Sticky door latch 2nd generation Golf

[vavavroom]

My dad wants to give my son for his birthday a 1987 Golf. At 31 years old, this car is twice the age of my son. The Golf is in good shape with just a few minor problems other than being a Volkswagen. I would get my son a newer and safer vehicle, but his heart is set on grandpa's old car. It's got only 27,000 miles on the engine.It is the four-door GL base model with the 1.8l gas engine. The car went into storage when I left for uni in 1995. The car will need an oil and filter change, new spark plugs, air filter, new drive belt, timing belt and tensioner, water pump and thermostat, and new tires. The blinker bulbs in the front bumper are burned out. To replace them the grille, headlights and finally, thanks to German engineering, the bumper has to come out. My son will be able to do most of the work himself. The outside driver side door handle does not operate smoothly but feels very notchy with a lot of resistance when you pull the outside handle. Does anybody here know if this indicates a problem with the door latch cable linkage or is there another common cause?

 

[Trav]

IIRC these don't use a cable for the outside handle. The mechanism is probably corroded, remove the trim on the outside of the handle and remove the screw in the front and the rear one from the side panel just above he latch.

Remove the handle and clean/lube the mechanism, reinstall. 20 min job.

 

[dishdude]

If these are the fixed handles with the little lever inside that releases the door, they always break. Pull the panel off and take a look.

 

[vavavroom]

Yes, this is the fixed type handle with a trigger. It makes sense that there is no Bowden cable. I don't think it could get that sticky. Thanks for the information. It's going to be a month or so before I can report any findings.