How does one replace door lock cylinder?

[Chintzel]

I just got a new set of door and trunk lock cylinders for my 71' and have the door panels off but can't figure out how to replace the locks. How do you get the cylinders out and the new ones in? Any pictures would be helpful. Thanks!

 

[MadMike]

I don't have pictures, but there's a flat clip pinching the lock cylinder to the door. Remove that clip with a screwdriver. Now the lock cylinder is free... wiggle it and the rod going from the lock cylinder pawl to the door latch will fall out of it. Now you can remove the lock cylinder.

Transfer the pawl to the new lock cylinder, if your new ones didn't come with it, put the lock cylinder in the door, slide the rod into the pawl and latch and slide that clip back in to lock the cylinder to the door skin.

 

[Chintzel]

Thanks

Thanks for the quick reply. So, this clip should be easily visible when looking from the inside of the door? When it is removed, does it fall into the door? Also, when installing the new cylinder, how does one get at the inside? I mean, the interior of the door has all these support rods and cross members so you can't get your hands in to access the cylinder on the inside.

 

[Skaal-tel 79]

Crowbar. I used an iron crowbar.

Lever the lock clip off and you're done, basically. The clip falls down but it's not hard to get at.

If you just go spend 5 minutes removing the door panel you'll see it's a piece of cake. (barring the stubborn clip)

GL

 

[Twisted_Metal]

You have to remove the interior door panel.... This means removing the arm rests, window crank, mirror remote, locks and the door panel itself first.

The lock clip is plainly visible once the panel is off and the window is all the way up.
Easy job after you get the panel off. A large screwdriver or small pry-bar is all that is needed for installation or removal of the clip.

 

[Skaal-tel 79]

a pic I took when I was doing this, and door handles.

on the upper right corner of the lock cylinder you can see one of the two prongs of the clip you need to remove.

Hope this helps

 

[Chintzel]

Door lock

Thanks everyone for the help. The pic definitely helps. Finally, since I am a neophyte here, once the clip is removed, is it easier to remove the rod from the pawl or the pawl from the cylinder? Will the cylinder easily come out with the pawl still attached? I imagine it does since I can't see how you could attach the pawl to the cylinder while the cylinder is in the door. I am not sure if my replacement cylinder comes with one - so is it easy to attach the old one to the new cylinder? Is attaching the rod to the pawl easy once it is in the door? I am going to do this project this Monday. Thanks,

 

[Twisted_Metal]

The lock arm (pawl) comes out with the cylinder. The rod just slips through the slot in the arm and isn't attached with a clip.
(I edited my earlier post because I realized I was describing the rod/handle clip, not the lock. )

 

[Skaal-tel 79]

pop the clip, remove the cylinder, replace with new cylinder. It's very very simple. You don't have to swap any parts over between each piece.

You should probably lube up the new cylinder with graphite before you install it

 

[Chevy 350]

Like everyone else said. Its really very simple and straightfoward.
You may wanna work on some other stuff while youre at it.
I took mine off and am rebuilding the hinges, taking care of rust, replacing the handles, fixing a broken roller problem, and replacing locks while Ive got it off.