Does anyone have this problem? I have noticed that the front door handles are more difficult to open than the rear door handles. Is this because of wear and tear or poor craftsmenship? Is there anything I can do to make them easier to open? Is WD-40 a solution and if so I can't see exactly where to spray it. Top of the lock mechanism or the bottom part? Should I just spray and hope for the best? I wonder if it will get more difficult in the cold weather months.
Thanks advance for your assistance.

 

I have the same problem with my passenger front door. It is one of the many questions I have that I have wanted to post.

 

I have yet to find a solution with mine. Its just a bad design... I've come up with a different way of opening the door though. Rather than just yanking on the damn thing. I take my thumb and press it against the key hole and pull with the rest of my fingers to pry it open. It makes opening the door a lot easier.

 

Making use of the old thumb! That is exactly what I had also had to resort too. Pretty much on my first day of ownership it was the only way to open the door with out pulling my shoulder out of its socket! lol I taught my wife the secret of opening her door too, which I believe is harder to open as luck would have it. I have not figured out why. The only door handle with a key is the front driver's side (in the USA). The others do not have keys and yet the rear handles open with such ease. I think another LR member said it best when he said these vehicles are full of quirks! Oh well it continues to get me where I want to go. Thanks guys responding. I'm truly not alone.

 

I did put some silicon grease on mine, and it helped a little. Might try it yourself if its really that hard to open.

 

Sounds good! Would WD-40 hurt? I know I have some of that at home. It's not extremely difficult but when someone gets in who never opened a RR door before it makes for a embarassing moment for the person and also makes the RR name look bad.
Also, I wonder in the below freezing weather will something break off.

 

WD-40 wouldn't hurt, but its more designed for gears and chains and probably won't work as well as a silicon lubricant in your case. You are certainly welcome to try it though! There is this stuff at work I've used on other things to make them incredibly smooth. Its called "super lube" or something like that. I haven't used it on my RRs doors yet, because I don't usually drive my RR to work.

 

You can see some improvement with a little lubrication between the handle part that moves when you pull it and the static portion - a little friction there. You could also pull your door panel and spray the entire assembly from the inside, carefully.

I'd avoid WD (too caustic IMHO) in favor of a spray silicone or even a dry graphite powder.

I used a silicone spray to try to help my handles fully return after they are pulled. It did help, and I reapply a little bit every month or two.

 

The thumb trick is actually the "correct" way of opening the doors. It is in the owners manual.(really) I have tried to explain the thumb method to my 9-year-old but she insists on pulling on the handle and when it opens almost falling down. Oh well. I do like the idea of spraying silicone on the handles to make them fully retract. That always annoyed me.

 

Great, now I'm going to have to start monitoring how I open my doors, and try not to be self conscious while I do it.