Volvo Glove Box Lock Tip

During my years as a locksmith technician I encountered many vehicle models that seem to have repeating issues. Few of the vehicles I remember had this type of recurring problems are some of the late 80's Volvo models. The glove box lock on these Volvo models seem to always cause issues and ultimately fail. Failure of the lock require its replacement which is a tough task in its own. However, during the years I had to replace these locks, I came up with a process that will make it a lot easier to remove the lock from the glove box.

These locks can be recognized by the turn knob that is around the key-way. This particular knob has a rubber coat on it in which is recommended to be removed first. The glove box compartment door on these models has a plastic housing which holds the lock in place. Using a large vice grip pliers is recommended to be used in order to clamp on the lock's turn knob and use it to force the lock to open. It must be done gently otherwise, the plastic housing might break and you will be looking at an extra expense.Once forcing the lock to the 90 degree position, the glove box should open and the lock can be replaced.

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Merry Christmas!!!

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BMW Lockout Tip

I got a job the other day from a locksmith technician I am working with to unlock a 97 BMW M3. Thinking to myself it was strange for me that he sent the job instead of doing it himself, he informed me that there is a problem with the job. Apparently, the customer left the lights on and it drained the battery. Once he came back to the vehicle, he could not open it. The problem with BMW's in this situation is that you can use the key to mechanically unlock the door by lifting the handle while turning the key, but without any batter power, there is a part that will break in the handle mechanism.

My fellow technician knew I had better experience and knowledge servicing these types of vehicles, so he sent the job to me and I accepted it. I knew there was a special tool called the Lock-master's Flip Pick for BMW models which was meant to use in these types of situations, but I did not have that tool in my possession. Once I got to the job site I came up with an idea that will help resolve the situation. Although using the key to unlock the door would not be an option in this situation, opening the trunk was possible without causing any damage.

I opened the trunk of the vehicle first. Then I looked for the trunk light under the rear deck. I popped the light out using a small screwdriver. I then hooked up some wires from my service vehicle to the light terminals in order to apply some power. This in return supplied enough power to the vehicle, so we were able to use the key to open the door without causing any damage to the handle mechanism. Once the job was complete, I jumped start the customer's vehicle and send him on his way.

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Commercial Key-Less Entry Lock System

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Lexus Trunk Lockout

I had a customer recently called for a locksmith service claiming she accidentally locked the keys inside of her Lexus vehicle's trunk. Usually in a trunk lockout situation, i always ask the customer if the vehicle has a trunk release lever inside it. When I asked the customer, she confirmed that it did have the trunk release lever. As I was heading to the job site, I figured it won't take to long to get the keys out of the trunk using the release lever. Once I got to the place where the car parked, I proceeded to unlock the door and use the trunk release lever. However, it seem like nothing was happening as I was pulling the lever. I suspected that the reason for that would be the alarm which was still armed and apparently was disabling the use of the lever.  

At that point, I figured my only option would be to access the trunk through the back seat of the vehicle., but I could not find any way to lower it like most models I encountered in the past. Right then I realize I might have to drill the lock (even though I did not want to), but when I saw that the cylinder was located inside the tail light housing, i gave up the idea since I didn't want to cause damage to the tail light. At that moment I figured my only option would be to "trick" the alarm to think there is a key turning the lock.

To do the procedure, I had to remove the door panel and locate the back to back cylinder while trying to follow the wiring harness coming out of it towards the bottom of the door. Once I located the connector, I disconnected it, jumped it, and unlocked the door. The second the doors were unlocked, the alarm was disabled and i was able to use the trunk release lever in order to open the trunk.

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Residential Locksmith Service in Portland

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