“My Volkswagen door won’t open no matter what I try”, this is an issue a lot of VW owners continue to complain about. I understand how frustrating this issue can be.
In this guide, i am going to show you the common reasons why your Volkswagen door(s) won’t open from the inside or outside, and how to fix them easily.
Let’s dive right in!
My Volkswagen Door Won’t Open
First of all, before you begin the process of solving this problem, you need to check out the number of doors that are having the same problems in your car.
Second, you need to examine if the problem with your Volkswagen car door is from the inside or from the outside.
However, sometimes the issue is a combination of both inside and outside.
With these in mind, there are several reasons why your Volkswagen car door won’t open, which include:
1. Disconnection between the rod and the latch
Your Volkswagen car door won’t open because of a disconnection between the rod responsible and the handle latch.
This type of disconnection will prevent the door from opening either from the inside or from outside of your car.
2. Issues with Door Mechanism
The VW door latch mechanism is the component that is used to secure the vehicle’s door closed. When the door handle is pulled, the latch is mechanically or electronically actuated so that the door can be opened.
The latch mechanism consists of the mechanical latch inside the door as well as the anchor that is secured to the vehicle’s door jamb. The latch mechanism typically has a series of levers and rods that connect to the door handle, lock cylinder, and other components to allow the door to be locked and unlocked .
If there’s an issue with the latch mechanism reset or the tension in the door mechanism is too high or too low, you will not be able to open the door from outside or inside.
3. Actuator problem
The actuator holding the cable of your Volkswagen door is another factor that can cause your VW door not to open.
4. Accident
If your car was involved in an accident in the past, chances of having a door opening issue and other malfunctions are very high because of several factors.
How to Fix Volkswagen Door that Won’t Open
Follow the step-by-step procedure below to fix a Volkswagen door that won’t open:
1. Slam the Door a Couple of Times
I know it sounds funny, but trust me it works especially if your car will open from inside but not from outside. In fact, it’s actually a common quick fix.
Slamming a VW door once or a couple of times can fix the issue where the door will not open, in cases where the latch mechanism becomes stuck or jammed due to dirt, debris, or lack of lubrication.
In some other cases, the collar at the top of the Bowden cable that connects the lever to the lock mechanism can slip out of its retaining bracket.
A good bump with your palm on the door handle works just as well sometimes.
Although this is a common quick fix, I do not expect it to work for everyone.
Also, depending on the underlying cause of the issue (whether it’s just caused by dirt or debris or it’s a more serious mechanical fault), this might only fix it temporarily.
2. Release the Tension in the Door Mechanism
If the tension is the door mechanism is too high, it can cause your VW door to not open. To fix this, you simply need to release the tension a bit.
In this method, you need to pull on the door handle, and move the cable that goes into the door handle slightly backward so that the tension in the door mechanism is reduced.
It will go from a position like the one in the first image to the one in the second image:
If the tension is not released and the cable is put back into the position it was (all the way back), the door might open on first try, but every time you use the central lock, the doors will no longer open.
However, this is not the case if you release it as shown in the video below:
3. Remove the Spring Blocking the Latch Mechanism Reset
When the outside door handle is pulled it pulls a cable which moves the arm to release the mechanism. When it released, there’s a return spring that allows the arm to be pulled back automatically to reset the mechanism.
If the arm doesn’t go back all the way back, the reset is not done. When the reset is not done, the door will not open whether you try to open it from outside or from inside.
Now, there’s another spring that rubs against the arm and hinders the free movement of the arm, blocking the reset mechanism.
By removing this particular spring, the door handle will be able to be fully reset the mechanism and you will be able to open it from outside as well as inside.
To do this, you need to remove the door panel from the inside (although is some recent models, you can only access the mechanism by removing the door skin from outside).
Here’s a video that shows the whole process:
4. Disconnect the Door Mechanism to Access the Inner Door Panel
If you are unable to get into your car to access the internal part of the door so you can fix the reset mechanism, there’s a trick you can use to temporarily open the door if any of the windows is rolled down.
In this method, you need to pull on the door handle, and completely dislodge the cable that goes into the door handle from its position.
This will basically make it impossible to open the door from outside since the mechanism is no longer in place.
But, here’s the interesting part:
You will now be able to open the door from the inside (as long as your windows are rolled down) and you have access to the inner panel.
Here’s a video showing the process:
Now, you should be able to open the inner door panel and try fix #3.
5. Seek Professional Help
If you’ve tried all the methods discussed on this guide, your VW door should now open without any issue. Otherwise, you should seek professional help.
Professional mechanics have the knowledge, experience, and tools necessary to diagnose and fix the door issue.