Driver front door won't open from the inside

Coast2Coast

2006 158 Cargo
2006 Dodge Sprinter w/ 308k.
The interior door handle is now pointing outward towards the steering wheel and I'm currently rolling down the window and climbing out until I can figure out what happened. The door does open with the key from the outside thankfully I can still get fuel and drive. Any suggestions what to look for when I pull the door panel? I have noticed the exterior door handle has been harder to open and required more effort when pulling. I hope nothing is broken, possibly something got disconnected or seized.
 

Patrick of M

2005 T1N 2500 (NA spec)
Take it apart and have a look. Hopefully it is obvious, sometimes door mechs are a bit complex and the problem is not clear. Open, ponder, post pics if necessary.
 

Coast2Coast

2006 158 Cargo
The end of my cable broke off. I bought another one to replace it but was wondering why the door handle has been very stiff hard to open the last year or two. Would it possible be a bad handle or the latch that caused the cable to break? I can open from outside only currently.
20220104_160758.jpg
 

Midwestdrifter

Engineer In Residence
Might try lubricating the mechanism. They do get dry and gritty with age. You can remove the whole thing from the door, but its a bit fiddly. If I recall correctly, I removed the lock actuator in order to get it through the clearance hole.
 

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