H3 Door Locks a Liability?

[FormerJeeper]

Anyone seen this and care to comment?

http://www.carsurvey.org/viewcomments_review_85678.html

[FormerJeeper]

Anyone seen this and care to comment?

http://www.carsurvey.org/viewcomments_review_85678.html

[DDWH]

Just read it and heres my opinion to the guy...

I find it somewhat amusing! Class action lawsuit....the assmonkey must be from California!

and the bragging by this guy...I say nothing more than BS!

He thinks the H3 is the only car on the planet that can be broken into that way? Probably 99% of cars can be broken into via this method. Okay so yo beef up that point of entry and then they go to the next access point. Maybe cram a crow bar in the door jam, into the latch and whap they are in.

I have had a VW Jetta, Audi A6, and a BMW 5 series all broken into that way. The jetta in broad day light, in a private busy office parking lot.

If your worried or like to leave valuables in your car then I would say get an after market alarm. I don't care what car or what alarm system I have....I never leave anything in the vehicle that I can not live without! Thieves will always figure out how to get in, the pros are just less messy with thier method of access

[oneworld]

I agree totsly with DDWH, as a matter of fact I would prefer that if my H3 got broken into thier would be less damage to the access point.
Please note that the lexus SUV is having a major problem with stolen headlights. Good thieves can drop your headlights out in less then 4 minutes and leave your bumper lying right in front of your car. I have seen two so far right in broad daylight at our local gym parking lot. This has happened to a freind of mine, and I also saw one with the bumper out, no headlights parked out side my girlfriends building. Those lights go for over $2000.00. So Formerjeeper Get a grip. If some one wants to break in they are going to get in. Its not GMs engineering.

[RubHer Yellow Ducky]

As I understand they put a screwdriver into the key slot, twist and the lock comes out. If its that simple then I would like to see more INTELLIGENT comments on it.

RYD

[f5fstop]

Mine has a metal C-clip, inside the door, holding the lock cylinder to the rod.
From what I have learned this is what happens, and why there is a plastic clip laying on the ground, near the vehicle.
The lock cylinder is shipped to the plant, separate from the door (Naturally). During shipment, the lock cylinder is held in place to the lock sleeve with a plastic clip. Upon installing into the door, the rear of the cylinder goes through a metal rod/cable, and at that point the metal C-clip is installed. However, the plastic clip is still there,between the end of the sleeve and the rod, but serves no purpose; other than its original purpose to hold the cylinder in the sleeve during shipment from the lock cylinder manufacturer.
Now, could the C-clip have fallen off if not installed correctly at the plant? Sure, it might happen, but then the lock would obviously be loose.
What gets me curious, is the guy never says they were caught, and he only assumes a screwdriver was used. In less than fifteen seconds, I can screw in a slide hammer and pull the lock cylinder out, leaving no damage to the door. This is true on almost any vehicle made, by any vehicle manufacturer.
If I used a slide hammer, most likely the plastic shipment clip would come out with the cylinder and sleeve, while the clip, which is located behind the rod, would fall down inside the door. Unless you removed the door panel, you would not see the metal clip.
As for a class action suit, the guy needs to obtain the number of plaintiffs, so directed by the court, before a class action can be filed.

So, unless GM has changed their installation and started using a platic C-clip, this complaint is frivolous. In addition, door locks must meet FMVSS standard 206 for door retention. This includes the retention of the door to remained locked during a side collision. There are currently plastics on the market that would probably hold as good or better than a thin metal C-clip.

[DarthKarl]

And there you have it!

Thanks f5fstop

[Chip]

If someone wants to get into your car, any car. They will find a way. Class Action lawsuit, good luck.

[CampMaster]

No one simply sees accidents anymore or thinks that maybe it could be the theifs fault... somehow it has to be a big company's fault. There has to be evil corps involved... the only way to solve anything anymore is to sue the one with the deepest pocket!

[HummerJim]

Yep, that article is pure BS. There is not a car made that I know of where you can't take a pop rod or a sledge hammer and pull or punch out the lock. I saw local police try to open a car in the summer with a handicapped person locked inside at the Lake of the Ozarks. After two minutes of fiddling around with the rod down the window, another cop pulled up with a pop rod and the lock came out and they were in within 10 seconds. This was on a 2005 Camry.

[FormerJeeper]

Oneworld - why are you telling me to get a grip?

All I did was find this article and post it here for comment because I thought it would be of interest to people and that hopefully someone could confirm or deny this fools claims.

Glad to see f5fstop is one the ball as usual...

-C

[HummBebe]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by FormerJeeper:
Oneworld - why are you telling me to get a grip?

All I did was find this article and post it here for comment because I thought it would be of interest to people and that hopefully someone could confirm or deny this fools claims.

Glad to see f5fstop is one the ball as usual...

-C </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

He's ET too

It's always going to be something, and like was said above- if they want in, they're going to get in.

I was in Alaska this summer and we managed to lock our keys in the rental Ford Expedition.
One guy grabbed a rock ready to go to town on a window when a 70-something y.o. man with us stopped him and said watch and learn.

He grabbed a stick, whittled it into a wedge and stuck it in the gap at the top of the door and body. Went over, unscrewed the antenna, then stuck it in the gap right down on the door lock switch.
Whammo- all doors unlocked instantly.

Anyone can get in any time they want....

[f5fstop]

Lock cylinder slides into cylinder case (sleeve). Rear of lock cylinder protrudes into door lock rod's right "odd" shaped hole (inside of door), and is retained to the lock rod with a metal C-clip.
Another lock rod comes from the door latch assembly to the door lock rod, it is bent at a 90 degree angle and the end of this rod is inserted into the left "round" hole of the lock rod. This rod, is retained by the lock rod retainer, which is plastic, but it does nothing other than to retain the rod to the latch to the door lock rod. If this piece of plastic broke, the only thing that would happen is the latch rod would slip out of the door lock rod.
The metal C-clip is what retains the cylinder to the door lock rod, and is the same type of metal C-clip used on every vehicle (GM or otherwise), I have ever worked on.
Not shown on the drawing is the plastic retainer that is inserted at the lock manufacturer plant that holds the lock cylinder to the cylinder case for shipment to the assembly plant. It is not shown, since it is not required as a serviceable part when a technician performs any repairs on the lock cylinder.
All that plastic retainer is used for is to keep the parts together for ease of assembly, so at the plant, the entire assembly (lock cylinder and cylinder case) are inserted into the door, through the lock rod, and then the metal C-clip is attached, along with the other rods.

So, if I used a slide hammer, I would pull the entire assembly out, and when it fell on the ground, the plastic retainer would be there. For a untrained person, this might make it appear the cylinder was held in by the plastic clip, and it was, for assembly.

[oneworld]

sorry Formerjeeper, thought you were the one wyning.

And there you have it

Thanks again f5fstop