In my case the door solenoid had packed in and was unhappy with me. Sadly this meant the door wouldn't open from inside or outside and it was closed and locked.
I followed a guide on here (https://sprinter-source.com/forum/showthread.php?t=40746), found some advice brilliant but found that the destructive fix given at the end wasn't needed for me so I am writing my own advice up.
Now I have an agricultural T1N with no power bits but basically if you have power windows there is less to swap as you just unplug the switches in the handle when you take the handle cover off!
The only gotcha with the manual handles is getting them off. This is easy when you know how. There is a collar behind the winder handle; simply push this away from the direction the handle points a quarter inch and the handle will pop off.
Now pop off the door handle cover. This normally pulls off or you can use plastic levers. There are two torx bolts inside (T30 I believe). Now go to take the door pillar cover off the door and discover you don't have them! (who nicked those?)
Undo the lower door storage pocket and let it lie open. Then lift the door can upwards about a half inch. It is tough to lift towards the dash but it does work. Now slide the card backward and release the door release cable. This is held in with a white clip and then disconnects.
Now you can see the solenoid. Pop the cover off and push the blue solenoid piston gently downwards towards the floor. There will be a small clunk noise as the mechanism sorts itself out. You should now find that the door lock will work and if you pull the lever cable or outside handle the door will open. As the door opens the bottom storage pocket you previously opened will now fall off and hit the floor.
To repair unbolt the door lock mechanism. It's held on with a few bolts that were hidden inside the door jam. The cable that goes to the lock runs along the door and through the rubber door grommet. Pull this gently away from the vehicle side and gently pull the cables down. You will find the two multi plugs you need to disconnect to disconnect the door solenoid/lock combo. One multiplug appears to be sensors for the lock itself the other is the power for the solenoid. These cables eventually go back to the CTM under the driver's seat.
Reassembly is the reverse of the above but lacking the swearing, small workspace and knowledge that you burnt a solenoid out meaning your wife couldn't get out on her side had to use the "coach" exit sliding door.
You can get a bit more wiggle room if you have captain seats that rotate and if you open the window so you can stick your head out to see the back of the door card.
I my case you then discover under the door skin some inner door armour you didn't know you had and some reinforced panels that are for the aftermarket kick bolts for the interior doors to lock them in an emergency.
...I will add some part schematics and links when I get to my laptop.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro which means I am probably lying under the van wishing I had a crawler and a large warm workshop I could park in.
I followed a guide on here (https://sprinter-source.com/forum/showthread.php?t=40746), found some advice brilliant but found that the destructive fix given at the end wasn't needed for me so I am writing my own advice up.
Now I have an agricultural T1N with no power bits but basically if you have power windows there is less to swap as you just unplug the switches in the handle when you take the handle cover off!
The only gotcha with the manual handles is getting them off. This is easy when you know how. There is a collar behind the winder handle; simply push this away from the direction the handle points a quarter inch and the handle will pop off.
Now pop off the door handle cover. This normally pulls off or you can use plastic levers. There are two torx bolts inside (T30 I believe). Now go to take the door pillar cover off the door and discover you don't have them! (who nicked those?)
Undo the lower door storage pocket and let it lie open. Then lift the door can upwards about a half inch. It is tough to lift towards the dash but it does work. Now slide the card backward and release the door release cable. This is held in with a white clip and then disconnects.
Now you can see the solenoid. Pop the cover off and push the blue solenoid piston gently downwards towards the floor. There will be a small clunk noise as the mechanism sorts itself out. You should now find that the door lock will work and if you pull the lever cable or outside handle the door will open. As the door opens the bottom storage pocket you previously opened will now fall off and hit the floor.
To repair unbolt the door lock mechanism. It's held on with a few bolts that were hidden inside the door jam. The cable that goes to the lock runs along the door and through the rubber door grommet. Pull this gently away from the vehicle side and gently pull the cables down. You will find the two multi plugs you need to disconnect to disconnect the door solenoid/lock combo. One multiplug appears to be sensors for the lock itself the other is the power for the solenoid. These cables eventually go back to the CTM under the driver's seat.
Reassembly is the reverse of the above but lacking the swearing, small workspace and knowledge that you burnt a solenoid out meaning your wife couldn't get out on her side had to use the "coach" exit sliding door.
You can get a bit more wiggle room if you have captain seats that rotate and if you open the window so you can stick your head out to see the back of the door card.
I my case you then discover under the door skin some inner door armour you didn't know you had and some reinforced panels that are for the aftermarket kick bolts for the interior doors to lock them in an emergency.
...I will add some part schematics and links when I get to my laptop.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro which means I am probably lying under the van wishing I had a crawler and a large warm workshop I could park in.
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