Door Lock Question

[cjois]

 

My car came with two keys. One fits the starter and the other the trunk but none for the door locks. I have asked the dealership to check on the door lock key. they say they didnt get anything from the prior owner. 

What are my options? Replace the locks? or get a key ordered? Any other suggestions? 

Thanks.

 

[Mike Self]

Originally the same key worked the ignition and two doors; only the trunk had a different key.  Chances are good that the ignition switch (or perhaps the door locks) died and were replaced with new locks that didn't match.  The easiest way to get 'em all to match is to remove the door handles and take them along with the ignition key to a locksmith; he'll rework the door locks so the ignition key will work in 'em.  

 

Or if you're the adventurous type, you can do that yourself.  I did a column on re-keying, PM me if you'd like a copy, or check the archives for posts on re-keying...not terribly difficult; takes more time to remove the door handles than it does to re-key 'em.

 

mike

[wkohler]

The code for the door lock is on the side of the door handle that faces toward the front of the car inside the door.  If you have a locksmith that could cut the correct blank to the code, you could likely get a key made for the door locks.

[Jdddrigot]

There’s a guy on Ebay who cut my key from the number on the back of the door handle. Very reasonable and quick - Rfurtado1. 

[Conserv]

20 hours ago, Jdddrigot said:

There’s a guy on Ebay who cut my key from the number on the back of the door handle. Very reasonable and quick - Rfurtado1. 

Call me a pessimist, but I’d check the codes on both door handles before I went with the “cut from the code” method. If you wind up with four different keys — left door, right door, ignition, trunk — you’re really going to wish you had taken Mike’s (@Mike Self’s) approach!

 

Just sayin’… ?

 

Regards,

 

Steve

 

 

[Jdddrigot]

7 minutes ago, Conserv said:

Call me a pessimist, but I’d check the codes on both door handles before I went with the “cut from the code” method. If you wind up with four different keys — left door, right door, ignition, trunk — you’re going to wish you took Mike’s (@Mike Self’s) approach!

 

Just sayin’… ?

 

Regards,

 

Steve

 

 

And replace your door cards at the same time…then there’s the protective film, clean up the window guides, replace the grommets,  maybe the door brakes…welcome to the world of mission creep. 

[Conserv]

37 minutes ago, Jdddrigot said:

And replace your door cards at the same time…then there’s the protective film, clean up the window guides, replace the grommets,  maybe the door brakes…welcome to the world of mission creep. 

+1

 

And make certain you’ve got “corn kernels” in place! ?

 

Best regards,

 

Steve

 

[cjois]

? Noted all of the points. I will check after work today. I looked for the code earlier today but didn't see anything. Will look once more. 

[cjois]

On 6/17/2021 at 1:02 AM, wkohler said:

The code for the door lock is on the side of the door handle that faces toward the front of the car inside the door.  If you have a locksmith that could cut the correct blank to the code, you could likely get a key made for the door locks.

@wkohlerI looked  it cant find any code. 
just to confirm, its inside the door, meaning inside the door panel - correct? 

[cjois]

Additionally I now notice the the door handles inside the cabin are not the same for the left and right door. Is that how they were made? 

[adawil2002]

6 minutes ago, cjois said:

Additionally I now notice the the door handles inside the cabin are not the same for the left and right door. Is that how they were made? 

 

Yes, left & right are different. If you remove both exterior door handles a good locksmith can remove wafers or restack them to work with your ignition key. That's the simplest solution.

[cjois]

Update:

I have called about 9-10 locksmiths over the past week, they tell me they cannot make a key for a car this old. 

Only one of them asked me to bring the lock into his shop and he could code it to the key i have.

 

I will try that this week. 

If that doesn’t work, i guess the only solution is to replace the door locks, am i correct? 

[ray_]

Just pull the door tumblers, stick the ignition key in and file the brass wafers until they do not protrude.

 

Done.

 

Or remove any protruding wafers.

 

... you guys....