I have a 98 express van with a side sliding door that I shut and now can't open. Anybody have any idea on how to get it to open? And yes it's unlocked. Thanks

 

I'm guessing the rod that connects the door handle to the latch has come off. This happened to my left rear door. The rod has a washer on the end that is held on by knurling or squashing the end of the rod.....and that was not done well enough. To get the door open I had to remove enough of the plastic door panel that I could get my hand inside and grab the rod and open the door.
Also on the slider, the door lock that slide up and down has a plastic trim piece that slides along with it to cover the opening in the door panel. once in a while mine gets stuck, and prevents the door from locking.

 

That was it! The rod fell off. Thanks for the info, Tim