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Your automobile has many important locks on it. You have your all-important door locks, your trunk or hatch locks, and even your glove box and console locks. Perhaps the most important lock on your vehicle is your ignition cylinder lock. That’s because when it fails you are not going anywhere. You will now be stranded at your present location until help arrives to fix that lock. There are ways though that you can keep from getting stranded by a failed ignition lock. That’s because it will give you some warning signs that it’s about to go bad.
Some of you may not even realize what your ignition cylinder lock is. It’s where you put your key in on the steering column and turn in order to start your car. It’s an anti-theft device that has gotten more sophisticated over the years. Most auto keys nowadays have a chip in them that must sync up with your car’s ignition lock in order to be able to turn the key and start your car
We mentioned earlier, that most likely your ignition cylinder lock will not fail before it gives you some warning signs. Here are some of the most common ones:
If your key is really hard to turn once it’s placed in the ignition lock it is a pretty good indication that your ignition cylinder needs to have maintenance done on it or it needs to be replaced. This is one of the more common signs of ignition lock failure. Be careful not to break the key off in the ignition when this happens because then you will really be in trouble.
Your key may slide in and out of your ignition too easily. You may even be able to remove it while the engine is running. This is a good indication of ignition lock problems. Be careful though when diagnosing your ignition lock this way. That’s because these are also signs of a worn out key. Still, have a locksmith look at this to determine what to do next.
Here is another good indicator that your ignition cylinder lock may be about to fail. You may have to tug really hard to pull the key out of the ignition or it may even not pull out at all. Be careful here not to break the top of the key off by pulling on it too hard.
If you turn your key completely over in the ignition this means you most likely have a bad ignition lock. Either it does not recognize the chip on your key any longer or something has failed internally in the ignition lock itself. If it does this intermittently get your ignition cylinder locked looked at before you get stranded somewhere.
When you turn the key in your vehicle’s ignition there are actually two stopping points. The first turns on the power to your car’s accessories and other turns the key into the position that starts your car. If your power to your car’s accessories fails to come on when the key is set in that position, it can be a strong sign that ignition lock failure is very close.
This is one of the scariest occurrences when your ignition cylinder lock is about to fail. Your car may stall out just after you start it or when you are actually driving. Don’t panic when this happens because you can still turn your steering wheel and apply your brakes. It will just take much more effort to do these things.
Unless you relish being stranded somewhere that you might not be comfortable with, you should take ignition failure warning signs very seriously. Be proactive and take your car to an auto shop or call a locksmith at the first sign you may be having ignition lock problems. This can save you some headaches and the cost of an after hour emergency locksmith call too.
So what is the best way to get your ignition cylinder lock repaired? Personally, we feel it’s by contacting a locksmith. This is especially true if your ignition lock has failed after normal working hours. Most locksmith services will come and change out your ignition cylinder lock at any time of the night or day. They will even do it on weekends and holidays.
Even though auto repair shops are perfectly capable of changing out your ignition lock, a locksmith company is still your best bet to get it done quickly. Locksmith companies of Dunedin, FL will come to where your car is located to do this service and they carry many replacement ignition cylinders right on their spacious service vehicles. Most locksmiths will also change out your ignition cylinder at a lower cost than auto repair shops will charge too.
This is a hard question to answer. That’s because every car is different in the way its ignition cylinder is designed into it. It’s like changing out a muffler on a car. It can be done on some cars very quickly and on other cars it takes some time to do. This is no different when it comes to replacing ignition cylinders.
It’s fair to say that most locksmiths do not feel that ignition cylinder replacements are very hard to do. Most can be changed out by an experienced locksmith in an hour or two. Since it’s one of the most common locksmith jobs they also are very well equipped and prepared to do them.