inner doors arm the one that takes the rod from the inside handle was not making full travel.
After a few times of setting up the latch to be in the closed position and pushing down on what would be the outside handle release arm that worked fine. Then setting it up again and pulling on what would be the inside release arm I notice a very small gap were the pull down arm meets another arm that pushes down to make a separate motion. There was a gap between the two arms while in the rest position that was around 3mm wide, at first I did not notice this gap but just that small amount was the problem. I took some pliers and bent the arm to were it was making positive contact with the other arm and low and behold it is now functioning as it should. So just that small amount of gap caused this eminence headache.
This is a new latch that must of missed the quality control testing part of its trip but it seems to be doing what it should be doing now - opening a door.

I hope the pictures are a help as I used the unused left side door latch as a demo.
Also you guys that mentioned the linkage rod well I did have to do some bending so yes that rounded out the whole processes.
Again thanks for the help - a another problem solved.

Cheers

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Yes me too as it is starting to snow today and its cold, now I can shut the door.

Thanks
 

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