Baffled - Grand Am Ignition Key won't turn!

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I just repaired a broken wire to the headlamp and replaced the battery in our 2000 Grand AM. Started it up and parked it outside overnight. Now the ignition key won't turn. Key works o.k. in door. Tried second key, same result.

Checked fuses. Dealer said check battery connection - seems o.k. (lights, etc, work, bell dings when put key in). Is this just coincidence? Need new ignition switch?

HELP ME HELP MYSELF!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
The key won't TURN? Try moving the steering wheel while you're trying to turn the key. There's a lock mechanism between the two that can sometimes 'stick'.

Dave
 
I'll give that a try. Although, this ignition is in the dash board, not the column.

Why don't you just drive up to Lansing and I will give this thing to you!

Randy
 
PROBLEM SOLVED (kind of)

I spent four hours doing everything under the sun. Disconnect battery, check every fuse, wiggle my shifter, wiggle the cars shifter, kick the tire, kiss the key........

My wife came home, got in the car, and started it right up! WHY? She did say that she pushed a button on the dash (ETC = extra traction control) and heard a "click". I too pushed "most" of the dash buttons.

Signed,

Happy, but perplexed.
 
quote:

Originally posted by doitmyself:
I'll give that a try. Although, this ignition is in the dash board, not the column.

Randy


The dashboard? About 10 years ago, when my daughter was learning to drive, she commented my 77 LUV was weird because it had the key in the dashboard.
 
THe bitc pronounced bit-see solinoid was hung up. Brake Iterloc Solinoid. You have depress the brake while turning the key. THis is an additional safety sytem that works along with the park/nuetral saftey switch and steering wheel lock.

Belive it or not this system is a complicated little devil on some vechiles being tied into several subsystems. It is completely possable that they system got confused and here hitting what would apear to be an unrelated botton unlocked it.

THeir is one year of Caprice clasic that if the left tail light burns out it disables the cruise control.

I have also seen transmission residual power supply lines for volatile memory taped by OEM for some constant hot for radio memory act up. When used in the OEM application everything worked fine. When a custom after market radio was installed they used this same constant hot to power the radio and other audio componets. The draw exceeded what the OEM supply line could handle. WHen hard bass hit it caused a power surges in the supply line. This caused the PCM Power train control module to lock up. When it locked up the engine and transmission did strange things.

After several attempts buy the dealer to fix this the big guns were called in. Looking through the wire diagrams and looking at the mods custom audio mods revaled the problem quickly.

So strange things can happen with electronic systems that are so closely intergrated today!

P.S. I am glad that it sorted it's self out!

[ January 14, 2004, 10:19 PM: Message edited by: JohnBrowning ]
 
JohnBrowning - that makes sense. I did try pushing in the brake while wiggling the steering/shifter. That was just after I tried thawing out the ignition switch with my acetylene torch! I figured there was some kind of computor glitch somewhere - this car (my daughter's) has power everything.


Labman - Must be some kind of Voo-Doo going on here..... what a strange coincidence that you mention a '77 LUV. I bought a brand new '77 tin can LUV! after I got out of college. Mine had rust through in four years even with Ziebart. I can't believe a '77 would live to see 1994.

Thanks everyone.
 
Actually, I work in GR so for a 1 hour drive a free car sounds like a deal! Seriously though, the interlock between the ignition switch and steering column should still exist, regardless of the switch's mounting position.

Dave
 
quote:

Originally posted by doitmyself:
snip....
Labman - Must be some kind of Voo-Doo going on here..... what a strange coincidence that you mention a '77 LUV. I bought a brand new '77 tin can LUV! after I got out of college. Mine had rust through in four years even with Ziebart. I can't believe a '77 would live to see 1994.

Thanks everyone.


Amazing what you can do with enough fiberglass, welding rod, and time.
 
I have an uncle that has two origanl LUV's. He has patrched them up a bunch of times. Now he does the Iszuzu diesel engine conversion to them. He claims those diesels are not even broke in until they have 150,000 miles on them!

This is the same uncle that worked for GM from 50's until a few years ago. He also owns a Yenko 427 Vette. His Yenko was the first car I ever drove. I had no liscense and he had my take it out on the HWY. I took it up to 55 and he told me to pick up the pace. I took it up to 75 and again he told me to open it up some. SO I floored it and at 75 MPH the Gator Back tires spun for second the locker kicked in and we were gone!!!!!!!!!!!!! I started brakeing at 150 MPH. Not to bad for a 15year old!!

[ January 17, 2004, 12:26 AM: Message edited by: JohnBrowning ]
 
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