Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => The O' Club => Topic started by: homersipes on May 03, 2013, 07:18:51 PM
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the wifes friend has a 2001 ford focus, the ignition has locked the steering wheel, key wont turn at all. ius there a way to take the lock out?? I cant figure out how to get the tumbler out without turning the key. there is a looks like a welch plug in a small carberator on the underside of the ignition switch, was kinda thing I could get it out and the lock would come out :headscratch: :headscratch: she don't have the money to pay for a locksmith or anything so I figured I could help her out. Had the it all apart to the ignition but couldn't get the tumbler out, is when I noticed the plug on bottom. not being a locksmith I don't know how it all works, so any help would be appreciated
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If you tried turning the key while wiggling the steering wheel and were unable to get it to unlock Try jacking the front end up of the ground then see if you can wiggle the steering wheel a little bit. That should free it up enough to get the ignition to unlock. I've seen this problem when people park on a hill with the front wheel against the curb. IIRC you have to turn the ignition to the run position while inserting a small pin punch into the little hole to get the lock assembly out.
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yeah that's where I ran into the problem, it wont turn to get it out. but I did watch a video on youtube where the guy put the key in and tapped on it and it worked. might give that a try
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Try the above suggestions first but it is a very Common problem with the focus and you will need a new ignition cylinder to fix it from happening again. Hitting the key with the palm of your hand sometimes works, but most of the time not. Hopefully the key is turned to and stuck in the "on" not 'crank"position that will make the job a breeze to get the cylinder out. Disconnect the battery so it wont go dead and to avoid accidental air bag deployment if you slip with a screwdriver in hit some wires, remove the steering column cover, 3 screws on the bottom half and the top side should just un-clip from the bottom half, turn the steering wheel so you can see the lock cylinder area clearly, looking at the steering column you should see a small hole with a push pin in it where the lock cylinder goes into the column push the pin in and wiggle the key and pull the cylinder out, the cylinder will ONLY come out in the "on" position.
That's the easy part, go buy a new lock cylinder and take it and the old one to a lock smith so he can assemble it for you. If you have a spare key and are feeling handy you could follow the instructions in the box and build the new one yourself. DON'T get a new lock that comes with keys, your car comes with PATS and you will have to tow it to the dealer to have the new keys programed. I have done 100+ lock cylinders on the focus and the job really sucks if you cant turn the key on.
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well her car got towed anyways, so thanks for the help :salute
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If the car isn't worth much another option might be to hot wire it. Grab an electrical schematic of the ignition and hot wire in a couple of switches. Used owners manuals can be found on e-bay for $10-15. Unfortunately most libraries throw away car manuals more than 10-years old, but may be worth a look.
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this was common on those focuses. your only solution is to replace the lock cylinder.