DO THIS! or your door handles will break!

[m thrizl]

wish i knew this before.........

my 95 when i bought it had a weak outer door handle and eventually broke after a few months of opening and closing.....so i used the passenger side to get in everytime.....then the pass side started going bad.....


here is the fix

LUBE THE STRIKERS IN THE DOOR JAM ASWELL AS THE MECHANISM IN THE DOOR THAT LATCHES TO THE STRIKER. after i lubed the passenget side it opened like new, i could have saved the drivers side if i had known it was a lubrication issue.........eventually the the door handles slowely wear fron friction and stop working(broken plastic piece?)


some people who have this problem say to press on the door molding while opening the door....and it works, because your loosening the tension from the striker and the latch.....but all that is needed is lubrication. i had this done at my shop by BMW master tech, i forgot what kind of lube he used, but it def fixed the preobelm.


with a little lube, should open and close like butta

[rwindleyme02]

wish i knew this before.........

my 95 when i bought it had a weak outer door handle and eventually broke after a few months of opening and closing.....so i used the passenger side to get in everytime.....then the pass side started going bad.....


here is the fix

LUBE THE STRIKERS IN THE DOOR JAM ASWELL AS THE MECHANISM IN THE DOOR THAT LATCHES TO THE STRIKER. after i lubed the passenget side it opened like new, i could have saved the drivers side if i had known it was a lubrication issue.........eventually the the door handles slowely wear fron friction and stop working(broken plastic piece?)


some people who have this problem say to press on the door molding while opening the door....and it works, because your loosening the tension from the striker and the latch.....but all that is needed is lubrication. i had this done at my shop by BMW master tech, i forgot what kind of lube he used, but it def fixed the preobelm.


with a little lube, should open and close like butta
Yep, eventually, your door won't open. Happened to me. Put some grease on the strikers and good as new.

[turb02]

Then what would cause your inner door handle to be very hard to open and sometimes cause the guide pin to pop up out of the inner handle? I have recently replaced my door striker and cant seem to fix this problem. It happens mainly when the window is all the way up.

Any ideas?

[m thrizl]

yeah, i know the window has something to do with door latch preblems, but im not a tech......

lubing the striker/latch will allow the inner and outer door handles to open smoother........no lube causes inner and outer to open rough.....ebentually leading to the outer not working at all, like so many e36ers have experienced.

[///Mpmp1025]

if u can find out what type of lube to use that would be great bc i had it done to my car about a year ago and it worked but i messed with it and i think i took off the lube and now its back to its old tricks.

[Shak. G]

Never under estimate the power of some lube. so many purposes!!

[manuelku]

can you take a picture of where the door handle should be lubicated :)??? it would help a lot, my door got a bit difficult to open :(

[manuelku]

ooo I get it, so just lubicate the striker?
actually you will have to move losen it and hammer it once a while because that thing moves I think, and the door will not close good enough.

[amdspitfire]

im glad my e36 is so problem free

[ChipM]

im glad my e36 is so problem free

Its not so much an issue of problems, its an issue with routine maintenance. Inspection II clearly says "Grease hood, trunk/tailgate and door latches. Check operation of all latches."

Maybe if they put all of this info in a book that came with the car we'd all be in better shape...

[turb02]

^^^ I totally agree with that. My chassis has 201,XXX on it and the passanger side is practically brand friggin new. My DS handle has broken on the outside and now the inside is being retarded (after I replaced the striker).

[CarbonBlkE36]

wish i knew this before.........

my 95 when i bought it had a weak outer door handle and eventually broke after a few months of opening and closing.....so i used the passenger side to get in everytime.....then the pass side started going bad.....


here is the fix

LUBE THE STRIKERS IN THE DOOR JAM ASWELL AS THE MECHANISM IN THE DOOR THAT LATCHES TO THE STRIKER. after i lubed the passenget side it opened like new, i could have saved the drivers side if i had known it was a lubrication issue.........eventually the the door handles slowely wear fron friction and stop working(broken plastic piece?)


some people who have this problem say to press on the door molding while opening the door....and it works, because your loosening the tension from the striker and the latch.....but all that is needed is lubrication. i had this done at my shop by BMW master tech, i forgot what kind of lube he used, but it def fixed the preobelm.


with a little lube, should open and close like butta



yea, lube all the hinges and latches @ every oil change. the shop i work at thats what we do, its called the lof service. lube/oil/ filter.

[Chongus]

lithium grease is your friend.

[Inv3ctiv3]

Is there a guide or writeup on how to do this?

[biggafigga]

lithium grease is your friend.
Does silicone grease do the same thing?

[Casebrius]

white spray litium grease is the answer. Spray it in the mechanism as well as post.

[Ffroggs]

im glad my e36 is so problem free

Do you dance with the devil in the pale moonlight? Heh...seems like you're tempting fate saying something like that!

[RagnarDanskjold]

Any penetrating lubricant to clear the muck out, and straight petroleum jelly to lube it up. The techs at Hafkemeyer here in KC taught me that.

And you do have to remove the assembly entirely to really blast it loose. It's not hard at all. Just takes a few torx drivers and some patience.

Well worth it. You'll thank yourselves.

[BealeAss]

does the door panel have to come off to lube this?

[Ffroggs]

does the door panel have to come off to lube this?

No. It's extremely visible when you open your door. The striker is what strikes the bar on the B pillar.

For what it's worth, folks, I had much better results using cheap Shell 40-weight engine oil (as recommended by Bentely) instead of lithium grease. The lithium grease just wore away too soon. I got a $5 oil gun from harbor freight and it works great to keep it from running everywhere. Also great as a door hinge lube.

[sonicpentatonic]

there are only two things you need in life: duct tape and WD-40

if it sticks and it shouldn't, use WD-40
If it doesn't stick and it should, use duct tape

hehehehehe :)

[Theodore]

I used white litium spray grease on my old 318is and it worked like a charm. BMW now is supposed to lube that mechanism every time an E36 goes to the shop. I didn't think it wore off too quickly, you just have to watch how much you spray since it sets up a little after you spray it.