Sarah, That driver's door should indeed lock from the inside, as Cunningham and similar coach builders usually adapted the Ford hardware to their door panels. Cleaning and lubrication of the linkages may allow the mechanism to lock, or there may be broken components. Fortunately, many of these parts are available through the aftermarket. If you send us an image of the car, we can identify the year of the vehicle and check our library for a parts diagram. Then we can try to talk you through the disassembly of the door panel (which is fairly straightforward), allowing access to the mechanism. This depends, of course, on the condition of the door panel. I would not recommend securing the handle from the inside, because visitors can cause additional damage to the door by twisting that now-secured handle. We achieved good results in similar situations by posting a small sign nearby that reads "Yes, this door is locked." By the way, it was standard practice for most American car manufacturers to place keyed locks on the curb-side of their vehicles only, because no-one was expected to get out of their car into the street. Finally, and I don't mean to sound snarky, but if visitors are able to climb over a 3'X 2' barrier without being witnessed, your security staff may want to re-evaluate their procedures. I hope this helps; please let me know if I can be of further service. Tom Kenney Collections Manager/Registrar Petersen Automotive Museum [log in to unmask] -----Original Message----- From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Sarah LeCount Sent: Tuesday, October 13, 2009 10:45 AM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Car Door Lock Hello everyone - I am new on the staff of a science/history museum. We have recently put a 1930s Cunningham-Ford Town Car on exhibit after having it professionally conserved. Although there is a solid, 3' high and 2' wide barrier around the car, we know that visitors have breeched the barrier and opened the driver's side door of the car. This door handle has a lock which doesn't work - either it is jammed (which is what the conservator said) or it was never meant to actually operate. The locks on the other doors work, so we thought we might be able to lock the driver's side from the inside, exit through another door and lock it - but there is no mechanism to lock the door from the inside. We are looking into reinforcing the existing barrier with a plexi screen, but are also wondering - can we try a lubricant in the lock? Or can we try to secure the driver's side door handle from the inside so it won't turn and allow access? There seems to be some hesitation in reconnecting with the conservator (not sure what the story is there) - so I'm hoping for some advice from the List. Thanks in advance! Sarah ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes). ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).