outside door handle problem

[mustanggarage]

ok. I am building this 71 with basically all new parts. the door and latch work and close perfectly. when I use the inside latch it works fine. now that I have the outside handle on, it requires a LOT of thumb pressure to open. I can open it fine, but my daughter can't open it even with both hands. the rod seems to be adjusted fine, but for some reason it just pushes really hard. if you remove the rod the button itself moves freely, I am at a loss to see a way to fix this. it is not a huge problem as I said I can open it fine. but I know there is no way my wife will be able to open it. I guess it is a good anti theft device but I would like to find a way to address it. any help?

 

[thegreatjustino]

The aftermarket exterior handles are known for having crap push button assemblies.

Years ago the solution was to reuse the push button assemblies from the old pitted original handles in the new aftermarket ones. That way you get the new chrome handles, but retain the OEM Ford mechanism.

 

[Shemofo]

Had the same issue, a nice dose of WD 40 on all parts inside door worked wonders!

 

[CA650]

if all your parts are new, check the screws that hold the latch to the inside of the door.
there are three (I think) might be 4 but I remember 3 screws you use from the inside of the door to attach the new latch.

some of the new latches have screws that are too long and when tightened in with the door shut, they make contact with some of the latch internals and you can’t get the door open and sometimes it makes the button hard to push.

 

[724x4bronco]

Agreed, I had the same issue. I found my best set of OEM handles and used the buttons out of them. Never had a problem after.

 

[Timstrk]

Grease on the inner moving parts. Bare metal to metal doesn't like to slide on the short throws inside the door. Look up into the door at the moving parts and gently push on the button to see what moves and where to put the grease. Worked great on mine.

 

[SHX669]

On one of my Broncos the " old push button into new handle " worked on the other Bronco a good dose of spray lubricant cured the hard to push button.

 

[CA650]

Agreed, I had the same issue. I found my best set of OEM handles and used the buttons out of them. Never had a problem after.

for sure check the button for contact
but, to be clear, the problem I am talking about is inside the lower latch mechanism in the door jam itself. the screws that go from the door jam into the locking mechanism, about half way up the jam.

they sometimes go through the door, through the threading and then, stick out into the internal locking mechanism and cause some of the rotating parts within that mechanism to stick. and it really shows up when the door is shut because it causes the locking mechanism to pull a little tighter.

one way to check if this is a problem WITHOUT taking the whole latch out again, is loosen the three screws a few turns and shut the door and see if the problems go away. if it does then you still need to take it all apart and grind some of the screws down a few mm. one other symptom of this problem is you can slam the door, lock it, and find you can not unlock the door. no matter what you try the door won’t unlock. pushing the handle inside or out does nothing. it’s because the rotating unlocking mechanism is hung up on one of those screws. you are not having that symptom so try the other things first.

good luck. all of those push rods and pull rods in there are hilarious. I can’t believe that’s what our best minds at ford came up with but I guess they were cheap to make? idk.

 

[jckkys]

I went through this and found the push button has a spherical tipped rod attached, that slides against a flat faced lever. The spherical rod is hardened and wears a groove in the flat surface of the the actuating lever. The after market rod isn't hardened as well and it also wears out. So I put silicone grease on both the OE button/rod and the grooved lever. Now the button and latch work smoothly and easily. Of course the rods to the latch mechanism have to be adjusted correctly. The latch mechanism gets gummed up too, the original grease turns to varnish. A soaking in solvent followed with lube makes the whole thing work well. Here we have no rust, but the hot dry weather turns oil/grease into varnish. I often have to use penetrating oil to get switches working. PB Blaster works super well but smells a lot. Break Free and 3in1 are good and are less smelly. So I use them for cruise control and turn signal switches that all go bad if not used regularly.

 

[mustanggarage]

thanks for the responses. to be clear, this is new construction. I am just now putting it together so nothing is rusted, or gummed up at this point, and the inner door handle works easy, its just the outer. I am going to try to get a set of oem handles. and try them.

 

[Spaggyroe]

I recently worked through some issues when installing aftermarket door handles into aftermarket doors. All new components. What it ended up being, is interference between the outer door handle mechanism, and the inside of the door itself (the rear of the door). My mounting holes were just a hair off. I ended up elongating the rear mounting hole a bit and slid the door handle slightly forward. No more rubbing of the door handle mechanism against the door.