As a
locksmith technician, getting called for an ignition service, there is no way to tell what the problem truly is or what the solution would be over the phone. That is why many locksmith technicians won't offer automotive ignition services as a job that may seem simple over the phone can turn into a half a day service not to mention the liability a technician will have on the customer's vehicle. Not all automotive ignition jobs can turn into a project, but in many particular ignition situations experience is what mostly counts.
I had a customer recently who got stranded with his 2002 Dodge Caravan. According to him, he could not turn the key at all one it was inserted into the ignition switch. I've dealt with these types of Dodge and Chrysler vehicle models before and normally the problem was with the
cylinder internals getting worn out. This in turn will affect the sidebar to stick out which will cause the switch to get stuck. Since I had experience providing a solution to this type of issue before, I decided to take the job.
Once I got to the customer's location, the first thing I needed to do was lubricating the cylinder thoroughly, so I could make an attempt to at least getting the key to the ON position. This was necessary in order to remove the cylinder from the ignition so I could file the sidebar. However, it seemed that the cylinder operation was already declining so much that even after lubrication, I couldn't get the switch to the ON position which prevented me from removing the cylinder.
I had to think of what to do next, so I called a
Boise locksmith co worker of mine to see if he had any idea of where I should go from there. According to him, the only way to resolve it was unfortunately replacing the ignition cylinder. He then explained to me the process to make it easier and faster. All I needed to do was drilling the side pin of the ignition and it came out with no issues. As it turned out, the customer had someone come and replace the ignition cylinder a few months back and may have installed a used ignition which explained the declining operation of it.
