Car door freezing

s4uch1e

My 66 plate ford fiesta 3door has developed an annoying fault when temperatures are minus. 
When the weather is minus opening the car using remote key the drivers door struggles too open, once in the door won't close over , last night I had to drive home while holding door from flying open, once home it actually closed, probably due too heating being on,(know I shouldn't really have driven home).
Passenger door doesn't do it but I'm getting a little too old too be climbing over from passenger side unfortunately 
Is there anything I can do too prevent thisfrom happening again as that's now 4x in last month.

macman

Try some silicon spray on the door seals. The freezing temps make them more rigid.

Ebe_Scrooge

A couple of simple things to check first off.  Check that the rubber door seal is in good condition (i.e. not damaged or perished).  If it is, replace it (a simple DIY job).  Also, make sure it's seated to the framework properly (it's usually just a simple push-fit).

If it looks OK, clean it thoroughly, then give it a spray/wipe over with silicone lubricant.  Making sure it's clean and lubricated can help prevent moisture sitting on it, which can obviously freeze in low temperatures.

This is the most common reason that a door freezes shut and/or won't close properly.  Hopefully this will do the trick without having to spend money on the actual locking mechanism.

<edit> I see macman got there before me!

photome

struggled to open my drivers  door this morning and when it did finally release it still wouldnt open properly as if the hinges were frozen , i just pulled a bit harder and it eventually opened and closed but with difficulty

mine is  70 plate Corolla, never happened on any car I have ever had before in over 45 years of driving

is the OP referring to the rubber seals getting stuck as mine were and has happened in the past, or the hinges not working as per my post

lincroft1710

Doesn't matter what car or how old. Happened this morning to an 04 plate Honda Jazz and a 15 plate VW Golf. Also happened to an 07 Ford Fiesta a few weeks ago.

Ebe_Scrooge

lincroft1710 said:

Doesn't matter what car or how old. Happened this morning to an 04 plate Honda Jazz and a 15 plate VW Golf. Also happened to an 07 Ford Fiesta a few weeks ago.

Yep, it can happen to any car.  Usually it's just a simple case of (especially when we've had wet weather followed by a freeze), the door rubbers get ice forming on them, and bind to the door.  In the vast majority of cases, a good clean and dry followed by a squirt of silicone will do the trick.

I'm not saying that hinges and locks don't freeze - just that in the majority of cases it's something far more simple

Altior

I had a brand spanking new TT, where this was an issue and discovered it was a design fault, that was quite unique to us Brits because of the climate here. 

They have frameless doors, and in the UK you can get frost/ice that melts and refreezes over a short time period. Anyway, per chance a colleague in the office had exactly the same car and it came up in conversation that he couldn't open his door sometimes on a winter morning either. Google search later, identified the problem was well known in TT chat rooms etc that the refreezing H2O prevents the window glass from dropping to allow the door to open. 

moneysaver

Sounds like the lock, rather than the seal if it will not shut. Have a look at the lock on the door, it might be stuck with ice, if it is spray it with silicone spray.

Moneysaver

SpudGunPaul

moneysaver said:

Sounds like the lock, rather than the seal if it will not shut. Have a look at the lock on the door, it might be stuck with ice, if it is spray it with silicone spray.

Moneysaver

I agree, had the same problem this morning. Went to wipe the drivers window and the door came open. I used the key to flick the lock mechanism close. Opened it again with the handle and all was good. I'll spray it with silicone tomorrow. 

s4uch1e

It's definitely the locking mechanism,  door does open but when trying to close behind me it's not catching. I did put silcone spray on seals a couple of weeks ago which did help with opening the door but it still wouldn't close again.
I might try using the actual key too open door from now on too see if that helps 

jimmo

Try parking the other way around. The way I normally park at home the driver's door freezes but the passenger door is OK. If I park the other way round the passenger door freezes but the drivers door is OK.