Project for the day, Ford ign. lock cyl.

[JetStar]

My Son's 2001 ford Focus is at his work with a locked up ignition lock cylinder. The key won't turn. After some research, this appears to be a common issue. Ford dealer wants $300.00 plus towing to fix it. If we can't get it to free up by jimmying the key around and tapping it, I'll have to drill the lock cylinder out (I have a copy of the ford TSB on how to do that). The cylinder must be turned to the acc position to release it, if it cannot be turned, it must be drilled. Ford wants over $100.00 for the replacement cylinder while an aftermarket part that claims to have fixed the issue is around 39.00 with good reviews / results. Good thing I'm on vacation this week.
The moral of the story is; If you notice any problems with your ignition lock cylinder, fix it before total failure.

 

[Olas]

Or - remove the plastic cowling from under the wheel/above your knees and pull the barrel/key out as a complete unit..

get a new barrel&key off ebay (remembering to keep both keys on the keyring for transponder function) and fit in about half an hour.

cheap and easy, and makes me wonder why people can't see the easy way round these simple little problems..

 

[Sequoiasoon]

My Father-in-laws CRV just had that same thing happen. Many suggested fixes and I tried one that worked at least for him. I took off all the plastic around it, sprayed inside and around with electronic parts cleaner . Flushed out all sorts of metal filings etc. When done I used dry graphite powder, inserted and removed key multiple times, repeat. Works perfectly and $400+ cheaper plus no new keys.

unless it's a worn key problem, probably like his (his car is always dusty/dirty) there was so much junk in the cylinder on humid days the stuff started to act like glue. All teh tumblers were sticking. Clean, dry lube and go.

 

[Food Scientist]

Ex-girlfriend had the same exact car - year model and all. Four pieces of advice:

1. Take the ignition switch apart in the dealer parking lot. First time I switched it out it didn't start because the PATS prevented the car from starting. Tried holding the old key close to the ignition cylinder housing to get the car to read it and didn't work. Dealer had to re-program the car to accept the new transponder in the key, cost $70.
2. Make sure to get a new set of keys with a transponder.
3. Get a quality key. Got mine from NAPA, cost $100. Many of the cheap ones wear out and I suspect the reviews were written shortly after the problem was fixed for the $39 part.
4. Don't hang every key you own in the world on one key chain. The extra weight is what eats up the internals of the ignition cylinder along with cheap parts from Ford.

 

[bdcardinal]

Don't waste your time on the cheap aftermarket cylinder, get the Ford one. The part number is 5S4Z-11582-BB, it has updated a bunch of times where the aftermarket one has not.

The Ford one you build the cylinder to the existing keys so you do not have to program the PATS when you are done. We have had so many people put the aftermarket one in only to have the car towed to us for us to drill it out and put the Ford one in.

 

[Nick1994]

My mom had a 03' Focus. I lost the only set of keys and we had it towed to the dealer. The key had to be programmed to the car because it had a chip in it. After we had gotten the new keys we found the old ones and the key wouldn't start the car.

 

[bdcardinal]

Originally Posted By: Nick1994
My mom had a 03' Focus. I lost the only set of keys and we had it towed to the dealer. The key had to be programmed to the car because it had a chip in it. After we had gotten the new keys we found the old ones and the key wouldn't start the car.


Part of the programming of new keys is to kick the old ones out of the system. It is done like this to prevent someone from finding your keys and driving off with the car. Sure they can physically turn the cylinders, but they will be prevented from starting the car.

O and OP, don't lose your keys, Ford only provides dealers with key cut codes for 2005 and newer vehicles now.

 

[JetStar]

Originally Posted By: Olas
Or - remove the plastic cowling from under the wheel/above your knees and pull the barrel/key out as a complete unit..

get a new barrel&key off ebay (remembering to keep both keys on the keyring for transponder function) and fit in about half an hour.

cheap and easy, and makes me wonder why people can't see the easy way round these simple little problems..


To release the retainer, the cylinder must be rotated to the ACC position. the failure is that the cylinder sticks in the OFF position. The purpose of drilling the hole at the precise location in the TSB, is to allow one to rotate the cylinder to the aformentioned position. If you don't get it in the correct position, it aint coming out.

Anyways, got him going for now while I wait on parts.
Thanks for the advice guys.