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  #1  
Old 04-17-2006, 06:06 PM
kanoa's Avatar
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Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Hawaii
Posts: 14
No key? No problem.

I lost the keys to my '79 300D and found a new way to get it back on the road. Apparently not the only person to ever losse the keys I read all the related posts on this forum to look for an answer. Yes, a dealer will make a new key from the VIN number but if the ignition tumbler has been replaced at any time and the current owner did not make any spares, then the only official recourse is to remove the dashboard and the entire lock assembly, which is something I've done before and consider to be fantastically difficult, verging on ill-advised.

In sheer frustration I sat in my benz in the airport parking lot where it was stuck and after trying everything else I could think of, slipped my Toyota key into the ingnition and started jiggling it while applying turning pressure. I thought it was hopeless but *anything* was worth 10 minutes of trying. I didn't have to wait that long, it turned within 3 minutes. A different Toyota key worked even better, I can turn it with three or four side-to-side jiggles in less than five seconds.

A friend had a 300D parts car stuck in a driveway because it was also missing a key. Using his own Toyota key I was able to unlock that one in about four minutes.

So far I have been able to unlock three different W123 cars using three different Toyota keys. I have also been able to unlock an ignition using an MB key from a different car, though that one took a good 13 minutes.

The technique is to simply apply a gentle clockwise pressure while shaking the key up and down, in and out, any which way. It might take a while but it will go eventually. Once you can turn the lock you can use a paperclip to remove the tumbler (described elsewhere on this forum) and replace it with one that has a matching key.

Since it does not seem to work on the exterior locks, I don't think I'm compromising anyone's security by posting this, besides, the car thiefs probably already know this trick plus many more.

-K

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  #2  
Old 04-17-2006, 08:29 PM
Keith
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Rocky Mount, NC
Posts: 119
I once opened a friend's Toyota van with a Honda Civic key.......no jiggling needed, it seemed to be a perfect fit. It even started the van just as easily. Go figure.

Keith
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  #3  
Old 04-17-2006, 08:30 PM
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Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 992
saab

i have a saab that has a key problem...

so i stuck a screw driver in it and I start it with a screw driver...
the only problem is with law enforcement... they kinda think its
a bit unusal to see someone start there car with a screw driver...
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  #4  
Old 04-17-2006, 08:54 PM
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Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Flushing, MI
Posts: 217
Sounds like you more or less picked the lock. I bought a lock pick set and you basically do the same thing, except that you push on each tumler individually. But hey there is nothing wrong with being crafty!
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Old 04-18-2006, 06:09 PM
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The key to my Beetle worked on a couple different Beetles that I tried.
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  #6  
Old 01-19-2010, 06:18 PM
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low sekurity keys

These are interesting stories - apparently jiggling keys from a different car from the same manufacturer actually works fairly often. What is odd in this case is that my experience has been that Toyota keys work better in MB cars than other MB keys do.

imdavid, I think you are right - this is essentially lockpicking but using an existing key makes a nice fit in the keyway (the lateral grooves that allow only certain key types into the tumbler). It also makes working the pins on both sides of the tumbler a bit easier since these keys are two-sided.
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Old 01-19-2010, 07:58 PM
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Posts: 126
One of my Mercedes keys is cut on a Toyota key blank. The toyota blank has the plastick grip like the Benz but only costs 4 bucks to get cut.
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Old 01-20-2010, 09:49 AM
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ĦAy Jodido!
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Rancho Disparates
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I had a 93 GMC Suburban that would start with just about any GM truck key. My old Ford PU has 5 sets of keys, and starts and runs completely keyless. I keep waiting for someone to steal it, but so far no takers

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