Passenger door.

[wasions]

As of last Friday (I haven't been around much), my passenger door has been unusable. It's locked, and will not unlock - by key - by hand - or any other way I've been able to devise. I have an appointment at the shop for next Thursday, timing belt, drive belts, water pump, etc., and I fear that this fix will put my budget way over the top.

On top of that, Kermit's been stalling out in traffic at idle. Three times in one day. I remember having that problem a couple of years ago - some kind of sensor was broken at the (plastic) base and was losing contact with whatever it was supposed to be sensing - and it seems like it was kind of an expensive part too (though it was warranted at the time).

Any ideas?

Thanks in advance.

(Love you guys - and gals!)

[lee]

Originally posted by wasions
...snip...my passenger door has been unusable. It's locked, and will not unlock - by key - by hand - or any other way I've been able to devise. ...snip...

My driver's side door did this, turns out there's a box with a switch built into the lock assembly (where the door latches to the body when it closes). The switch went bad on mine. I took the door panel off, and slipped the power lock mechanism shaft off the assembly. Means my doors are manual now, but at least they can be locked/unlocked by key or hand. If you want to go this route as a DIY diagnosis, use this link to the thread:

http://www.subaru-svx.net/forum/show...&threadid=7050

good luck on the stall thing.

[vkykam]

Steve,

Door: If you have AAA membership, see if they can jimmy the lock on the passenger door.

Stalling: No check engine light, I gather? I was dealing with that for 4 months, and luckily it didn't act up during the 10th meet, until the very last day on my way home from the Blue Ridge Parkway. As it turns out, my MAF was shot, but still within tolerances that the ECU didn't pick up the fault. Symptoms include stalling, and slight to severe stalling/lack of power under 2500RPM. Check for any cracks in the tubing from the air filter to the throttle body, or listen to any hissing that may indicate a vacuum leak. Other things could include plugs, idle air control valve, and oxygen sensors as well.

When it stalls, what's the rev like? Does it freefall to 0, or does the ECU try to keep it running?

VK

Originally posted by wasions
As of last Friday (I haven't been around much), my passenger door has been unusable. It's locked, and will not unlock - by key - by hand - or any other way I've been able to devise. I have an appointment at the shop for next Thursday, timing belt, drive belts, water pump, etc., and I fear that this fix will put my budget way over the top.

On top of that, Kermit's been stalling out in traffic at idle. Three times in one day. I remember having that problem a couple of years ago - some kind of sensor was broken at the (plastic) base and was losing contact with whatever it was supposed to be sensing - and it seems like it was kind of an expensive part too (though it was warranted at the time).

[wasions]

Originally posted by vkykam
Steve,

When it stalls, what's the rev like? Does it freefall to 0, or does the ECU try to keep it running?

VK

When it stalls, it just shuts down. It also starts right back up (usually rolling - in neutral) no problem. I haven't had any problem with a lack of power, which makes me think that it's probably a sensor problem, as noted earlier.

The problem with the door can't be seen from above (through the slit behind the open window). My son-in-law and I just tried unsuccessfully to jimmy the works from above with a hanger. I'm plenty competent when I know what I'm doing, but I tend to break things when I don't.

[vkykam]

I can take a pic of the insides of the door if you want, if it'll help in jimmying it.

When my MAF went, on the last day from Blue Ridge Parkway back to Toronto, the car would stall as I took my foot off the gas pedal completely. At that point, there's no issue with power/hesitation, but when I got back to Toronto, it got progressively worse.

The easiest way to test a MAF is to swap in a known good unit. From the problems the users have had around here, there aren't that many different variations of problems with stalling as you have described, that did not involve a check engine code.

But then again, you'd never know...

VK

[wasions]

At church yesterday, I arranged to take a friend indoor climbing. He's sixteen and has MD, pretty much no use of his legs, but I took him once before and he loved it (very strong upper body). After I got home I realized that he was going to have to climb over the driver's seat to get into the passenger seat; a near-impossibility in his condition. About that time, my wife asked me to get the car seat (grandkids were visiting) out of the back of the SVX. When I went out to get it, BOTH doors unlocked. (I left them that way overnight.)

While I don't believe that demons (or angels) can inhabit inanimate objects, I have to believe that God works in mysterious ways.

I don't deserve this car.

[SVX JAZZ]

Originally posted by wasions
At church yesterday, I arranged to take a friend indoor climbing. He's sixteen and has MD, pretty much no use of his legs, but I took him once before and he loved it (very strong upper body). After I got home I realized that he was going to have to climb over the driver's seat to get into the passenger seat; a near-impossibility in his condition. About that time, my wife asked me to get the car seat (grandkids were visiting) out of the back of the SVX. When I went out to get it, BOTH doors unlocked. (I left them that way overnight.)

While I don't believe that demons (or angels) can inhabit inanimate objects, I have to believe that God works in mysterious ways.

I don't deserve this car.

Glad to hear that your doors became unlocked. Sometimes we are tested by our possessions. In the end we see that God is always in control. Takes a while sometimes (speaking about myself!)

God bless and have a great New Year.