Driver side Door Lock issues, please help!

[aznives3]

so i did alot of searching for driver side door lock issues and found lots but none that pertained to my exact situation.

my 2005 mazda 3 Sport GS has been acting up lately on the driver side door lock.

When the car is locked and i come back to it, i can unlock every door on the car just fine using the remote.

when i get into the car however, using the "power lock lever" inside the car, it locks all the doors, and it looks like its trying to push the driver door lock closed, but just can't do it all the way. i can definitely see it wiggle however. I will have to manually push the "lock notch" into a locked position myself.

The same goes for when i leave the car in a parking lot etc. I can keep pushing the lock button on the remote, but all it does is keep trying to lock it to no avail. again i can see the little "lock notch" trying to move, just never gets there. To leave the car unattended i'm forced to lock the door manually inside by pushing the "lock notch" over first, and then hitting the remote twice to lock the rest of the doors and set the alarm.

Does anyone know what might be causing this issue? obviously i'm outside of warranty so hopefully its a cheap/easy DIY that i can tackle.

Thanks!

[TheMAN]

sounds like the door lock actuator motor is on its way out... it uses plastic gears inside the motor assembly that get stripped over time... you might just have a missing tooth now but more will fail and eventually it just plain won't work anymore
don't blame mazda, all other manufacturers use similar construction materials these days

[Hoodzy]

That was a confusing explanation... Anyways.. it sounds like your actuator is toast. Order a new one and toss it in. I don't think they are overly complicated to install.

[aznives3]

what DIY can i follow? i found some that show replacing the door fabric inserts. is it basically just removing that panel and i should have access to it?

[stock3]

This may sound stupidly simple and obvious, but did you try lubricating the lock? Get the silicon oil in a spray bottle and spray the lock from the key hole and the latch in the door. Spray the inside of the lock as much as you can (don't go overboard though) and then open and close the door manually, also lock and unlock the door manually.
This may do the trick.

[bluemazda3]

sounds def like the actuator....pick one up at the wreckers and install it its pretty easy..

[aznives3]

so i called my local wreckers and not one of them seem to have the actuator available. i called the local dealerships and they all want $100+ for the part, and say that it doesn't just come in the actuator itself, it comes as part of the whole indoor handle assembly.

I read on a protege forum that for the first few years their actuators came the same way (full assembly), but in the few later years they started selling the actuators separately even though they were the same part #'s. I also read and have seen that there is a guy on ebay that sells just the plastic gear that usually wears out.

is there anything like this for the 3? being able to either buy the actuator separately, or even just the plastic gear that's most likely worn?

[TheMAN]

the lock actuators aren't part of the door handles, but the lock actuators are part of the door latches itself

there has been a design change and to use the new parts you will need to replace the door striker and a protector
you need the BAN7-59-310B lock assembly, CD73-58-361A striker, and BR5S-59-308B protector

[ST3ALTH]

This is exactly what is happening to my locks!!! i think i may just take it in to mazda and get them to do it! Unless anyone wants to help me with the install of a new actuator lol

[MajesticBlueNTO]

PM silvermist99, he had a front driver and passenger side set for sale (http://www.torontomazda3.ca/forum/showthread.php?47306-FS-racing-beat-springs-and-door-latch-mechanism)

[ST3ALTH]

sick! i just PMed him, so lets see what happens. I really need to get this fixed shah

[Noisy Crow]

Necro-thread resurrection!

Today I replaced the lock actuators in both front doors. The passenger one started to go late last summer, but was okay once the temperatures dropped. It wasn't at all happy most of the time this summer, and the drivers side started to act up too when it was hot. Replacing them was straight-forward enough -- only got hung up on disconnecting the door pulls (answer was in the service manual) and then getting the security plate stuffed back into the drivers door.

I pulled one the old ones apart to see if I could determine what went wrong, and maybe fix them, but the actuator itself is sealed shut. I'll have a go at it with the Dremel tool when I have time, but I doubt it is worth salvaging.

[Default User]

I'm surprised there was never a recall on this issue.