Help! Key stuck in ignition of 92 Civic!
Wayne McDonnell
I have a 92 Civic LX, automatic, which is having this strange
intermittent problem. When the car is turned off, the key will sometimes
not turn back in the ignition past the accessory position. This means,
of couse, that the car shuts off but the radio stays on, the steering
wheel remains unlocked, and the key won't come out of the ignition. You
can sometimes get the key out by playing with it (i.e. pushing the key
in and turning backwards toward the lock position) or by turning the car
on, driving a short distance, and shutting it off again. There really
doesn't seem to be one surefire way to get the key to release, so it's
really hard to diagnose what the problem is. And on both occasions where
I took the car to a mechanic with the key stuck in it, the mechanic had
no problem getting the key out when he took a look at it!
My (trusted, non-dealership) mechanic thinks that there's wear and tear
in the lock cylinder. This may be the case, but the lock cylinder for a
92 Civic is about $(Cdn)300, and I wouldn't want to pay that and then
find out that it wasn't the problem. He also suggested that we go to a
dealership and get a new "official" key made, but since this problem
happens with all of our keys, I don't think that it's the key that's at
fault.
The mechanic at one of the local dealerships thinks that it's the shift
cable. Apparently, that part is about $275.
I'm really frustrated with this! Having to let the car sit in the
driveway or at a shopping mall (albeit locked) with one of the keys
stuck in the ignition is just scary.
One of my coworkers actually had this same problem with his 99 Civic LX
(also automatic). When he took it back to the dealership--under
warranty, of course--they (according to his story) adjusted his shift
cable, and the problem hasn't occurred since. Another service guy at a
dealership told me that the shift cable is a closed part, and they can't
even lubricate it, let alone adjust it. Argh!
Anyway, if anyone could give me any tips or pointers or suggestions, I
would be much obliged. I don't want to go down that road where I shell
out $400 to get either the lock cylinder or shift cable fixed, only to
have the problem continue to persist.
Thanks,
WM
Robert Isbell
means that you can't take the shifter out of park without stepping on
the brake pedal, and you can't remove the key unless the shifter is in
park. Sometimes the switch that is activated when you put the shifter in
park doesn't get tripped, and the result is that you can't remove the
key. The way to tell is to see if you can get the key to come out after
it gets stuck by taking it out of, and putting it into park. Also I have
seen the wrong key (Accord key cut to fit a Civic) or worn key stick in
a lock cylinder. Unfortunately I can't see the car to diagnose it, but
these three things are what I see the most. Good luck.
Robert.
Mark Gonzales
wheel slightly and then I could get my key out.
Mark
'99 Civic Si
Wayne McDonnell wrote in message <37F62613...@yahoo.com>...
Gordon McGrew
wrote:
>My '92 Civic LX auto would do the same thing. I would just turn the steering
>wheel slightly and then I could get my key out.
If that isn't the problem, take note of the shift indicator light when you shift
into park. If the "P" doesn't light up, you have a problem with the switch in
the gear shift that tells the system what gear you are in for purposes of the
light and the key release (but not actual transmission operation.) Usually this
problem is worse in cold weather. If you jiggle the shifter or just wait, it
may click into position and release the key.
This was a problem with '90+ Accords but I haven't heard of it happening to
Civics before. Let us know how this is resolved.
Someone else claimed success with moving the adjustable steering wheel up and
down.
Wayne McDonnell
to a badly-cut or improper key, since I experience the problem with both the
car's original master key and with spares. My mechanic suggested that I go to
a dealership and get a new key which has the same ID number as is etched at
the top of our master key, in case the problem was due to the keys being worn
from use. I haven't tried that yet, but it might be a relatively inexpensive
test.
My gut feeling is that this problem is related to the
transmission/shifter/shift cable as opposed to the keys or lock cylinder. When
the key gets stuck in the car, I often try turning the car back on, shifting
the transmission through all of the gears (PRND4D321 and all the way back up)
and then turning the car off. That never seems to help, however.
I've also tried inserting the second key in the "Shift Lock Release" slot near
the shifter when the other key becomes stuck.That doesn't seem to have any
effect on the problem, either.
I wonder if the shift cable is an adjustable part? My coworker said that he
took his Civic in and they fixed the same problem by adjusting the shift cable
(he was quite certain that nothing had to be replaced). I called the service
desk at the local dealership, and they told me that they couldn't even
lubricate the shift cable, let alone adjust it.
Regards,
WM
Wayne McDonnell
Wayne McDonnell
Wayne McDonnell
> If that isn't the problem, take note of the shift indicator light when you shift
> into park. If the "P" doesn't light up, you have a problem with the switch in
> the gear shift that tells the system what gear you are in for purposes of the
> light and the key release (but not actual transmission operation.) Usually this
> problem is worse in cold weather. If you jiggle the shifter or just wait, it
> may click into position and release the key.
>
The shift indicator always shows that the car is in park whenever the key is stuck
in the ignition. I've been paying close attention, because I suspect that the car
doesn't "think" that it's in park when it really is. I've also tried jiggling the
shifter, but to no avail.
I'm not quite sure, but it seems to me that there is a light clicking sound made
when the shifter is placed into the park position that I don't hear when the key
refuses to come out. Then again, I may be listening for things that aren't there...
> Someone else claimed success with moving the adjustable steering wheel up and
> down.
>
Wow, I'll have to try that. Currently, the key is working properly.
WM