Please post if your ignition has locked!

[focus-blue]

Mine just locked up. Won't turn over at all, even if I bang on it. That sux!

[greentengu]

I'm posting for my friend, as he hasn't joined the forum. His 2000 SPI's ignition with 120,000+ miles locked up on him two weeks ago.

We removed the cylinder after he nearly drilled his way to China and pounded on it hard enough to break down the Berlin Wall, and broke off part of what was behind it.

What was left was an "X" pattern in metal.

He taped the key under the column to emit the PATS signal, and now uses a pair of needle-nose pliers to start his car. Works like a charm.

--Scott

[PaladinSlash]

Mine just locked up last night, 290 bucks later I have a car that will run. Sad that everyone knows its a problem but nothing happens.

I have a 2002 Focus with 46000 miles

[Topher352]

Add me to the list.. It hit me about a year ago.

b2000 Zx3. At the time had probably 115k miles on it. It started sticking on occaision, but after wiggling it, I could usually get it to turn.. Then one day, i just couldn't get it to turn no matter what.

I called AAA. When the driver got here, he said that it had happened to most of their foci as well (the AAA office around here uses foci for student driving courses). He stuck the key in and tapped it with a wrench a few times, and it magically turned again.

I drove it to the dealer to get the iginition replaced. It cost 250$-ish, i don't remember exactly. It's worked perfectly ever since.

[FORDSVTPARTS]

I mentioned this previously but if anyone needs a new cylinder coded and shipped I can do them for around $80.00 total shipped to your door and it will work with your existing keys.

Thats less than the cost of buying the cylinder and coding it yourself, installing the new one is a relative breeze.

[LornesBored]

take a look at the original thread posting time, it was made 5 years before a focus even existed

6-30-1995

[MZAXR3C]

Originally Posted by PerfectSaiyan

take a look at the original thread posting time, it was made 5 years before a focus even existed

6-30-1995

That's awesome!

[LornesBored]

Originally Posted by SoCalFocus

Mine vas about $280 ig I remedber correctly. One nigxt the key just wouldn't!turn. <img src-"/ubbthreads/images/grammlins/fcown.gif" alt="" /> Had!to get her towed and everything/ Happened at arout 70,000 on my '00 LX!so no warranty, even thnugh it is a knovn problem with Gord. I0had an entire p`ge full0of notices and memos Ford service emplopees received regarding |he ignition. Hnpefully someday(it will make it to recall statuc and we can get!our $$ cack!

either the forum screwed up when it changed over or some people actually speak like this

[FoCAS'D]

Okay I guess I don't stop in here often enough to see what people are having problems with, but now I know I ought to because this just happened to me today. So far my car has been good. Bought it new in 2001 and it had a few glitches such as two replaced EGR's and one recalled battery cable but that's been pretty much it besides the usual preventative maitenance till now. So today I drive to work. Then a little later in the morning go hop in the car to go to check on on of our projects across town and the darn thing won't turn. Can't do it, it just won't go. So I hit it, try another spare key, and hit it again and it's just stuck, for good. So I call a locksmith and she tells me "Oh yeah that's a common problem on the Focus, just take it to the Ford dealership they have a program where they will give you one free lock replacement for free." So I call the dealership, and what do you think they tell me,
"Oh no they don't replace those for free it'll run you about 300 dollars". So I call AAA to get a tow and the dispatch girl tells me "Oh yeah I drive a Focus and that's happened to me too, but I think my dealer fixed it for free." So then the tow truck guys show up and they say " Oh yeah this is happens on Focuses all the time and other Fords too." I guess I'm the only one in town who didn't know about this. So off to the dealer it goes and and I'm out 300 bux. Look at all the names of people here, and that's just on Focaljet. Think about all the people who drive a Focus, had this happen, and aren't on here writing about it. We're are just a fraction of it all. Just about the only good thing I can say is it's fixed, and they did it quick, while I didn't need my car. Looks like at Ford they just engineer these cars to sell parts and keep their machine rolling.
IF WE CAN GET SOME KIND OF RECALL ON THIS I"M ALL FOR IT! How is that done?

[Qwik1]

Originally Posted by PerfectSaiyan

take a look at the original thread posting time, it was made 5 years before a focus even existed

6-30-1995

Not to mention almost 6 years before that member joined FJ!

[FORDSVTPARTS]

Why is it that people never read this thread, and simply reply to it?

The other place to look is the "Team tech" section where the fix info is readily available.

[frankjt96]

My 00 focus ZX3 got stuck today while i was at my girlfriends house. Eventually after pounding on it it turned but now it won't turn at all. I looked on consumer reports and no recall. Before i resort to the auto shop, what other tricks do you all have?

[ReGZ_93]

You can add me to the list. I had my lock replaced two weeks ago. I was lucky, the key would not come out of the lock, but I could rotate the cylinder. It's a good thing I took out the ESP. The ford dealer replaced under warrantee at 37,000 miles. I think my dealer might have replaced the focus cylinder with an Explorer spec model. The casing is machined instead of the original one, which appears to have been cast.

[FORDSVTPARTS]

Originally Posted by frankjt96

My 00 focus ZX3 got stuck today while i was at my girlfriends house. Eventually after pounding on it it turned but now it won't turn at all. I looked on consumer reports and no recall. Before i resort to the auto shop, what other tricks do you all have?

Look in the Team Tech forum, I can build you a cylinder coded to your existing keys for about $80.00 shipped.

[naneekE]

Mines locked 3 times, i determined its might of had to do with the weight of the key weakening the springs so the last time i replaced it i made it so you can remove the key after you start it.

[PAB]

Obviously, the ignition lock Ford uses in the Focus is a poor design. They know it, but for some reason Ford would rather irritate and drive away customers by continuing to produce vehicles with a known poorly designed part instead of admitting their mistake and taking action to really fix the problem. Taking your Focus to the local Ford dealer to get the ignition lock "fixed" only insures that, if you keep the car long enough, you'll get to take it back for them to "fix" it again. As of three months ago, the replacement ignition locks Ford was installing were the same fine pieces of junk they installed at the factory. Some people have changed their lock two or three times. Ford even added a new section to the later Focus shop manuals detailing how to drill out the lock for replacement when it can't be turned. If you want to fix the problem once, get a lock cylinder for a 2001 Explorer. It's part number 707592, made by Strattec. A good automotive locksmith will do the entire job for a lot cheaper than the Ford dealer. My locksmith didn't have any 707592 cylinders in stock when I needed one. He gave me the number of his wholesaler. Drove to the wholesaler's place and got the Strattec piece for $15. I then took that to the locksmith and he keyed it to match my original key for another $25. I installed it in about 25 minutes. There's a place in San Diego that will do the same thing if you email a pic of your key and then ship the new cylinder to you for under $100. Here's a link to them: http://www.sandiegolockandsafe.com/

[Bspourt1]

i thought it was just my car. my car locks up alll the time. i have to keep trying to turn my key back and forth until it turns. sometimes it takes a second, and other times it takes like 20 mins to turn. can you get this fixed. i hate it

[bk4293]

Add me to your list. My girlfriends car just started this around a week and half ago.
Steve Trousley, expect a call soon. I must say your service is well known over at www.contour.org

[Focused_Bliss]

Mine did it too. I had it replaced by my fav mechanic and it cost $150.00. I've still got the bill if Ford finally gets off it's butt and recalls.

[Dwzx3fc]

Me too, luckily my 04' Foci with "Get This" only 12K locked up big time in my garage. Had to drill it out. No warning at all and locked steering wheel. The
wheels were straight as could be,which freaked me out. You guys know on older
cars how if you have the wheel turned all the way in one direction or the other,how you can't turn the key without moving the wheel some.

Once I got the cylinder out, the cylinder would turn freely and the key would not
stick at all. I was able to use a big screwdriver to turn the internal switch in the
column with no problems,so I got a little confused. I took the cover off of the
cylinder which housed the springs and tumblers. One spring flew to Oblivion,
but luckily I replaced it with one from a new lock cylinder I picked up. Before I
was going to replace a part that I thought was not defective,I checked it's
operation. Only one side of the lock bar would drop down when the key was
inserted in the cylinder. One of the tumbler's would not go down all the way
to fully drop the locking bar on the opposite side of the tumbler housing. If I were
to push it down manually,the bar dropped down fully.

What if one wanted to do an easy fix,if they too,had the same problem as me?
If you were to shave the locking bar some,it wouldn't hang up as easily if the
tumbler's were not operating properly.

By the way,the new ignition lock cylinder,which I got at a Ford Dealer close to
my house,doesn't seem to be the right one. The design is totally different.

Can someone tell me if this Motorcraft part number is correct # 5S4Z-11582-BB ?
The other #S38KB, is on the box and on my old lock cylinder housing also.
It just seems so cheesy compared to the OEM one. Thanks for any help.

[Dwzx3fc]

Update: Grinded about an 1/16" of material off of the locking bar"tumbler actuator
and reinstalled the lock cylinder with the worn tumblers as mentioned in my
previous post. Worked like a charm. It was Free and I didn't have to remove
the tumblers and springs either. Who wants a sloppy setup?

It works great. Just trying to give some advice on a quick Free fix for people
willing and able to perform this simple operation. I used a bench grinder and
don't forget to debur the edges of the bar. I used a sharp Exacto-knife to
clean the sides of it,since there's no way to get a small file in there.

The new lock cylinder,which Ford raped me on for $130.78,is going right back
to the Stealership. Do you guys beleive they charged my wife that much for
part #5S4Z-11582-BB? That's like almost double it's list price,I'd assume.

Make sure to lube everything up with either graphite powder or lithium grease.
Insufficient lubrication is one of the main reasons these lock cylinders fail in the
first place. Good luck to all.

[js0606]

You can add me to this list. Mine locked a couple of months ago and we have been banging on it to be able to use the car. It finally locked for good and I'm in the process of jumping through all the hoops t get a new one and get it coded. No one will ever be able to convince me that Ford didn't know what they were doing when they created this monster.

[captainhook]

Add me too!

2004 ZTS (24,XXX miles)- The last few days my wife has been having trouble getting the key to turn. It will usually turn after 5 - 10 minutes.

Going to the dealer tomorrow for the repair.

[tonymontanaflows]

add me to the list
2000 zx3 auto 36K
happened this morning, of all days i had an interview too.
first i could only get the key halfway in and thought my sister or brother friends who where over lastnight ****ed with the car. After about 20 mins of gently trying to force it in it did and it started. I drove a mile it spurtered with an ! warning electric went and died... i have other battery issues too but know howto deal with them. gave it some time it started and drove home. the key was hard to remove. I took the car out later and it started fine but now same thing.. i can listen to the radio but ignition locked

i'm taking it in for 36K service this weekend(if it starts!!!) and see what type of quote i get

not happy

[js0606]

Ok, here's the deal folks!!! I've had this problem and it was driving my nuts to pay 300 - 500 from the dealer service dept. I was also not happy about 130.00 for the part and 80.00 to have it coded if I did most of the labor myself. So, here's how you do this for 62.00 TOTAL!!!

1. Check another forum here on how to get the lock cylinder out. I can't find the link now but someone wrote up a great piece with pics included on how to do this. Thanks to whoever did that!!! It totally helped me. If the key won't turn, the hammer or palm of the hand trick worked for me. I had to pop it pretty hard with the hammer to get it but it finally turned. I broke a screwdriver but I got it out.

2. Once you get the lock cylinder out, take it and the key to your local locksmith. Do NOT go to a dealership, aftermarket Auto Parts store or junk yard! Go to a reputable locksmith. He should have the lock cylinder for sell and should be able to code it easily. Usually 4-6 hours depending on how busy he is.

3. I originally bought the part from a parts store for 130.00 and then took it to the locksmith. He had me take the part back and he coded one he sold me just fine. The brand he carried was Strat Tec and he told me that all they did was locks and cylinders.

4. I took it back home, got it into the car and it cranked and runs great. The hardest part of the whose procedure was getting the screw right under the lock cylinder back through the plastic housing around the steering column.

42.00 plus tax for the lock cylinder and 15.00 to code it.

Now, he did say that I needed a new key and to do that, he gave me the box with the code written on the side. He said I needed to bring the box and the car back to get a spare key. Total for that is 75.00.

Good Luck and stay away from these thieves who try to convince you they have to do the work!!!

js06060