outside passenger side door lock will not unlock
I can only lock it

took apart the door panel, and took off the whole lock cylinder thinking it was faulty. I replaced the cylinder housing from another vehicle at the junk yard. swapped my unique cylinder for my key to work. Put everything back together, and same problem.
the metal rods are not bent, and in normal condition.

I can unlock and lock from the inside just fine. the issue is unlocking from outside.


This might sound stupid, but is this just normal operation? you can't unlock from outside on the passenger side?

 

Focus on the door latch. Spraying some WD 40 on the lock rod mechanism may help. Otherwise, replace it.