"It's all in the Door Knob, Knob!"

[SGTSnacks]

Seriously, - "Why am I continuously having to repair my Comanche driver side door? With the latching/opening and closing handles, etc. becoming inoperative?

 

"I have had my Jeep MJ, 1986 Long Bed, 4x4 leave me crawlin' out the passenger door on more than one occasion, destroying one plastic console in the process. 

 

I'd really like to fix it once and for ALL!

 

Any and all suggestions, greatly appreciated.

 

At this point, I have had it in the shop on three occasions, ($300. - $500. each) once for the window regulator, and twice for the door latching mechanism(s) becoming inoperative where I can't get it open, by any means.

 

Seems the "Knob/Button" on the outside of the drivers door pushes in and stays in and out of alignment. Eventually, popping back out if I futz around with pushing in on it enough with the handle of a screwdriver.

 

With the Inner door handle/lever limp and not catching anything to unlatch the door to allow it to open?  

 

I'm stuck, and need my "Truck?" A good title for a Country Ballad.

 

Cheers,

SGTSnacks

[fiatslug87]

Have you removed the handle and cleaned/lubricated the button mechanism? I’m assuming the clips/rods/springs are all intact since you can futz and get it to work.

 

p.s. The obligatory “your grill is upside down” comment.

[SGTSnacks]

Upside down grille, "D@mm if it ain't", but that's the least of my problems. I've had it disassembled and repaired for the latch/button twice before, because I can't seem to finger out, how to get it open from the inside, no matter how hard I try.

What's the secret sauce to getting it open?

I'm 10 days out after a right knee replacement and not as flexible yet to crawling around the front (bench seat) like a monkey?

Thanks for any tips or tricks to get it open and making permanent repairs!

On 7/12/2026 at 3:02 PM, fiatslug87 said:

Have you removed the handle and cleaned/lubricated the button mechanism? I’m assuming the clips/rods/springs are all intact since you can futz and get it to work.

 

p.s. The obligatory “your grill is upside down” comment.

 

 

[SGTSnacks]

OK, Lads,

So, I have a Comanche MJ door (driver side) that's stuck shut.

How do I go about getting it unstuck (opened up) so I can see what's haywire?

 

Thanks,

SGTSnacks

[Pete M]

1 hour ago, SGTSnacks said:

OK, Lads,

So, I have a Comanche MJ door (driver side) that's stuck shut.

How do I go about getting it unstuck (opened up) so I can see what's haywire?

 

Thanks,

SGTSnacks

 

cycle the lock back and forth a bit, then leave it unlocked and push the outside button and pull the inside lever at the same time.  I've had success in junkyards with that method.  on my first truck I had to pull the inner door panel off to gain access to the rods.  that wasn't fun. 

 

 

1 hour ago, SGTSnacks said:

Thanks for any tips or tricks to get it open and making permanent repairs!

 

 

 

I've heard of guys taking the latch mechanism out of the door and soaking it in a thin degreaser or even gasoline over night before relubing it with lithium grease. 

[SGTSnacks]

All you Comanche Savant's "Out there!"

OK . . . Perhaps I'm not asking the right question(s).

First, please take into consideration I spent 27 years in the U.S. Army in helo maintenance.

So, I feel fairly competent with spinning wrenches.

But Lads . . . all I'm looking for is a suggestion or two on how to access the stuck/jammed driver door, so I can get it open to facilitate the repairs.

I have tried the lubrication and pushing, pulling of both the exterior button and the interior latches at the same time, that was not successful. 

The interior handle is limp and not catching anything that would allow it to open the door.

The outer door button is also limp and if I push it too far, it stays in and I need to get a screwdriver handle in there to free it up.

These maneuvers do NOT fix the problem of getting the door open so I can access the locking/latching mechanism.

So, I believe we have figured out I need to remove the interior door panel to get at the problem (latching mechanism).

I have also tried flooding the locking mechanism with lock free and working it back and forth, still a NOGO?

If you look at the pix, the interior is in nice shape and I'd prefer not destroying the door panel in the opening process.

As we all know,  there's very little wiggle room with the door stuck shut to access the interior door panel, latch, window regulator, etc.

Any and all ideas will be attempted before I take it back to the local shop and sink another $300-$500. in the third fix.

 

Cheers, 

SGTSnacks

 

[watchamakalit]

I don't know if there is room but I wonder if you roll the window down and pull the window sweep off, will that leave enough room to reach down in with a wire\tool and hook the opener rod?

 

Short of that it sounds like your pulling a door panel with the door shut. This is not a fun undertaking. I did it to an xj once in the junkyard. I hope I never have to do that again. 

[89 MJ]

I would think that you could pull the seat through the passenger door. It would be hard to get to the rear bolts, but doable. That would give a lot more access to the door panel. 

[Eagle_SX4]

I agree with the above roll the window all the way down remove the lower exterior window trim, just slide it up to remove it. Then with a hook made out of a stiff wire fish around in the door and hopefully pull the latch mechanism to open the door.