Door ajar warning

When starting my 2010 Ford Fusion 1.6 TDCI with 83,000 miles, the passenger door closes correctly, but I sometimes get a warning light saying it is still ajar. This appears to be random, but occasionally I get the same message when driving over a particularly rough patch of tarmac. The ‘passenger door open’ message illuminates on the dashboard, a red light appears and a buzzer goes off. The interior light comes on and the central locking immediately unlocks itself when I try to lock it. Sometimes I have to open and close the door repeatedly to get it to operate correctly, other times a single open/shut suffices. No other doors are affected.

I have tried several times with the door open to reproduce the fault using a screwdriver in the catch and manually moving it to the closed position. Most times there was no problem, but on a few occasions I got the ‘passenger door open’ message. Rocking the door/a-post connections does not appear to make a difference, so I assume it is a door catch assembly/wiring fault in the door.

I removed the trim panel and all the bolts round the inner panel, then unscrewed and removed the electric window motor, expecting the panel to come off. However, it appears to be held in the centre by something, although it did move ¼-½ inch before I encountered resistance, almost as if a bolt had been partially undone and was sliding up the exposed shank and hitting the head. I cannot see any other bolts or screws which may be holding it. The window was in the fully closed position. Richard Midgley As you suspect, having already checked the wiring from the body to the door, the problem is most likely due to a fault within the door lock.

The steps to remove the trim panel are as follows: first, the small plastic insert in the panel behind the door release handle must be prised off, revealing the securing screw. Next, the cover on the door pull handle should be detached to expose the two door handle securing screws. The small triangle at the top of the trim covering the door mirror fixing then needs to be removed.

Once the trim panel securing screws are extracted, the panel can be detached by pulling the bottom away from the door and lifting the whole panel upwards to remove it from the top channel. You should disconnect the door release cable and electrical connections before removing the panel completely. Once the panel is out of the way, you will hopefully be able to gain sufficient access to check the wiring and, if necessary, replace the door lock assembly.