[Mr.ESV]

So our '07 ESV ended up with a broken exterior rear handle. "Fine" I thought to myself ... Especially as the child lock was on, which proved to be a complete bitch to get the interior trim off without breaking it and opening the door from inside the door.
Ordered a new replacement from rock-auto for 60 bucks, fitted it, tested the door numerous times (open/close) and all was well...
I left the interior trim off until the next day wanting to make doubly sure that all was fine with the new handle.
The next day ... My wife tried to open the door and it wouldn't open ... Thought she was jiving me around but nope, sure enough, the door was screwed again!
So after another hour in the garage to investigate why the door will not open ...
After locking the car with the keyfob, the door appears to unlock, yet the exterior handle refuses to open the door ... Including the interior handle for that matter!!!!!
Crawled in the back again and fiddled with the lock inside the door until it popped open ... Tested numerous times "again" (open/close) and all fine all until the car gets locked the door refuses to open again!!! Trying to avoid a trip to the dealers for hopefully a simple fix ...

Has anyone else experienced this phenomenon?

Does anyone have a solution to what I have described??

Thanks!
Russell

 

[kazza93203]

Your door lock actuator might hv taken a dump. Leave the window open and lock and unlock vehicle. When u unlock it, try to open from outside, if it doesn't reach in and see if its actually unlocked. If it stays in the locked position, then the door lock actuator needs replacement.

 

[getbig]

Got my both rear doors changed.
Solved the problem of not opening
08 ext

 

[lousy_investor]

It happened to me before, and it had happened again recently, when it got really cold outside and I left the truck outside for a number of hours. I think it is the lock actuators getting stuck when it was too cold. The locking mechanism also could seize causing the door not to close at all as it won't latch on. I figured out how to get by the latter issue when it comes up, but the lock actuators probably all need to be replaced. It was pretty scary when I couldn't get out through two of the doors. I have to remind my wife that should all four doors fail, she can always go through the back!

 

[Mr.ESV]

Thanks ... Never realized there was so many common problems with these cars.
Ordered the part (#15896627) for $73 + $12 shipping online.
The local GM dealer wanted almost $140 for the same part!!
Hopefully this will resolve the issue ..

 

[PeteKT]

Check the actuator, they go bad and the door doesnt unlock correctly.

 

[tcahill]

The mechanical actuator inside the door gets gummed up and sticky. The handle works but doesnt move the actuator inside. You have to remove the actuator and clean and grease it. Worked fine ever since.

 

[Guest]

Sounds like the actuator to me. Same thing happened to my 2008, it was fixed (luckily) under warranty.

 

[Aerohokie]

So our '07 ESV ended up with a broken exterior rear handle. "Fine" I thought to myself ... Especially as the child lock was on, which proved to be a complete bitch to get the interior trim off without breaking it and opening the door from inside the door.
Ordered a new replacement from rock-auto for 60 bucks, fitted it, tested the door numerous times (open/close) and all was well...
I left the interior trim off until the next day wanting to make doubly sure that all was fine with the new handle.
The next day ... My wife tried to open the door and it wouldn't open ... Thought she was jiving me around but nope, sure enough, the door was screwed again!
So after another hour in the garage to investigate why the door will not open ...
After locking the car with the keyfob, the door appears to unlock, yet the exterior handle refuses to open the door ... Including the interior handle for that matter!!!!!
Crawled in the back again and fiddled with the lock inside the door until it popped open ... Tested numerous times "again" (open/close) and all fine all until the car gets locked the door refuses to open again!!! Trying to avoid a trip to the dealers for hopefully a simple fix ...

Has anyone else experienced this phenomenon?

Does anyone have a solution to what I have described??

Thanks!
Russell

Same thing just happened to me, I installed a new door handle on the driver rear. I tested it, no problems. The next morning I went to get gas and it wouldn't open. The lock mechanism worked fine, interior and exterior handles all seemed to work fine while visually inspecting the latch mechanism. I worked for hours with no progress. I took it to the dealer and since I already had the door panel off, the mechanic took a look. The yellow clip that connect so to the exterior handle rod was out of adjustment. He popped it loose and we got the door open. It was most likely loosened while changing the handle. Easy fix and since I had done most of the work and got there before they opened, it was free.

I am going to try to get this mechanic some more recognition for being awesome.