Newbie with stuck door

[Iansride]

Hi,

Just picked up a 87 Camry w/ 116K. Runs fantastic, got 38.3 mpg on the highway driving it home over 500 miles. One problem. The passenger fron door will not open from the inside or out. Anyone here know how to get it open?

I suspect the rod or linkage that works the handle to the lock has come off. Nothing in the door rattles, and the lock doesn't spin around, but it still doesn't open.

Thanks in advance for your responses!

[atobe]

i'm pretty sure the linkage has gone bad... either it fell out of place or it's broken.. well take off your door panel and find out.. it's only held on by 6 screws i think

[white90dx]

Do all the controls feel normal? Does the lock control (either inside or on via the lock cylinder or auto locks) work? Does the door handle inside and out feel normal (like the driver's door)?

You should be able to pull off the interior door handle and see if it has disconnected. I'm not sure if you can get to anything else from there.

I had an un-clipped lock control on my right rear door that I was able to fix through the interior door handle hole. The front passenger lock also sticks closed sometimes (pulling the exterior door handle all the way up and slowly letting it down un-sticks it). Just play around with it some and see if you can describe what feels wrong inside the door.

Oh, and congrats on the mileage! It must be a 4-cylinder 5-speed.

-Charlie

[Iansride]

Thanks for the responses.
I tried to take the door panel off. No can do with the door closed. I did check the door handle. The rod is still connected. As far as I can tell, nothing is obviously out of order.

The door handle rod is connected. The lock cylinder does turn normally, the inside and outside handles operate normally. The only obvious thing is the the lock knob will not go up and down. Even if you pull it with pliers it won't budge. When you turn the key, it tries to go up, but stops short of unlocking.
BTW, the car has manual locks.

Oh and on the 38.3 mpg. It's a 4 cylinder, auto. Fresh tune up including wires, cap, rotor, plugs, etc. Plus it has a new timing belt & w/p.

We had a '90 years ago and it was agreat car. Once I get the door open this one will be too! Anyone know if a slim jim might do the trick? If I could get it open, I could pull the panel and fix whatever it is.

Thanks!