My door lock cylinders seem to be frozen, for the first time in many years I tried to use the key to open the door and the key will not turn the slightest bit.
My guess it is due to the fact that I almost never use my keys to unlock the car, I always the alarm remote.
Do I need new cylinders, if so how difficult is it to swap them out?
I tried lubing them too, won't budge.
Anyone have this experience?

 

put some white lithium grease on the key then insert it into the lock, worked for me should work for you

 

The lock on my driver's door won't even let my key go more than 1/2 way in anymore. So I have to open through the passenger side and use the power door locks. Any fix for this? Maybe its just time to shave the door handles and buy an alarm system to pop the doors..

 

Try taking off your door panel, its a possibility that the connecting rod from the lock cylinder to the door striker release mechanism is jammed on both sides. Taking the cylinder out of your door is very simple to do. Take off your doorpanel, then remove the metal rod from the cylinder and remove a metal clip from the cylinder where it meets with the sheetmetal of the doorskin. Then take them to a lock smith. Since both of your doors are doing this it may be cheaper to hit up a junkyard and pick up a set of doorlocks that work and have some keys made up. You should be able to get them really cheap.



You can take your lockcylinder to a locksmith. They should be able to easily fix the problem. Somebody probally tried picking the lock and messed some of the guts, or something is in their stopping the key from going all the way in. Taking the cylinder out of your door is very simple to do. Take off your doorpanel, then remove the rod from the cylinder and remove a metal clip from the cylinder where it meets with the sheetmetal of the doorskin.
Or you could go to a junkyard and pick up a set of doorlocks that work and have some keys made up.

 

btw: the alarm still unlocks both doors.

I checked autozone and new cylinders are $20, so I'll just replace them. I didn't want to have to open up the door panel again because my pass. side window is frozen up. Makeing it very difficult to remove the panel.
any tips on that one?

 

Buy a new window motor. I need two of those as well (they work, but slowly). Where in IL are you located?

 

Up north practically Wisc.

I wasn't planning on changing the window motors (winter), i can wait till spring anyway. But now I might as well tackle both of them + the cylinders at the same time.
btw: the windows will still be slow even with new motors. I think I might rrewire with a thicker guage to fight the voltage drop. That is why they are slow. + I want the switches to work with the car off. I'm picky and this is the millionth time I've had to pull the panels off.
A weekends worth of work, in the cold. yea

 

I'm in the same boat, except there was a fire near my car which caused the cylinder to freeze. i tried many different things including soaking it in wd40 overnight and still didnt work. ended up breaking the piece on the back actually so im definetly replacing. Are you going to replace the T-top locks and glove compartment lock also? or just use 3 keys. i want to do all of them but is it worth it just to have the 2 keys instead of 3?