Key/ignition won't turn (1 Viewer)

[100d ua]

I know this is an old thread but I just hard the weirdest thing happen to me thinking I broke my ignition cyclinder.

I started the car up after moving it into my driveway and hard cranked the wheel to the passenger side so I could get access to my wheel well. Once I shut off the engine the steering wheel felt like it grabbed and after that I couldn't turn the ignition. The steering wheel felt locked and I couldn't jiggle it free. I could remove the key from the ignition, but I couldn't turn it at all.

I popped off the the little cap on the tranny shifter and pushed the button down and the wheel unlocked finally. Scared me for a bit...

 

[P Hill Up]

If yours is like mine, you may want to start obsessively parking with your wheels straight and not touching the curb. I’ve had to shift into neutral and rock the truck back and forth in a suit and loafers before to get the wheel to release and get the cylinder to turn. No bueno.

 

[P Hill Up]

I finally got tired of it when the kids were strapped into their car seats in the 104 degree heat and the key wouldn’t turn. I took it to an auto locksmith thinking it was a worn tumbler. Locksmith said tumblers were fine. It was the steering wheel lock mechanism. Said they wear out over time and stop reliably unlocking, especially in toyotas of this vintage. A week in and no issues. Not cheap, $500, but worth it in long run if kids and wife dont boil. I’ve not seen any write ups on how to remove it.

 

[nikoli]

I know this is an old thread but I just hard the weirdest thing happen to me thinking I broke my ignition cyclinder.

I started the car up after moving it into my driveway and hard cranked the wheel to the passenger side so I could get access to my wheel well. Once I shut off the engine the steering wheel felt like it grabbed and after that I couldn't turn the ignition. The steering wheel felt locked and I couldn't jiggle it free. I could remove the key from the ignition, but I couldn't turn it at all.

I popped off the the little cap on the tranny shifter and pushed the button down and the wheel unlocked finally. Scared me for a bit...

How did you pop the cap off?

My key won't turn. My wheel was *not* locked. I read this thread and then decided to try turn the wheel a bit and now it's locked and I still can't get the key to turn the ignition.

Have tried WD-40 and Houdini. Tried warming up the cabin with a space heater. Nothing's working, so I think my ignition cylinder might be hosed.

 

[SteveH]

How did you pop the cap off?

It's the tiny black plastic cap next to the (floor) shifter, easily removed with a pocketknife or flat screwdriver. Fully documented in the owner's manual.

 

[nikoli]

To follow up, I got a key cut... which I needed to do anyway since I only had one key... but it did not work to turn the ignition.

So I called for a tow truck to get the LX to my local yota shop. The driver got the LX all set to pull onto the bed. Got it in neutral. Then he started pulling it, moved it about a foot... when he asked me if we could try getting the steering wheel to unlock. I told I'd love to but have to turn the key in the ignition to do that... thus the reason he's out here in the first place lol. But we agreed it's worth a shot... so he put the key in the ignition and it turned, all the way... engine started right up.

Haven't had a problem since. No idea what caused the ignition to stick or get unstuck. It was parked on a level surface. Wheels were straight.

Was it the extreme cold we had that made it stick? Did putting in neutral fix? Did pulling it forward fix? We may never know.

All I know is it makes me nervous not knowing what happened and that this thing could leave me stranded for no apparent reason.

 

[skhochay]

Some info about key stuck on the ignition and why?
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