The driver side inside door handle has started periodically not working on my 2003 Sentra. When I pull it, there is no resistance, as if it's locked, or not connected to anything inside the door. I can still reach out the window and open the door from the outside when this happens, so far ayway. This just started yesterday. . Has anyone experienced this problem before? I dont want to wait until it gets to the point where the door won't open at all and I can't get the inside panel off to look in there. I just got this car so I don't have any experience taking off the panels. No manuals yet either. Any manuals available for download on this site? Thanks. Steve

 

ive seen this many times either the latch assembly is starting to go bad where the rods/cables from the inside door handle is going bad or the rod/cable is broken or disconnected from the inside door handle. if you dont have any experience with this i would strongly recommend that you take it to the nissan dealer or see if the dealer you bought it from would fix it cause its not an easy job like changing oil if you catch my drift. but its one of those two items causing the problem, im 90% sure its the door latch assy that is bad.

 

Thanks. I've taken the door panels off of my other cars so it's not new to me, although it's hard to do it without making a few scratches and dings in the plastic trim pieces sometimes, or breaking off the little tabs and plastic hooks if you don't know where they are. I found a manual online for the car and downloaded it so I have a picture of how the linkage works now. Like you said, I think one of the plastic ends of one of the rods that connect the handle to the latch muct be going bad. What's the best way to get the plastic trim pieces on the arm rest out without damaging them (finishers as the manual calls them) so I can get to the screws?







[IMG]local://upfiles/5499/ADD4D7C4E72840C99F6926FBF1381A48.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]local://upfiles/5499/2BD135FEC90D45DCB74E297961CA17D4.jpg[/IMG]

 

Flat head screwdriver.... I had to put a new door on my 02 sentra and the linkage was pretty easy I thought ... one of the plastic pieces on the linkage probably broke.... I sell them all the time.