Doors unlock but don't lock with fob/switch
 

I have a problem with the door locks on my 2002 MC, 48k miles, but I wasn't able to find a previous solution on here to my specific issue.

The doors will unlock normally with the fob and with the dash toggle, but will not lock (I have to lock by putting the key in the door). The rear hatch also does not lock. When I try to lock with the toggle, I do hear the relay clicking behind the dash as normal, but with no response from the door locks.

I also noticed some other things happened at the same time:
The interior light will now often remain on after I close the drivers door, only going out after several (10 or 15) minutes.

The driver's window doesn't fully close (into the door seal) when the door closes (passenger's window works normally). All windows do open and close with the window toggles, but when I bring the drivers window all the way up, it will instantly drop to the 'door open' position, when I'm driving or parked (again, passenger window works normally).

With the doors open, I tried to mimic how the door latch closes onto the square catch on the door frame, by pushing the door latching/locking mechanism into the door with a screwdriver. I did this with both doors for comparison. The mechanism moved the same distance, in the same manner with a similar force required, and both mechanisms returned to the open position by pressing the door handle. However, when the latch was pushed fully into the door on the passenger side, the window went fully up into the ‘door closed’ position, but on the driver’s side, the window remained in the 'door open' position.

Does the central locking, when working normally, behave like this (unlocks but does not lock the doors) when a door is open? This would all suggest to me that the car 'thinks' the driver's door is not closed, even when it physically is. What electrically detects if a door is closed? Any ideas on a possible fix?

Thanks.

Not sure what detects 'door closed', but have you tried holding the toggle in the 'up' posistion for 5 seconds after the window is fully closed (with door closed)? It resets the memory so the window motor knows where 'closed' is.

I have heard that door locking problems predate a window actuator failure. something to keep an eye on.

Replace Door Lock Actuator
 

Dude,

You need a need a new door lock actuator, which includes a new lock mechanism. I just replaced mine with the same exact issue. It cost about $150 for the part, and I had the body shop install it for $50. They said it was a bear to install, and MINI would have charged me at least $150 to install.

I used my key to manually lock until I felt like paying the money to replace it. Good luck!

alright i had the wrong actuator in my head, joedude is telling you the right one.

Thanks for the input all - a new twist to the story has occured however. Today the door has somehow fixed itself. I noticed getting out of my car that the window went fully up after closing the door, and sure enough, I tried and was able to lock the doors remotely using the fob. Of course, there is every chance it may break again tomorrow I suppose...

Spectator, if nothing else it may be a comfort to know that you are not the only one with this trouble.

My wife's '03 has the same sort of trouble especially now that the weather is so cold. Both windows and door locks only work when they feel like it. Just dandy. :mad:

It's all pretty piss-poor for a supposedly "premium" car. BMW is lucky it's such a lovable car.

I am trying to remember what is inside the door lock actuator since I tore mine appart when I could not lock the door with the Key FOB. There are 3 different motors inside the actuator that control all the functions when the door is locked/unlocked, open/closed. The motor brushes loose contact and quite working which cause the problem you are having and the problem I had.

joedude99 - The body shop is right, the actuator is a pain in the #$%:mad: to get out! I am too cheep to buy a new actuator, so I tore mine apart, cleaned the brushes and motor and it has worked great since. I would not be supprised if yours comes and goes for a little while then quites working all together agian. You will have to replace it in the long run!:no: Not like the old days where a simple ground switch turned your interior lights on and off:thumbsup: !