Does anyone know how to take out the driver side actuator and put in a new one. Or is there a DIY thread that i can't find in here for it. someone help me with this please. I took out the panel and there is very little room to work with and its all the way back where the door jams are at, or am i just sol.

 

I believe krshultz (Karl) has done this exact thing. might want to PM him.

Dave

 

I'm not sure I can be of much help, since I've never replaced an actuator, but I can certainly help you with the door handle itself. In fact, I just finished replacing mine for the second time (!!) about an hour ago.

Once you have the door card off, the handle goes on with three screws, two short and one long. Remove these three screws. Now, find the rod that goes from the lock switch back to the cam in the middle of the door. Detach it from the door first, and it will flop down loosely, suspended from the lock switch. Pull the door handle away from the rod that opens the door; it's a U shape, and you'll have to swing the handle around to accommodate that. Difficult to explain, but if you take a look at it, it'll make sense.

Installation is the reverse of removal. When you put the new handle on the first time, get in the car and close the door, then open it. Make sure you're happy with the feel of the action of the door handle. If you're not, you can tweak it by moving the handle around on its mountings.

That's all I've done, though - I've never replaced an actuator. I've done that on my F250 - maybe that's what people are referring to - but never on the S2000.

By the way, one more thing about the door handle. I'm one of the very few people who has this problem, and I think I have a guess what's causing it. I have this bad habit of hitting the lock/unlock button on the remote repeatedly, all the way from when I'm in range to when I'm at the car. I suspect that all these extra tugs on the lock switch are fatiguing the plastic and causing it to fail. It's the only thing I can think of.

Sorry I can't be of more help, but I hope that's at least a start. Good luck, and take pictures if you think about it - your project might help someone just like you down the road, and they'd sure appreciate it.

 

thanks karl, ill do that. i did take the inside door panels off and only have a small gap to work with and it seems like you really need a long arm and hand to get back there so definitly ill do that so. thanks again.

 

Let me ask you this. Is the problem that the interior lock switch (the thing that says LOCK on it) feels like it's not attached to anything? If so, your door handle is broken just like mine have. It's not the actuator.

What's more, when it fails this way, the mechanism gets positioned in such a way that the car keeps relocking itself. Weird, I know, but it's happened to me twice now. I could get the door open if I hit the remote and *immediately* opened the door; otherwise, it would lock right back. But the giveaway is that lock switch feeling like it's not attached to anything, and sort of flopping around freely.

Anyway, if it's the actuator, it might be easier than you think it's going to be. Honda has a way of building cars such that you can't put stuff together backwards. Example: the lock rod won't fit inside the door handle. It has to go in the lock switch. I'm guessing this is carried throughout, especially given that you can't see what you're doing back there.

I'll share some experience with the F250.

1. Get a flashlight, and look into whatever holes there are to see what you can, *before* you take anything apart. If you can take a picture, or at least draw stuff on paper, so much the better. That way you'll know what it's supposed to look like.

2. Do stuff by feel. Feel around with your fingertips before you just start turning wrenches.

3. Read whatever procedures you can find (websites, FSM, etc) multiple times before you start. Trust me. The worst thing ever is to find that perfect position for your hands where you can finally get to something, only to realize that you've forgotten what to do. Seriously. It sucks.

4. Test your work before you put the whole door back together. It's pretty deflating to put something back together, go to use it, and realize you've left off a step or forgotten something. That sucks too.

 

i know its definitly not the door handle because i can use a keep to open and lock the door. my passager side open and lock with the button of the arm and unarm button so im assuming its the actuator that went out. ill do that and see what happnes.