Power locks, windows don't work in cold., I need a solution Options

[A_N_T_H_O_N_Y]

I live in Ottawa, Canada, and we get really harsh winters. On some days in the winter, the temperature can even drop to -30°C (-22°F).

Yesterday, it was -10°C (14°F), and I had my celica parked outside my work for about 5 hours. When I went to get in my car at the end of my shift, the locks wouldn't open. When I pushed the unlock button on my remote, I could hear the locks opening, but they wouldn't turn all the way, so I still couldn't get in the car. I tried using the key to unlock the door as well, with no luck.

I ended up having to open the trunk and hop over both seats to get to the driver's seat so that I could get home.

The same thing happens with the power windows. When the car has been sitting in the cold, they don't open. Also, for the locks, the driver's door seems to get stuck more often then the passenger door.

So I have no idea what to do. The only solution I can think of at the moment is to not lock my doors when it's cold. Has this problem happened to anybody else? Our winters last pretty long too, so I have to figure something out...

[garin]

why are you using power windows in -22 degree weather? haha

[A_N_T_H_O_N_Y]

why are you using power windows in -22 degree weather? haha

Haha well you know, you never know when you need to, um, air the car out. lol



but yeah the windows aren't a big concern, just the locks.

[pyeatts]

The story is the factory grease on the lock actuators and window guides is freezing. There's only one real fix and that is to remove the door panel and use a a spray grease cleaner to remove the factory grease and replace it with a spray white lithium grease with teflon. It won't freeze and you shouldn't have this problem again.

[A_N_T_H_O_N_Y]

The story is the factory grease on the lock actuators and window guides is freezing. There's only one real fix and that is to remove the door panel and use a a spray grease cleaner to remove the factory grease and replace it with a spray white lithium grease with teflon. It won't freeze and you shouldn't have this problem again.

Perfect, that's exactly what I needed. I'm going to try this sometime this week and see how it goes. I'm assuming I can get the lithium grease from Canadian Tire, or a hardware store? Hopefully this will work. Thanks a lot.

[RoyO]

The story is the factory grease on the lock actuators and window guides is freezing. There's only one real fix and that is to remove the door panel and use a a spray grease cleaner to remove the factory grease and replace it with a spray white lithium grease with teflon. It won't freeze and you shouldn't have this problem again.

Indeed, I would do the same! Thats a good solution..

[lilgreenyoda]

So are you saying that the drivers door gets stuck closed more often than the passenger... as in like when they're unlocked you still can't get 'em open? Or is it just the whole getting 'em unlocked thing?

[Galcobar]

Driver's door has been locked/unlocked and opened/closed more than the passenger side, it'll wear out its lubrication sooner. I'm dealing with something similar, as my power door locks aren't quite unlocking the driver-side door enough. It's literally about a millimetre or two of movement I'm missing, and it only affects opening the door with the exterior handle. Using the key to unlock avoids the issue.

[zfjohnson07]

i had that happen to my car in TEXAS!! it was so cold i stuck the key in and i bent the key trying to get the lock to turn, i had to get my gf to climb through the back and i had 2 car seats in the back at the time lmao so it was not an easy task!!