When a key has been broken into 2 pieces, most of the time a key can be made from the 2 pieces.
You must have all pieces of the key!
If one of the pieces is still in the lock we have special small tools that we can use to remove the key from the lock. Yes we can even remove a broken piece of key from any ignition switch, in 20 years and thousands of cars, only on one occasion have we not been able to remove the key.
With that being said, there are exceptions to that, they include but are not limited to; customers attempting to remove the key by using ANYTHING!; including but not limited to paper clips, pliers, coat hangers, needles, super glue, screw driver, hammer, or anything else. Doing any of the things I listed above will result in permanent damage to your switch. So please call us to remove the key otherwise you risk ruining your switch, which can cost you hundreds of dollars to repair and also having the inconvenience of 2 separate keys to operate your vehicle.
So if you have a broken key, by all means take it to your local locksmith shop and they can make you another, either by copying or for a better guaranteed key have them make a code key from the broken one.
By visually sight reading the key, a code key can usually be made, providing it is not to worn out, this is a much better key than just making a copy of the broken key, which most locksmiths will NOT guarantee.
If you have a piece of it still in the lock, PLEASE call us before anyone damages the lock and we will be able to pull the piece out and make you a new key and the lock will still function as normal.
Automobile VIN numbers.
The truth about auto VIN numbers, they do not tell you how to make a key to a car, they never have. What the VIN number does tell you is the make, model, year, where it was made, what engine it it is supposed to have under the hood and lastly, the number sequence of that vehicle.
Now on some vehicles it is sometimes possible to retrieve a key code from the manufacturer using the VIN. Here is why this is possible in some cases. Not all manufacturers did this, and only a few are still doing this today, and it is being done even less as we go into the future.
Let's use Chevrolet for this example. For years as the car rolled off the assembly line an employee would make a file using the VIN number, inside this file he would add things such as what color the car was or what special added features the car had etc.... at the same time he would also record the key code for that car. So you see the VIN number is only a file number which the dealer can use to look up the key code.
Not all manufacturers did this. The few that did are beginning to do away with this practice.
Here's why,-- over the years as we moved into computers instead of files in file cabinets,when the info was transferred, some of the info was incorrectly recorded. I learned this over time as more and more of the key codes I retrieved from the manufacturer would not work. Because it was either incorrect or the car was so old that it had new locks because the old ones stopped working or the car had been in a wreck and a different door or steering wheel had been installed.
Still on occasion, and only if the car is not over 8 years old it may be possible to get a key code from the dealer. They will only give it to the legal current owner, in person. They won't give it to a relative or a friend, or over the phone. PERIOD! So take the cars tag receipt or title and ID with you when you go, or you will have wasted your time.
We can make a key to the car, we don't use the VIN number, because
1. most car companies never recorded the key code.
2. more often than not the code they give us is wrong.
3. the few that did record the key code only keep records going back 8 years.
With all that being said there is ONE exception. All Chrysler products that have transponder keys require a code that is specific to each vehicle in order to program new keys. That number can only be retrieved from the manufacturer using the VIN number.
Now on some vehicles it is sometimes possible to retrieve a key code from the manufacturer using the VIN. Here is why this is possible in some cases. Not all manufacturers did this, and only a few are still doing this today, and it is being done even less as we go into the future.
Let's use Chevrolet for this example. For years as the car rolled off the assembly line an employee would make a file using the VIN number, inside this file he would add things such as what color the car was or what special added features the car had etc.... at the same time he would also record the key code for that car. So you see the VIN number is only a file number which the dealer can use to look up the key code.
Not all manufacturers did this. The few that did are beginning to do away with this practice.
Here's why,-- over the years as we moved into computers instead of files in file cabinets,when the info was transferred, some of the info was incorrectly recorded. I learned this over time as more and more of the key codes I retrieved from the manufacturer would not work. Because it was either incorrect or the car was so old that it had new locks because the old ones stopped working or the car had been in a wreck and a different door or steering wheel had been installed.
Still on occasion, and only if the car is not over 8 years old it may be possible to get a key code from the dealer. They will only give it to the legal current owner, in person. They won't give it to a relative or a friend, or over the phone. PERIOD! So take the cars tag receipt or title and ID with you when you go, or you will have wasted your time.
We can make a key to the car, we don't use the VIN number, because
1. most car companies never recorded the key code.
2. more often than not the code they give us is wrong.
3. the few that did record the key code only keep records going back 8 years.
With all that being said there is ONE exception. All Chrysler products that have transponder keys require a code that is specific to each vehicle in order to program new keys. That number can only be retrieved from the manufacturer using the VIN number.
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