Mechanic in the house?

[Gypsy]

So a couple of hours ago I was heading out to pick up an esteemed QP from our own PS.com and imbibe a few pops at a fun Irish bar. Or so I thought.

Put the key in my ignition...got the little ding-ding-ding, then nothing. Nada. Hmm. Jiggled the key around, tried to bring it to the off position to restart...nope, not going there. It's frozen. Yes, the car was in Park.

Soooooooo first I call the dealer hoping the service dept. is still open, missed them by an hour. Damn.

Pulled out the car manual and per my brother's instructions I look for "shift lock release". Voila! This should do the trick, right? No such luck, though I was able to get the ignition to what I believe is the "off" position the key is still stuck in the ignition. The car is completely shut down, I had to manually lock it and leave it be.

Any other suggestions? My uncle called his mechanic buddy and he said he'll come over tomorrow morning, I'm sure not for free... but if I could avoid this I'd like to do so.

Thanks in advance.

[SF_BHT]

Originally Posted by Gypsy

So a couple of hours ago I was heading out to pick up an esteemed QP from our own PS.com and imbibe a few pops at a fun Irish bar. Or so I thought.

Put the key in my ignition...got the little ding-ding-ding, then nothing. Nada. Hmm. Jiggled the key around, tried to bring it to the off position to restart...nope, not going there. It's frozen. Yes, the car was in Park.

Soooooooo first I call the dealer hoping the service dept. is still open, missed them by an hour. Damn.

Pulled out the car manual and per my brother's instructions I look for "shift lock release". Voila! This should do the trick, right? No such luck, though I was able to get the ignition to what I believe is the "off" position the key is still stuck in the ignition. The car is completely shut down, I had to manually lock it and leave it be.

Any other suggestions? My uncle called his mechanic buddy and he said he'll come over tomorrow morning, I'm sure not for free... but if I could avoid this I'd like to do so.

Thanks in advance.

Call a Cab, drink a few real drinks and forget about it until the morning.......

What make and model and year is your car...?

[PSM]

Also, did you rock the steering wheel back and forth to take the strain off the lock?

Pat

[Gypsy]

Originally Posted by SF_BHT

Call a Cab, drink a few real drinks and forget about it until the morning.......

What make and model and year is your car...?

Are you kidding? A cab would cost me 60.00 to the city. I have whine errrr wine at home. LOL.

1999 Grand Prix

Originally Posted by PSM

Also, did you rock the steering wheel back and forth to take the strain off the lock?

Pat

Yes, I meant to post that along with make/model of my vehicle.

[PSM]

Are you sure you used the correct key? Oh, wait, you're not a blonde. Never mind.

Pat

[Gypsy]

Originally Posted by PSM

Are you sure you used the correct key? Oh, wait, you're not a blonde. Never mind.

Pat

That actually made me laugh, thank you!

[SF_BHT]

Originally Posted by Gypsy

Are you kidding? A cab would cost me 60.00 to the city. I have whine errrr wine at home. LOL.

1999 Grand Prix



Yes, I meant to post that along with make/model of my vehicle.

I guess it is time to open a good drinking hole out there in the county near the house.

Just looked up your car and could not find any other special system that would cause this. A Pin may have dropped in the steering colom that has caused it to lock up. I have seen that if someone tries to jimmy the lock.

Best bet is get it to the dealer and let them fix it. If the mechanic does not know that car he may cost you more.

[Gypsy]

Originally Posted by SF_BHT

I guess it is time to open a good drinking hole out there in the county near the house.

Just looked up your car and could not find any other special system that would cause this. A Pin may have dropped in the steering colom that has caused it to lock up. I have seen that if someone tries to jimmy the lock.

Best bet is get it to the dealer and let them fix it. If the mechanic does not know that car he may cost you more.

LOL there's plenty, I just need a car to get to them. Besides our member is down in the city.

Thanks B. Fortunately he does, he's a GM mechanic. I'm just seeing big $$$ for a "house call". Oh darn, too bad it wasn't January, I could get some handout from BHO.

We'll see...hopefully he owes my uncle a favor or two.

[SF_BHT]

Originally Posted by Gypsy

LOL there's plenty, I just need a car to get to them. Besides our member is down in the city.

Thanks B. Fortunately he does, he's a GM mechanic. I'm just seeing big $$$ for a "house call". Oh darn, too bad it wasn't January, I could get some handout from BHO.

We'll see...hopefully he owes my uncle a favor or two.

Oh it is a GM product.... They are looking to close or merge so the chip shut down the car so they could generate more revenue for the company so they would be a better buy. I saw this on Snipes Cross Thread Points.... Good luck I hope the Mechanic like Redheads...

[Gypsy]

Thanks, meeeee too. I'll give ya the crossthead points for the Snopes reference.

[Dan]

If your battery is still good; check to see if you have any blown fuses and replace any that are blown, then try to remove your key.

If it's not a blown fuse or dead battery, then it's likely a bad solenoid; remove your key by looking underneath the steering column (directly under the lock cylinder) for a plastic plug, removing it, then push a small item (like a pen, nail, etc) into the hole and at the same time removing your key.

If it's the solenoid, it will cost you more than you want to pay I'm sure. Always use the technique above or jam something in there to allow you to remove the key. However, keep in mind to always put your car in park; the solenoid keeps you from taking your key out of the ignition unless your car is in park.

[JumpinJoe1010]

Originally Posted by Gypsy

Put the key in my ignition...got the little ding-ding-ding, then nothing. Nada. Hmm. Jiggled the key around, tried to bring it to the off position to restart...nope, not going there. It's frozen. Yes, the car was in Park.

This could be something to do with your shifting mechanism. If the transmission isn't perceived to be in park, it may not start. Also the neutral safety switch could be a problem.

[Gypsy]

Well, all the worst case (ie: expensive) scenarios came to mind and I thought I was going to have to suck it up.

But luck was on my side for once, it was a simple fix. Six hours later...lol

A friend called and told me to get my flashlight and a hammer. I laughed. He was serious. So...I did, went downstairs and he said to jiggle the wires connecting the battery, tap the connection points ever so gently and damned if the alarm didn't start going crazy. (left my car door open while hammering away and when power was restored the alarm went off) So, it was a loose connection and I never had given a thought that this could be the problem.

Got my key out, disabled the alarm, shut the car off and restarted it to be sure it works...I think I'm golden. I'll be sure to clean off the connections with a wire brush in daylight tomorrow. And on Monday I'll take it to my mechanic to be sure the battery is ok, it's only 2 years old...but better safe than sorry.

Thanks to everyone for the info/advice.

[SF_BHT]

Originally Posted by Gypsy

Well, all the worst case (ie: expensive) scenarios came to mind and I thought I was going to have to suck it up.

But luck was on my side for once, it was a simple fix. Six hours later...lol

A friend called and told me to get my flashlight and a hammer. I laughed. He was serious. So...I did, went downstairs and he said to jiggle the wires connecting the battery, tap the connection points ever so gently and damned if the alarm didn't start going crazy. (left my car door open while hammering away and when power was restored the alarm went off) So, it was a loose connection and I never had given a thought that this could be the problem.

Got my key out, disabled the alarm, shut the car off and restarted it to be sure it works...I think I'm golden. I'll be sure to clean off the connections with a wire brush in daylight tomorrow. And on Monday I'll take it to my mechanic to be sure the battery is ok, it's only 2 years old...but better safe than sorry.

Thanks to everyone for the info/advice.

Good to Go!!!!!!!!
When you clean them off also wet the connections and use baking soda to clean up the post and cables. After that is done make sure they are tight and put some axle grease over them to keep the corrosion from coming back. It is messy but if you coat them well you will not get the buildup that happens.

Good luck and hope you can reschedule the meet.....

[Gypsy]

Originally Posted by SF_BHT

Good to Go!!!!!!!!
When you clean them off also wet the connections and use baking soda to clean up the post and cables. After that is done make sure they are tight and put some axle grease over them to keep the corrosion from coming back. It is messy but if you coat them well you will not get the buildup that happens.

Good luck and hope you can reschedule the meet.....

Thanks, and thanks for the tips! Axel grease, eh? Good to know. (Gypsy dialing her local grease monkey now... )

Yep, we did!