So I went to start my car yesterday and put the key in and the damn thing won't turn at all. I wiggled to the steering wheel to try to loosen it up or something and the steering wheel is locked into one position. The steering wheel is slightly turned right but my wheels are straight. I'm in the Park position and can't switch it to neutral because the button is locked. Do I have to replace the ignition? Does anyone know how to do it or the cheapest way to get it fixed besides the rip off dealership? Any help would be appreciated.
12/1/2006 11:51:23 AM
hot wire that bitch
12/1/2006 11:52:41 AM
it should have play in one direction and locked in the other. turn the wheel the free direction and while doing this turn the key.
12/1/2006 12:30:42 PM
The wheel is locked. It is an anti theft feature.Press the brake, turn the key and wiggle the wheel at the same time.
12/1/2006 12:37:44 PM
^ what he said, wheel is locked into a bind and can't unlock, if the car is parked on a slight hill, you may need someone to push it uphill slightly to unload it, or kick the front of the drivers front tire in towards to car hard to free it up
12/1/2006 12:41:36 PM
its a real bitch, but you've got to unlock it yourself. Just be careful not to bend your key.
12/1/2006 12:42:35 PM
yeah it's not parked on an incline or anything. well i can't really move the wheel at all. is the brake supposed to be hard to push down. i mean i could push it down but with a bit of force. i was looking online and people were saying it was the ignition switch or something. i figured it was the wheel that is locked.
12/1/2006 1:21:10 PM
what kind of fucking car
12/1/2006 2:29:02 PM
press the brake? there should be play in the wheel one direction. turn it that way and turn the key. All cars I've ever driven do this.
12/1/2006 3:15:41 PM
this happened to me, and i tried myself, and had some people try and help me that know stuff about cars. eventually i had to get my security system replaced at the dealer (free +labor for me since it was still under warranty) because it had shorted itself. (but dont resort to that right away)[Edited on December 1, 2006 at 3:29 PM. Reason : ]
12/1/2006 3:25:46 PM
wiggle the steering wheel back and forth fast
12/1/2006 3:30:32 PM
it's a nissan altima 1998. hot wiring doesn't seem like a bad idea. that'll unlock everything wouldn't it?
12/1/2006 5:27:58 PM
Please tell me you're not being serious...
12/1/2006 5:36:08 PM
sounds like you need to start pullin your steering column apart
12/1/2006 8:43:28 PM
BFH and screw driver???
12/2/2006 2:55:34 AM
no, i mean actually dissasembling it and removing to steering wheel to take apart the wheel lock to get the switch out
12/2/2006 7:34:20 AM
Somebody about to take an airbag to da face. Carefull with that screwdriver!
12/2/2006 7:48:12 AM
well damn...i don't know how to do that crap. anyone want to do it for me? name a price.
12/2/2006 9:53:45 AM
did you wiggle the damn steering wheel while trying the turn the key (gently, don't go breaking thing off in your ignition)?
12/2/2006 9:59:21 AM
definitely have wiggled the damn thing. freaking sucks...
12/2/2006 10:41:29 AM
It might be worth squirting some powder graphite lubricant into the key hole before you go tearing things apart.
12/2/2006 10:57:31 AM
aight i'll try that also...i'm bout to make another attempt at wiggling the steering wheel and everything.
12/2/2006 11:22:13 AM
well tried again and the wheel is still stuck and the brake is hard as crap to push down. anyway to release any pressure off of it? oh yeah would wd-40 be ok instead of that powder graphite stuff?
12/2/2006 11:41:50 AM
when you play with the steering wheel, does it only move in on direction . . . or does it move in both directions equally?
12/2/2006 12:44:15 PM
well its sorta stuck to the right about 15-20 degrees...i could keep moving it to the right slightly. there's pretty much no way to move it to the left.
12/2/2006 12:51:10 PM
wd-40 works, but it doesn't last. Shit evaporates, believe it or not.
12/2/2006 2:38:36 PM
where the hell is the car at, i swear it would take all of 2 minutes to get the damn thing freed up
12/2/2006 11:19:57 PM