Removal of door locks, front doors

[175GDY]

I have to remove the door locks to have them cleaned and relubricated. I will also install the plastic covers 5K0837349A (left front door lock) and 5K0837350B (right front door lock).
Is it possible to remove the lock mechanism through the loudspeaker opening in the door? I can see the workshop procedure says to remove the window and assembly carrier, but this seems to be more time consuming than removing only the loudspeaker.
Reason for this operation is that the left front door lock frose on 3 occasions last winter, and the door would not keep shut until the mechanism had thawed.  According to my dealer, this problem is well known for Fabia. But I suspect it happens with a lot of other VAG cars using the same lock mechanism.

[Ryeman]

I'd spray some CRC dry lube silicon into the barrel via the key - it's so slippery I doubt if ice could take hold.......worth a try I would think.

[175GDY]

It's not the cylinder that freezes, it's the lock mechanism.  I always spray some BreakFree CLP in the lock cylinder before the winter sets in.  But for the lock mechanism I was advised to use some PTFE-oil. I bought a can from Würth, so this part is now covered :sun: .

[33q]

If the lock itself is not freezing I'm not clear what is the point of fitting them. As others have posted I'd use a good quality lock lubricant.

 

I see you are in Norway and I'd guess in an area where the cold is rather more of a problem than it is in the middle of the UK.

 

Is this a problem that other cars suffer from?....and if so is their  remedy as drastic as stripping down the door with all its attendant problems of getting back together fully adjusted and rattle free. To me it seems a bit of a sledge hammer to crack a nut.

 

Could you not simply remove the door casing and liberally spray cleaner and then lubricant into and onto all the locking bits?

 

Is a garage or carport an option?.....long term benefit.....or a car cover?........shorter term but perhaps worth a try

 

Even a kettle of warm water?

[175GDY]

33q: Thank you.
But my question was about how to take the lock mechanism out of the door.  If you remove the door trim, there is still a layer of steel plate where there are two obvious accesses to the internal part of the door. One is by removing the "assembly carrier", the other is by removing the loudspeaker.

[33q]

Sorry I couldn't answer your question directly. I tried to offer an alternative for you to consider that may mean an awful lot Less work and hassle.

I'm pretty handy with doing jobs but if there is an easier way I would try that first.

[CicaYeti]

Why don't you buy the technical manual,  would be a strong help for homemade works on the car

[175GDY]

This weekend I removed the door lock (l/h, front).  As the woofer is riveted in place, I left this and removed glass and carrier plate.
The door lock had some evidence of being sprayed with anti-corrosion stuff.  If this has caused the malfunctions of the mechanism last winter is difficult to say. But I cleaned and lubricated the lock as much as possible without opening the mechanism itself. I used the Würth Teflube and lubricated/sprayed all the parts in the mechanical side of the lock.
The cylinder also got some of the Teflube treatment.
The bowden cables was the treated with some ATF-oil. Friction was noticeable reduced. Have used ATF-oil on bowden cables on the snow thrower for some years now.  And no more frosen/stuck bowden cables.
When installing the door lock I could now install the plastic cover, which was the main reason for stripping the door.