ok, i'm a dolt...i just bought an '85 t/a from this guy...the keys and the spare keys were on the same key ring. i drove the car 2x, then lost the keys somewhere in the house, and i can't find them.
local GM dealer said they can't remake a set.
local locksmith wants a min. of $105 to make a new set..

can anyone help me?
thanks

 

you could swap out lock cylinders and all that. but you would probably end up spending over $105. bite the bullet and pay the locksmith or clean your house, check the laundry (and kids if you have any) and find your old ones.

 

i think i may have flushed them down the toilet?

i can home one night, a friend and i were going to take it up the street real quick. i grabbed the keys off the stove, went to the bathroom, came back out, and forgot where i put them.
but i mean, it's kinda hard not to know you dropped your keys in the can while you're taking a leak. i'm sure i'd realize it if i was pissing on my keys! haha
ah well...maybe i'll just swap everything out from my other t/a.

 

Well, this may not be what you wanted to hear:

If the car is equipped with t-tops, you can get in thrugh there,just put in a flat head screwdriver on each side and pry up, and the will open. they will onlyopen about 2 inches, just enough for you to hit the release handle, do not force them.
I have done this 3 times to my car, and it hasnt damaged anything

Once in the car, you can break the lock cylinder forward with a pair of large plyers/vice grips. doing this may break the inards and not let the starter engage, in that case:

jack the car up.
Drop the starter, run a couple extra wires, 1 for each terminl on the starter, put them inside the car, connect them to an on/off switch. Be sure you use AT LEAST 10 gauge wire(I used 16 gauge and they melted and almost started a fire)

Congradulations, you have just hot wired your car.
I drove around like this in my 84 S-10 Blazer for over a year with no problems.

 

word
the doors are unlocked, as it's in my driveway.
yeah, i'm thinking of just shaving off the door handles, then getting a remote starter. make it go trick.

i was hoping someone here would work at a dealership or something, and be able to hook me up.

thanks guys
nathan

 

Yeah, I did the same thing on my Safari Wagon, except it was moving day and the car had all my stuff in it. I don't think you will be spending $105 on the repair since lock cylinders are like 10 bucks each. I had my doors unlocked, so I didn't have to break in to my own car. Went to the parts place, bought an ignition switch, two door locks and a tailgate latch for about $60 total. I rented the steering wheel puller and lock plate removal tool, but if you buy them, theyre like $20 each.

Doing the ignition switch took like 45 minutes, then I drove to my new place, unloaded my stuff, and spent the next 2 hours or so, switching in the rest of the locks. The biggest PITA is taking the door panels out, but it's pretty straightforward.

I don't know if they sell 4 packs of lock cylinders, but if they don't, you can have them re-keyed to for like $10 each.

Your total may come out close to what the locksmith would charge to make new keys from your existing locks, but at the end of the day, you will have all new locks and keys. It's better that way, because once a lock set gets about 18-20 years old, you start to have trouble with them.

 

If you have the ownership why won't the dealership sell you a new set of keys?

Are they hoping you'll bite the bullet and buy a whole new set of locks?

 

ya know, i couldn't tell you why they won't make another set.
maybe i should just go to the local pontiac dealership, and raise hell.

 

GM dealers don't keep micro fiche records of keys past like '91... and isn't that about that time we start seeing different styles of keys? Anyway, I recently lost my ignition key, bought a lock cylinder and a new steering wheel but decided I didn't want to risk messing up my steering column while trying to break my lock cylinder out. SO I bit the bullet, paid $60 for a locksmith to come out and change the cylinder (I saved $5 by providing my own new one); he put the steering wheel on for free, since it was already off.

All in all, it wasn't a bad deal, my recommendation for you is to find the closest locksmith you can... that definately affects the rate they quote you.

BUT, I found my old key three days after I had the new one put in.

Give that some thought.

James

 

It's almost impossible to cut a new key from codes if you don't provide the knockout blank that came out of the ring hole on the original key. There are only so many possible combinations for key cuts, and a lot of cars came off the line with the same lock sets. I don't think the factory maintains a database of keying indexed by VIN for 15-20 year old cars.

Get a new ignition lock cylinder and replace it for about $15.00. It's a great excuse to clean and relube everything in the column, and tighten the tilt mechanism screws. You can get a set of replacement door and deck lid locks for about $20.00, too.

 

Vader,

For future reference, how would you recommend turning the lock cylinder in order to remove it? Jam a screwdriver into the keyhole, gut the cylinder and hope to turn it far enough to break the tumbler? Not that I plan on losing my keys or stealing anyone's car, but if it ever comes up again I'd like to know how to avoid paying the lsmith again.

I read a few of your posts on this before but haven't seemed to have found detailed instructions on the actual removal of the old cylinder.

Thanks

James

 

DON'T force the lock cylinder. You can damage teh steering column upper housing. There is a special tool for forcing a lock cylinder, but it has a sleeve that protects the outer lock housing and upper column plastic. Remove the steering wheel, horn sounder, lock ring, and the screw that holds the lock cylinder in place, then install a replacement.

These may help a bit: