key will not turn!

G

ghettojiggalo

Member
Location
burbank, ca
hey guys,

need a lil help here, i was planning on changing my diff. oil today so i got in the car and the ignition knob (place to insert the key) wont turn at all! i think this happened to me once b4 and it was something i forgot to do, but for the life of me i can't figure out whats wrong. i can see the green key light on the dash light up and the seats pull forward like i'm about to start the car but the damn knob is "stuck" in position and won't turn. the only unusual thing i remember doing is turning the steering wheel so my front wheels straighten out while my car was off when i parked it overnight, after a bit the steering wheel locked like usual and that was it. oh yea sticking the actual key in the ignition still won't allow it to turn.

any ideas??:embarrassed:
 
You might need to really tug on the wheel hard. Thats the only thing that usually prevents the key from being able to turn the key over.
 
ghettojiggalo said:
whewww pulling the wheel towards the ignition worked even tho it was locked...damn so what causes the binding?
Click to expand...

Were you parked on flat ground or were you parked where there is a side lean to the vehicle? If you were parked where the vehicle had a side lean or one of the front tires was up against someting like a curb then that would be normal to have to pull on the wheel in one direction or the other to free up the steering columb lock as it would have some pressure against it.
 
yeah, any sideways pressure will make it hard for the lock pin to retract, which is what turning the cylinder does. one way this can happen if you turn the wheel after the ign is off, the wheel will spring back, but if turned enough to engage one of the lock notches then the spring back tension would do this. also can happen if the wheels are turned all the way when the ign is shut off, the power steering asisted to full lock but when shut off the steering assist is lossed so the wheel tries to return to a more neutral position but if it engages a lock pin it would still be under that returning tension
 
Wasn't this an anti theft feature from back in the day? I remember being told to engage the "steering wheel lock" feature before car alarms were introduced.
 
MTN FX said:
Were you parked on flat ground or were you parked where there is a side lean to the vehicle? If you were parked where the vehicle had a side lean or one of the front tires was up against someting like a curb then that would be normal to have to pull on the wheel in one direction or the other to free up the steering columb lock as it would have some pressure against it.
Click to expand...

lucky me i was in my driveway on flat ground, otherwise this would have been embarassing heh.


turbocad6 said:
yeah, any sideways pressure will make it hard for the lock pin to retract, which is what turning the cylinder does. one way this can happen if you turn the wheel after the ign is off, the wheel will spring back, but if turned enough to engage one of the lock notches then the spring back tension would do this. also can happen if the wheels are turned all the way when the ign is shut off, the power steering asisted to full lock but when shut off the steering assist is lossed so the wheel tries to return to a more neutral position but if it engages a lock pin it would still be under that returning tension
Click to expand...

good info turbo, now i'll know what to do if this ever happens to any cars around me.

aiya said:
Wasn't this an anti theft feature from back in the day? I remember being told to engage the "steering wheel lock" feature before car alarms were introduced.
Click to expand...

well i've been driving for maybe 10yrs, i knew about the steering wheel lock feature but never knew that it sometimes locks up the ignition too. good lookin out guys. :tup:
 
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