Ignition Sticking or Key Won’t Turn? Causes, Quick Checks and Fixes

A key that won’t turn in the ignition can stop your whole day. Sometimes it turns halfway and stops. Sometimes it won’t come back out. And sometimes the key snaps, leaving half of it inside the cylinder.

Before you assume the car needs to go to a dealer, there are a few simple things to check. And if they don’t work, most ignition problems can be looked at and fixed right where the car is parked.

Quick Checks You Can Try First

Don’t force the key. Turning hard is how keys snap off inside the ignition. Try these first:

• Wiggle the steering wheel. The steering lock often holds the ignition when the wheel is turned against it. Gently turn the wheel left and right while you turn the key.
• Check the gear. Many automatic cars only let the key turn or come out in Park. Move the shifter firmly into Park and try again.
• Try the spare key. If the spare works, the problem is the worn key, not the ignition. A fresh key often fixes it; see key cutting.
• Look at the key. Bent, cracked or badly worn edges are a sign the key itself is the problem.

Avoid spraying household oils into the ignition. They can collect dirt and make sticking worse.

Push-to-Start Car That Won’t Start?

If your car has a start button and says “key not detected,” the problem is usually the fob, not the ignition. The most common cause is a weak battery. Many cars let you hold the fob right against the start button (or in a slot in the console) so the car can read it even with a weak battery. If that works, replace the battery. If it doesn’t, see key fob programming and replacement.

Common Causes of a Sticking Ignition

• A worn key. Years in a pocket wear down the cuts until they don’t line up with the lock any more.
• Worn parts inside the cylinder. The small parts inside the ignition wear too, especially on older cars with heavy key rings hanging off them.
• Dirt and debris inside the lock.
• A broken piece of key left inside the cylinder.
• An electrical or chip problem. The key turns, but the car won’t start because it doesn’t recognize the chip. That’s a programming issue, not a mechanical one; see car key programming.

What We Do at the Car

When the quick checks don’t help, call (510) 766-0099 with the year, make and model, and tell us what the key is doing. You get the price on the phone before we come out.

• Diagnosis on site. We find out if it’s the key, the ignition cylinder, or the chip.
• Broken key extraction. If a key has snapped inside, we get the broken piece out without damaging the cylinder, then cut you a new key.
• Ignition repair or replacement at your location, where the job can be done as mobile service.
• A fresh key if the old one is worn, cut on the machine in our van.

Our labor is covered by a 60-day workmanship warranty.

Ignition FAQs

Related: ignition repair and replacement, key cutting and car key programming.