Frozen Door lock...Sorta

Did you try the passenger door lock? Do you have manual locks? I'm guessing from the temp. reading you gave, you are not in the US. Where are you from? It should be under warranty.

Carl

Why, "The Great White North" of coarse

-21C translates to approximately -6F With a wind it's fricken cold, even for me, an avid snowmobiler :-) The passenger door is fine. I'm curios what do they use to lock/ulock from the button and key? Plastic?

Carl wrote:

My '95 Wrangler has done this for the past three or four years. It is damned inconvenient, unlocking the passenger side to get into the vehicle. Sooner or later I am going to take the door apart and replace or lubricate whatever little gizmo is sticking in cold weather. Lucky for me the vehicle is now old enough that thieves don't bother breaking into it, not that there are that many in Silverton, CO. Same symptoms exactly.

Earle

It's not in the lock cylinder, which is fine. It seems to be in the latch, or in the linkage to the internal latch release. The key lock turns, but the latch does not release and the internal latch release does not move like it should. From the inside of the vehicle, you can lock and unlock, unless it gets real cold. Then there is a lot of resistance moving from the lock to unlock position. This used to be temperature dependent, but is getting more and more common. Sooner or later, I will break down and take the door apart.

Earle

There is a plastic tail piece on the end of the lock cam that connects a metal rod which unlocks the door. Sometimes that rod pops out or the plastic piece breaks. It is a fifty cent part. Coasty

If it is a "brand new" Jeep then it is a warranty issue. I haven't had the problem of anyone breaking into my stuff in seven years of living where I do. Sometimes I lock the Jeep or the Suburban, sometimes not. I credit the age of the vehicles, the perception that they will contain nothing of value, and the inherent honesty of the people who live in and frequent the San Juan Mountains. Many of the natives own firearms also, and one wouldn't think of going near their stuff. There is an unwritten code, that "I won't kill you if you respect what I own." Some of the natives even honor it.

Try replacing that fifty cent part that Coasty mentioned. Maybe you can get the dealer to do it.

Earle

It is not your problem if the service department is really busy. You need to get the service representative to observe the problem himself. That may be easier said than done, but drag him out to the parking lot on a cold day, and show him exactly what is happening.

This does not sound like a common problem, and I have waited for years for an explanation to appear in this newsgroup and other forums. As a warranty repair, that will make it even more difficult to get fixed. These folks are accustomed, in the case of warranty work, to reading a bulletin and replacing a large component assembly. Diagnosis of a complicated or obscure problem is well beyond the mental capabilities of most of them. I wouldn't be surprised, if they eventually replaced the door, to no avail.

That said, good luck!

Earle