I have a 1987 GT that has electric door locks, however they dont fully lock or unlock the doors. They will eventually lock/unlock if the button is pressed repeatedly though. The parts were sprayed with some lube.
Any ideas on an "easy" fix?
Thanks

There is no quick easy fix. Mine were acting the same way. Remove the door panel to gain access to the latch, remove the latch from the door and clean thoroughly with brake parts cleaner to remove all of the old grease and dirt. Use compressed air to blow dry and dislodge any crap inside. Inspect the mechanism and pivot points for any corrosion or damage and repair as needed. Use a white lithium grease in a spray can to lube the pivot points and latch mechanism. Work the parts back and forth to work in the lube. Re-install the latch, hook up the rods, and make sure nothing is binding. There is a pivot that allows the power lock actuator to move the lock rod, make sure to lube that too. There is a "Z" in the lock rod where it goes through the pivot, that can wear and make it so the actuator can't push far enough. You can bend the rod slightly but be careful not to create a bind (I did and had to fix that too). Make sure everything is working properly before installing the door panel. It can take a bit of fiddling to get it but they do work. Mine have been working flawlessly all summer.

[This message has been edited by seajai (edited 10-02-2012).]

Its the latch mechanism, needs to be cleaned and thoroughly lubricated.
There's a way I discovered to accomplish this without removing the door panel.

In short, roll the window down, seperate the dew strip above the door latch with a pen light, spray PB Blaster with the little tube down at the latch while engaging the door locks. You'll see the arm on the latch moving, spray at that and douse it good. I have also threaded the little tube from the outside through a crack in the latching mechanism and doused it good from there too.

The purists here on the forum will say that you need to pull the latching mechanism out and clean it up that way, and I would agree but this is my "cheater" method that has worked on 6 Fieros. The worst case took a couple of consecuative sprayings, and yes, I did have PB Blaster dripping out of the door, but it worked for me, I hope you have the same success that I have.

Edit,,,, Original post unchanged, there was no offence intended to seajai, he evidently types much faster than I, his post is an accurate way to fix the problem, I'm mearly offering the lazy mans way of cheating.

------------------
jetman
Silver 86 SE 2M6 4-speed, with "check wallet light"
Now fortified with 8 essential slices of bacon goodness

[This message has been edited by jetman (edited 10-02-2012).]

Thanks for the responses, I will try doing this over the weekend. I also tried the pb blaster method haha, it merely loosened it up a little (my locks might have more debris/ dirt though). However the tab still won't fully come out or go in.
Thanks again.

I had to do the latches and new cylinders. I broken down and replaced the cylinders and cleared/lub'd the latches. Now I get to do it again on this Fiero.

quote Originally posted by jetman: Edit,,,, Original post unchanged, there was no offence intended to seajai, he evidently types much faster than I, his post is an accurate way to fix the problem, I'm mearly offering the lazy mans way of cheating.

No offense taken. There is more than one way to solve a problem.

quote Originally posted by seajai: No offense taken. There is more than one way to solve a problem.

Oh thank goodness. I was floored when I saw that you beat me to the post, it appeared as if I was dissing you, which of course I wasn't, I felt horrible. Thanks for being so gracious and understanding, you're great!

Yeah, I've got one Fiero that isn't responding to the PB blaster trick as well as all the others have. You know, I'm thinking that if I could find a longer spray tube, say 12 or 18 inches long, i could really target with pin point accuracy, exactly where i wnat to spray with the PB blaster. Yeah, there I go again, OCD with the PB Blaster again, ha!

Well, I hope the prior posts are your solution.

Mine has PDL's, but I never got them to work right since the first day I brought the car home (1997). They would sort of lock if the button was pressed multiple times, and you could watch the lock slider move a little more towards locked each time you pushed the lock button. Unlock was similar, but took less button pressing. I tried lubing the parts, but it never really solved the problem. Eventually, they stopped working completely.
Also, don't try holding the lock button down, it doesn't work. It actually caused a burn mark (on my finger and the plastic button) from the contacts in the button heating up before the circuit tripped. I had to replace my switches.
Ultimately, I disabled the power door locks (disconnected the power feed wire to the switches to prevent further burns and damage) and left them that way for years.
I finally purchased some new actuators, and as soon as I swapped the passenger side door one, they (both sides) worked as they should. One push and they locked fully. One push, and they unlocked fully.
I have swapped both sides now.

-Dave

[This message has been edited by IFLYR22 (edited 10-06-2012).]

For a lube you might try Tri-Flow. It's a mix of oil and silicone. Last time I bought it was at a hardware store at about $7 per spray can. The Tri-Flow is a long lasting non gumming lubricant used for guns, bike chains and electric motor bearings. I used it on our Fiero door locks two years ago with very good results still today.

Thanks for this thread. Just did both of my doors and what a world of difference. Before I could not even lock and unlock my doors, now I can. Thanks runbob1 for the help.

I used about a full can of brake cleaner between both sides, sprayed some air around the get rid of any loose stuff. Let everything dry, then used lithium grease.

[This message has been edited by mrfred8 (edited 10-07-2012).]