Loud buzzing when driver's door is locked or unlocked

[John Warren]

My Transit Connect's driver's door was OK when I took it in for service at the Autonation in Delray Beach,, but then the dealer called me that the driver's side door lock was "making a noise." They wanted $500 to fix it. My questions are two fold. Does anyone have an idea what they've done and how I can fix it and does anyone have any idea how I can disconnect the electronics and simply go back ot using a mechanical key.

[103west43rd]

Hello John, there is not enough detail in your post, but if I assume it is the driver's door lock unit, I think your dealer would have to remove the interior door panel to troubleshoot the noise. If they did, they would unplug the lock unit to see if the "noise" stopped. Just tell them to leave it unplugged and put the door back together! Let us know the outcome and good luck.

[Cooter32]

Mine did the same thing after I picked it up from getting the front wheel bearings and carrier bearing replaced. Now the automatic locking doesn't work at all, have to use the key. Looking for parts and installation info if anyone knows.

[jimCognito]

My 2010 started making the same noise 4 days after my warranty expired. The dealer quoted me a similar price to replace the mechanism. I've learned to live with the noise. Too many other costly issues with brakes, wheel bearings & shocks. It is handy in a parking lot to scare people who park too close.

[herseyb]

I have the damn actuator on the driver door uninstalled for everything except unplugging the wires.

Anybody know how that connector unplugs?

[Larry's Music Buffet]

I own a 2010 FTC XLT Van w/45,00 miles.  Just recently the actuation of unlocking has started buzzing.  It seem to come from the side sliding door at the rear end.  This occurs whether I use the key or the fob to unlock the vehicle.  Any suggestions?

 

[roadready]

Same situation here, drivers door actuator very loud buzz lasts about 2 seconds....sure it is actuator and was going to try and take it out to clean it but CANNOT

get the key lock tumbler from outside to disengage with the interior component....sure this has to happen to pull the actuator.....Irony, just a couple days after I pulled the panel the electric window regulator went out....thought about the repair kit because it's fairly cheap and I didn't need the motor, but bought the whole regulator and installed it, was very easy.  But while I have the panel pulled I want to address the actuator buzz.  Appreciate the feedback.

[k9-design]

OMG I feel like I have found my tribe of people.

About a month ago my 2010 Transit with 275,000 miles started doing this same VERY LOUD NOISE from the driver's door when the door is unlocked. It had no recent repairs, just happened out of the blue. I refuse to put any money toward fixing it, at this point it is a very annoying conversation piece at gas stations.

Forever the car has had a faulty sensor or whatever, it regularly tells me there is a door open when there is not a door open. This deactivates the automatic locking when the car starts to drive. In a similar vein, sometimes when I am trying to lock the vehicle from the outside, it refuses to lock any doors, because it believes there is a door open. This causes me to open and close all the doors trying to find the "guilty party" -- it is usually the passenger door.

Amazing the quirks you grow to live with.

[Fifty150]

Looks like only a half dozen people reported the issue, nobody has a solution, and it is only with the first generation sold in U.S.

[OLDSCHOOLFOOL]

I have never gotten any buzzing from manual locks. That must be the reason they are getting rid of them.

[PhotoAl]

My guess is the microswitch in the door lock mechanism is bad or out of adjustment.  It has happened on some of the VW's I've had but they don't have the buzzing.  Autolock and stuff like that quits working.  For that some folks have figured out what microswitch to replace it with and have replaced just that instead of the whole mechanism ($$$$).  

[Ronny Mac]

We found a damaged gear in our Transit Connect power lock actuator. I was able to find replacement gears on E-Bay. The dealer wanted to sell the entire actuator. It took less than 45 minutes to remove and replace. Noise is now gone.

[Timbo]

My 2010 XLT has been making the buzzing noise, off and on, for months.  

It's finally getting bad enough that I want to do something about it.  

The lock still works, but it's embarrassing to have your van "fart" every time you unlock the doors.  

 

It looks like replacement of the entire actuator is about $325, though I've found a few aftermarket units for a bit less.  

 

I see the gears are available on eBay, though the ones posted above this post appear to be for the front doors.  

I'll have to do some digging to see if the rear, sliding doors have replaceable gears in them.  

 

Edited October 8, 2021 by Timbo