Catch of the day

QThe passenger door of my Lancia Fulvia has always been hard to open. It opens easily enough to the first stage of the catch, then sticks, refusing to open any further unless a substantial force is applied to the handle. I’ve moved the striker plate and tried to adjust the handle, but this has absolutely no effect on the situation. What else can I fiddle with?

Cyril Böhm, Munich

AWe think this is most likely to be a manufacturing defect. The catch has two stages as insurance against the door flying open in an accident. It’s basically a cam-type ratchet with two teeth. The door handle raises the locking pawl or peg clear of the ratchet to allow it to spin freely as the door is pulled open.

A single pull of the handle should release both stages. If the pivot hole of the cam has been drilled slightly offcentre, this will cause the issue you describe. Door latches are usually permanently rivetted together, so they can’t be serviced beyond lubrication (we assume you’ve tried this?). Obtain and fit another catch and this should solve the problem.

Other than oiling it, there’s not much you can do with a faulty catch.