Patent ID: 7699366

Claim:
A vehicle door lock comprising: an outside handle on a door of a vehicle; a latching mechanism enabling the door to close; an operating mechanism located in a position in a direction toward the interior of the vehicle with respect to an imaginary vertical windowpane line extending downwardly from a bottom surface of the windowpane in the door; an intermediate lever pivotally mounted on a pivot to the latching mechanism under the windowpane, said pivot being disposed in a position in a direction toward the interior of the vehicle with respect to the imaginary windowpane vertical line, said pivot having an axis about which it rotates, the axis extending along a length of the vehicle, said intermediate lever having first and second coupling portions disposed in a position in a direction toward the exterior of the vehicle with respect to the imaginary windowpane vertical line; a first operating force transmitting member comprising a rod that is coupled at an upper end to said outside handle and coupled at a lower end to the first coupling portion of said intermediate lever to enable an operating force to be transmitted from the outside handle to the intermediate lever; and a second operating force transmitting member comprising a Bowden cable that comprises an outer cable and an inner cable, the inner cable being coupled at a lower end of the second operating force transmitting member to the second coupling portion of the intermediate lever and the second operating force transmitting member being coupled at an upper end to said operating mechanism to enable the operating force to be transmitted from the intermediate lever to the operating mechanism.