This is a question for you car-inclined peoples. The driver side car door is sticky, in that it has become difficult to open. It takes a lot more force than normal to open it, pulling on the handle.

A few things online said applying WD-40 to the hinges and "catch" (I assume that's the bit on the very outside of the door that latches onto the car) will solve the problem. I've also heard WD-40 can be dangerous to use on the wrong things.

Any advice? Is WD-40 okay to use? Other solutions?

Thanks!

It is only stiff when you're trying to open it. After it has cleared the frame it is fine. I'll try to lift the door up and see if that's the case. If it is, how would I fix it? New hinges? Or hopefully some easier solution?

WD-40 can wash grease out, so use proper thick grease (maybe after washing out dirt with WD-40).

If the hinges seem solid, then maybe the door or frame has been bent. Manual bending is usually sufficient with modern cars, which are made of flimsy tin-plate.

I noticed that if someone urinates on a car door that can also make it stick

Make sure the door is clean around the edges and the hinge is not warped or bent. A little WD-40 won't hurt the hinge either, but you may have to work it in by opening and closing the door while applying a little more each time.

The doors on my car were like that when we got it second hand. A garage looked at it and "fixed" it by pulling up on the door, bending it back up I assume. Apparently it was bend down a little bit and bending it back was enough to correct the problem.

Doesn't sound like a proper fix to me. :\

http://www.allegro.cc/files/attachment/595048

Um, well, she should have thought "Carbone" instead.

I had a Datsun 100A and it behaved just like that. No doors worked, not the hood, not the trunk lid, when one wheel was jacked up. It was a very small car, 988 cc. And it was rusty.

Well, I tried pulling up on the door and found it pretty firmly in place (car moved up ). I'll try some lube when next I get a chance and hope that helps.

Someone said something about washing it with WD-40 before applying the grease. Do I just put some WD-40 on, wipe clean, and then apply grease?

Thanks for the help thus far.

I'm driving a Grand Prix. The door isn't flimsy, but I had the same type of problem. Just because the door isn't flimsy (it shouldn't be in a good car...) that doesn't mean that it couldn't have been bent. Imagine a person putting their weight on the car... That could be over a hundred pounds of force... It can happen. Assuming the problem is that it's bent and you can't bend it back by hand you could put a jack beneath it and lift up on it (as mentioned earlier; and you'll want to pad the bottom to avoid doing damage). Probably would want somebody with experience doing it though...