Warning Signs That You Car’s Ignition Cylinder Lock Is about to Fail
One of the most important locks found on any vehicle is an ignition cylinder lock. These locks are responsible for allowing your car to turn on but they do much more than that also. They have also become an important part of any car’s anti-theft system too. The bad thing about ignition cylinder locks is when they feel your car is n jot moving from its present spot until that ignition cylinder lock is repaired or replaced. Fortunately, you may be able to avoid getting stranded somewhere you don’t want to be because of an ignition lock failure. Your vehicle will usually give you some telltale signs that the ignition cylinder lock in it is about to fail.
Indications of Potential Ignition Cylinder Failure
Here are some incidents that should alert you to the fact that your ignition lock cylinder needs to be checked right away.
- The key is very hard to put in or take out of the ignition
- Your key is very hard to turn in the ignition
One big sign of possible ignition lock problems is when your key is hard to put in or take out of it. That can be caused by wear and tear or some type of misalignment inside the lock cylinder.
Make sure when you experience this happening you also examine your key closely before calling a repair person to come to take a look at your ignition cylinder lock. Keys that are bent, worn or damaged may be tough to put in or take out the ignition cylinder. Try using a different key and if that one goes in and out of your ignition easily the ignition lock itself is not the problem.
Ignition cylinder locks are made to work very smoothly. They are designed that way not only to make it easier on these devices themselves but to also keep from damaging the somewhat delicate keys that operate them. That’s why when your key starts turning hard in the ignition cylinder this is not a good sign.
What could this indicate? It possibly could mean there is an alignment problem with the locking mechanism inside the ignition lock itself. This is not surprising since ignition cylinder locks are used several times each day by most people that own automobiles. That adds up to much wear and tear on these types of locks.