97 Ram 1500 Power Lock Changeout

From : abe

Q: 6/15/2004 thought id post this note in case someone else comes looking for notes on how to replace the power lock motor on their 97-ish dodge ram 1500. first the problem. using either the remote pog or the switch on the driver-side door sometimes the door would fail to lock or unlock. eventually it almost never worked. you have to pull the inside skin on the door first. i recommend doing this on a warm day to reduce the risk of cracking plastic. there are three screws - one up near the mirror adjustment switch and two in the cup your hand goes into when youre closing the door. the door is held on by 13 plastic pins. some have said you can just gently pull the skin away from the door but my advice is to get a special tool that looks like one of these http//www.mytoolstore.com/toolaid/87810.jpg http//www.hpcworld.com/lockhpc/images/tast4.jpg use the tool to get under the skin and pull the plastic pins out of the door not the door skin away from the pins. if you try to separate the pins from the door skin you could ruin the door skin. some have said they could re-use the plastic pins but my advice is to replace them. you dont want the door skin to rattle after youve finished this job. you have to disconnect the power mirror adjustment switch. theres a plug under the skin thats easy to disconnect. you have to remove the power lock switch and the power window switch from the door skin. i had read some instructions that said i could disconnect the wiring from the switches and leave the switches in the door skin but i dont see how that would work. remove these switch housings from the door skin carefully and let them hang. now you should be able to maneuver the door skin off the door handle and get it out of the way. you have to peel the clear plastic membrane away from the door on the left side. i peeled about 8 inches back. the lock motor is part of the latch and it all has to be removed. there are four arms attached to the latch. each is attached with a colored plastic clip which unsnaps from the arm and swings away from it. the plastic clips stay attached to the latch. you have to remove all four arms. the manual lock arm can be removed from the door at this time. there are three star-head bolts that hold the latch to the door on the outside end of the door. remove them with a t30 star bit. carefully reach inside the door through a hole you uncovered when you peeled back the membrane and carefully move the latch around until you can get it out. remember that the power lock wire is connected and youll need to remove it before you move the latch too far. i checked two auto parts stores and couldnt locate a replacement so off to the dealer i went. i ended up ordering the following 6503709 pin door 23015009 qty 13 @ $2.31 each 55076291-ab latch fro 23018005 $91.41 4780259 striker d 23008016 $10.75 the parts person said her notes indicated that a new stricker had to be installed to go with the latch. i still dont know if this is true but the new one was a little different than the old one so i used the new one. connect the power lock connector to the new latch and install it in the door the same way you took it out. the new latch will have the same 4 colored clips for the arms. reconnect the arms to the latch. i used a small bead of marine goop to re-attach the clear plastic membrane to the door. next i replaced the striker. since i couldnt see what the stricker was bolted in to i was careful not to remove both bolts at the same time and did an odd shuffle to get the new striker in place with one bolt before removing the 2nd bolt on the old striker. i used a t50 star bit for this. youll need to spend some time aligning the striker. youll see how it floats around and its not hard but plan on taking some time to do this right. the power lock and windows should be working at this point so test them. note the orientation of the switches so you know which way they go back in the door skin. i installed 13 new plastic pins in the door skin. the pins have a double head of sorts and slide into place on the skin. i slid the door skin over the handle and got it close to where it needed to be. i installed the lock and window switches in the door skin. i turned the key on and tested to make sure i had them oriented correctly. i also connected the power mirror adjustment switch. now you have to carefully get all 13 plastic pins lined up with holes in the door then start push them into the door. i went slowly and only pushed each pin a little at a time and went all around the door to make sure i had all the pins in place. eventually the door skin was tightly installed on the door. install the three screws you removed at the beginning of the job. with hind-sight i should have tried to find the plastic pins at an auto parts store because $2.31 a piece is just too muc