HELP!...Engine won't turn off!!!

[Mister_Johnny99]

I went to lunch today and when I came back, I couldn't shut off the engine!
The ign key won't turn.
It will only go to "RUN" or "START".
I had to stall it out and leave the key in and ignition turned on all day.
Now I got it home and I don't know what to do.

[Mister_Johnny99]

Anybody out there?...
I'm gonna go disconect the battery.

[Bliggida]

Sounds like the ignition switch went out. You'd have to unplug the Airbag, and remove the steering wheel, but otherwise replacing the ignition tumbler is pretty straight forward. Except for getting a reprogrammed Pass-Key.

[Mister_Johnny99]

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>Sounds like the ignition switch went out. <hr></blockquote> <blockquote>quote:</font><hr> otherwise replacing the ignition tumbler is pretty straight forward <hr></blockquote>
Well, the switch and the lock cylinder are two totally different things. besides, both of them seem to be working, at least somewhat.
If I stall out the engine, I can turn the key to the start position and restart it. I just can't turn the ignition off.

[Mister_Johnny99]

I got the key out!
After rocking the ignition cylinder back and forth, while moving the column up and down for about 15 minutes, it finally came loose.
I started it a couple of times without trouble, then it jammed again. After wrestling with it another 5 minutes, I got it out again.
So how should I proceed now?

[Bliggida]

compressed air, endust?

Maybe some graphite powder for locks.

[Ex-5.0]

You've got a 2002 so it's still under warrantee.

Disconnect the battery tonight so it won't be drained dead. Reconnect in AM. Then have the dealer fix it.

[L32Projekt]

Graphite sounds like a good option. The vehicles in use in my squadron see a lot of on/off operation, as we're always driving here and there and taking the keys with us. We've had a few lock cylinders start wearing out a bit, and the motorpool would use either WD-40 or something similar to lubricate the cylinder and then cycled the ignition a few times. Also look into having a new key recut. Oh yeah, we have that damned resistor on the keys, kinda expensive. Well, hopefully you can find a solution without spending a lot of money.

Jon

[AllTheGoodNamesAreGone]

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by Ex-5.0:
You've got a 2002 so it's still under warrantee.

Disconnect the battery tonight so it won't be drained dead. Reconnect in AM. Then have the dealer fix it.<hr></blockquote>
^
|

do what he said!

[LordoftheBling]

dealership

[Mister_Johnny99]

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr> You've got a 2002 so it's still under warrantee. <hr></blockquote>
I've never dealt with a dealer, and I won't unless I absolutly have to.
I'd rather spend a couple of bucks and do it myself than let "those people" touch my car!

I guess I'm not making this clear, but it doesn't feel like a problem with the key.
I think somthing in the column is jamming.

[Ex-5.0]

The problem with trying to fix it your self is that once you've messed with it then the dealer probably won't fix it under warrantee if you can't actually get it fixed yourself and you have to use a mechanic to get it fixed.

In my experience, dealers handle this kind of problem pretty well. They also seem to treat warranty customers well, especially when the car is less than a year old, because they want to get you as a paying customer in the future. I don't think that all dealership mechanics are bad or incompetent, in fact the opposite is true.

Another thing is that the base price of the car includes the bumper to bumper warrantee for 3 years/36K miles. You've already paid for them to fix it.

[Mister_Johnny99]

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>I don't think that all dealership mechanics are bad or incompetent, in fact the opposite is true.
<hr></blockquote>
I know there are good mechanics out there, but nobody is going to treat it like it's their own. I prefer to just do it myself, and know that it's done right.
UPDATE:
The ignition lock cylinder was bad. I spent the weekend stripping down the column, and found everything else working fine, but the key is jammed in the cylinder. I picked up a new lock cylinder for $45 and it's working fine now. My dealer says he's never seen that before!?