Rx 300 Keys Does Not Turn Ignition Lock

[rx man]

Came in last night from a football game and saw the display center on. I found out that switch was locked in the acc. position and that the key would not work. I could see $$$ flying away. I read about the wd 40 & tapping the key with a hammer. It worked like a charm. Thanks for the info!!

[rx300pl]

* Slam * the door on the driver's side three times - the harder the better. This will shake the whole car - insideout - and knock loose the stuck points. Works for me like a charm!!!

[pauljcl]

There have been previous threads which advocate tapping on the head (apparent part, obviously) of the key so as to 'free up' the lock. Several people said it worked. If this happened to me, I would definitely try it. Do a search on this forum....

[redskinsfan522]

hey bill , im a 14 year old kid and i accidently locked my moms igniton. everyone was freaking out since its christmas time and we would have to waste our money fixing the car. we then went online to find a cheaper fix and ended up finding this forum. we then tryed this with a hammer and instead of a screwdriver i used the actual key and it worked perfectly. Thank You So Much Bill ! You Saved Our Christmas !!

[loudtwanger]

I have had the same problem, except that the 3rd metal tumbler had broken in two. Having tried the WD40 and screwdriver route, I realized that the lock barrel was in trouble. So I took it out. Surprisingly easy to do, once I you realize that the dash board surround of the key just pops off with a very thin flat blade screwdriver. there is a small screw below the barrel which removes the light surround. the barrel will then slide out.

Funny looking thing with a long brass looking shaft that runs down it. It is the sensor for when the key is in and the door is open-it causes the dong dong to go off.

There is a metal surround at the key entry end, a flat top screw driver levered it off. You will need a ring cir-clip removing tool to take out the inner barrel and you will also need to lift the brass looking shaft to allow the barrel to slide out, make sure the key is in it to withdraw the tumblers inside it. Watch out that a funny little metal triangle looking thing does not get lost, it pushes the brass shaft out the way, when the key is inserted. You will need to put it back in, the worn side is the bit that pushes on the brass looking shaft.

Now you have to find the tumbler that has caused you the nightmare-mine was the third one in and was in two bits so I had to make sure I got both bits out. Still enough tumblers in there to stop a thief--although a large screw driver banged in and turned would probably get the car going as well, but that's another matter. you can test the barrel turning--it only slides in correctly at one angle.Then put it all back and before you put the dashboard face on test it. Happy Rx-ing. mine has done 122,000 uk miles--about 140,000 usa miles. I had to put in an exchange gearbox at 100,000 miles. got one from a breakers yard-for $1,000--was charged $400 for fitting. Goes like a dream. might have a go at doing the spark plugs--now that will be a chalenge, for the rear 3!!!

[Joella Anderson]

Thanks everyone! I fixed mine with the little screwdriver trick- shot of WD 40, 3 wiggles in the bottom, 3 wiggles in the top and FIXED. Reading this page save me at least $500 THANK-YOU!

[jtoma910]

Putting the steering wheel straight where you make an "L" with the Lexus symbol on the steering wheel every time you park the car actually works! I haven't had it lock up in months!

[Cameraman72]

Thank you everyone! This happened to me twice. The first time I was across the street from an automotive repair shop. The mechanic came over from across the street an gave it a try. NO LUCK! I had to call a wrecker to get the car across the street to where they could repair it. About $450 for replacement and re-key! While waiting for the wrecker I gave the key one more try and fortunately the tumblers loosened and freed up the switch. I was able to cancel the wrecker in time and did not have to replace the switch. It gave me no problem for about a year and today it happened again when I was I was ready to leave my garage. I fiddled with the switch for about an hour then I thought of checking out the problem on the internet. This forum popped up. In my Lexus owners packet was a flat key used as a tempplate for key replacement and emergency starting of the car. I did about three squirts of WD40 in the key way of the switch, tapped the key template about three little taps and presto, that freed the tumblers. I added a little more WD40 and worked the regular key to make sure the it worked smoothly.

[ble55ed7tymz]

i have an is300 that the ignition seems to be locked on. my daughter drove it last night and all was fine. Today it will not crank. I am seeing that a hammer and screw driver should do the trick. is this some sort of security feature on the car?

[beachlover]

I've had to do this twice. I am trying to prevent a third time. Because prevention is better than knowing this "fix". So here's my idea. I got a Lexus key from a junked car and will periodically insert it into the ignition. Theory being that the mechanism will be pushed into different positions from what it always does with the proper key. Curious if anyone thinks this makes sense?

[lenore]

I would also add that a once a year addition of dry graphite sprayed on a key and inserted several times is a helpful lubricant. WD is not a lubricant, it is a cleaner....

[Huskevball]

My husband followed the five steps that Howiman posted.  It took three tries but beloved Rx 300 (with 202,000 miles) started.

 

The chief mechanic at our Lexus dealer suggested a $330 fix which might work, maybe.  Thank you for this fix!

 

 

 

[Skyler from Austin]

The tapping and the graphite and WD40 worked like a champ for my RX-330 today.  I'm a bit worried that graphite and WD-40 will make cement soon, but it's working today!

[Big Forehead]

Well, I had the same problem as others in this thread with my 2000 RX 300.  Being that it's a 20 year old car, I didn't want to spend too much money getting it fixed.  I was able to take apart the lower dash on the driver's side and, with the help of a hammer and nail, I was able to get the little button on the ignition key cylinder holder to depress and pull the ignition cylinder out.  Lucky for me this issue happened in my driveway, so I didn't need to get it towed to the shop.  I called the local Lexus dealer and then my go-to garage -- both of them told me to call this company called Keyway to fix it.  I called, and the lady initially told me that it would be between $275 and $375 to fix.  The Coronavirus hit and we have been stuck at home for the last 3 weeks so we didn't need the second car.  I finally decided to bite the bullet and pay to have it fixed so I called Keyway back and the lady told me that it would be $275 to install the new ignition cylinder assembly and get it synched up with the computer.  I would have to pay for the new ignition cylinder too ($150), and new master keys (???).  Since this $275 dollar job grew into a $600 (estimating) job, I decided to search the Internet again to see if I could find a solution.  I found this thread and the suggestion, that seemed crazy to me, to stick a screwdriver in the key slot and hemmer it lightly.  That didn't work, but the post also said that the problem was caused by the tiny springs inside of the cylinder sticking.  I decided to try squirting a little Kroil (penetrating oil used to loosen rusted parts) into the key slot.  I waited about 3 minutes and struck the perimeter of the key cylinder body on the garage floor a few times while rotating it so that I wasn't striking the same place twice.  That did it!!!  A few minute later I had the key lock cylinder back in the car, the dash back together, the battery hooked back up, and I was driving down the road.  There might be less smelly ways to get the springs unstuck.  Kroil is pretty stinky, and I wouldn't recommend driving around with the windows up after doing this.  Repeatedly putting the key into the ignition, pulling it out, and wiping it off got out the majority of the excess oil.  I also used a pipe cleaner stuck into the ignition key hole to sop up more of it.  I'm sure that the odor will dissipate after a couple days.  I'm glad to have my old trusty Lexus back in running condition.

I really appreciate the advice of the folks on this thread.