key stuck in ignition

weez4567 · Post by **weez4567** » 14 Jun 2010, 14:07

My key was stuck in ignition about a month ago, but came out the next time I drove the car. (2000 Volvo S70/V70 SE) Now it is stuck and will not come out at all. Any ideas?

Post by **jblackburn** » 14 Jun 2010, 14:37

Hit, bang, smack the heck out of the shifter until the shift button releases.

Then, take a paperclip and clean out the gunk around the edges, then spray around the button with some white lithium/silicone grease. Should keep it working again for another few years.

Don't use WD40, the best thing that accomplishes is accumulating more gunk.

Post by **vjaneczko** » 14 Jun 2010, 14:49

meh - just pretend you're in a Hollywood movie; reach under the dash, pull out two wires - one will be blue, one will be black. They'll be easy to spot because they'll be stripped about 1/2 inch each. Twist them together and start the car! oh, and make sure you brush them together first to see a spark.

Leave the key in the ignition and forget about it!

FCPEURO · Post by **FCPEURO** » 14 Jun 2010, 17:50

Do what jablackburn suggested. Sometimes the shifter does not want to go into park all the way which will cause it not to release the key.

Post by **BEJinFbk** » 14 Jun 2010, 22:43

The ignition lock is designed to retain your key unless the car is in Park.There's a steel cable that runs from
the shifter to the ignition switch to be sure that happens. If the button on the shift lever doesn't pop all the
way back down, the Shiftlock Overide button gets stuck or the cable is stretched a little too long from years
of use, the cable won't be able to do it's job and the ignition switch will not release your key.

I had a similar experience that occurred after someone pushed the Shiftlock Override button in my car.
It was never detailed by the PO and someone had spilled something sticky on the shifter console. That made
the Shiftlock Override button stick and my key was stuck. It looked like it had popped back up, but was still
depressed far enough to keep my key captive. I pulled the button all the way up and all was well.

Later, I pulled the whole thing apart and cleaned EVERYTHING. I also tightened up the cable a little bit.
It adjusts at the shifter end. All has been well for several years now. I hope this helps.

weez4567 · Post by **weez4567** » 19 Jun 2010, 14:27

Thank you! It seemed to be a matter of a stuck Shift Override button. A friend had some of the spray grease like someone recommended and we sprayed it and nothing happened, but I let it sit a day. Then I just thought about my ex boyfriend and beat the heck out of shifter console until the button was up! Thanks again!!!

Post by **rspi** » 11 Jul 2013, 21:56

Post by **abscate** » 12 Jul 2013, 03:49

Twist them together and start the car! oh, and make sure you brush them together first to see a spark.

Leave the key in the ignition and forget about it!

ROTFL!

Btw..Matt might not be too keen about leaving keys in cars for a bit...

AandE7177 · Post by **AandE7177** » 16 Aug 2014, 07:28

Just wanted to thank you all for the help with my stuck key issue, especially weez