Someone described this in another thread but I did not get it till I actually saw it. What happened is that the Ears that are on the front of the Tumbler broke off. See the pics.

It has been over 5 years since I had the tumbler out and cleaned it out in an Ultrasonic tank. But, take a going look at the pictures and you see a lot of crud build up.

Attached Thumbnails

     

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84 300D, 82 Volvo 244Gl Diesel

Wow! What are you using for lubrication of the tumbler?

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Sam

84 300SD 350K+ miles ( Blue Belle )

WD-40.

Everything fails eventually.

Also I found out my Wife had a big wad if Key hanging from the Ignition Key. She only started doing that this year as I has warned her about that way back in 2007,

Also it takes less force to turn my Key because I bypassed the Steering Colum lock.

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84 300D, 82 Volvo 244Gl Diesel

Mercedes wants $175 for VIN matched ignition lock. I bought a $15 lock until I find something better.

Are there opinions on how long the aftermarket lock will last and whether it can be rekeyed?

That appears to be results from a keychain which has a key on one end and an anvil on the other.

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84 300SD
85 380SE
83 528e
95 318ic

WD-40 is not lubricant. Please use either the official MB lubricant or a lubricant specifically made for locks, like Houdini Lock Lube.

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Respectfully,
/s/
M. Dillon
'87 124.193 (300TD) "White Whale", ~392k miles, 3.5l IP fitted
'95 124.131 (E300) "Sapphire", 380k miles
'73 Balboa 20 "Sanctification"
Charleston SC

Times 33 years.

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84 300D, 82 Volvo 244Gl Diesel

Yet I have been using WD-40 on all of my locks since the middle 1970s (as far as I can remember) and it works OK for me.

Also I don't believe the failure was due to lack lubrication. I think it is just 33 years of use. Also I have owned it since 2007 no telling what the previous owners did to it.

Also it was about 5 years or more back the innards of the Steering Colum Lock broke and it had the symptoms of a stuck lock tumbler.

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84 300D, 82 Volvo 244Gl Diesel

Aftermarket is only 15 bucks new?

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84 300SD
85 380SE
83 528e
95 318ic

I know, I'm like 'Mercedes could have done better, those POS tumblers only lasted 33 years and it's not like I abused it or anything.'

I wonder if those engineers expected their designs and products to go this far?

I've never considered the wear on the key and ignition tumbler from the steering lock. I'm finished with the engine bay and under chassis work on this gas to diesel conversion on the w126s and have moved to the interior renovations. I'm not persuaded that grinding the steering lock down is the only way to go. Of course the ignition will get a new set of tumblers from MB too.

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84 300SD
85 380SE
83 528e
95 318ic

Same story on the tumbler,hanging up but key would still work after jiggleing this way then that ,gambled awhile then got tired of it .I dropped the steering column to lower for easier access ,the key once inserted into the tumbler ,you guessed it ,wouldnt turn , the inner pieces where loss inside the tumbler and the different angle once the column was lowered wouldnt let the key work , red light .It took awhile ,finally ,had another tumbler and key set ,Im back as usual with a functional unit .Im going to keep an extra as back up from now on ,its not worth the extra pain when an easier solution is ready and avail.
In this case I had to find another complete ignition with tumbler and key ,(parts car),unable to pull off the collar piece making this necessary .If the collar comes off ,walk in the park .Ignition fixin fun ,fun, fun.

I bought a Meyle Lock Tumbler $22+free shipping. However, members have said the aftermarket ones only last a year of so.

I also found there was some difference in the Mercedes part number from the one I ordered and the one I removed.
So using the part number from the one that came out of the Car I found a real Mercedes tumbler for $50 but with only one key on eBay and I also bought that.

But, I installed the Meyle one (it fit fine) to see how long it will hold up.

The Meyle tumbler and the Mercedes tumbler appear to use the same keys except that the Mercedes one has the Mercedes star stamped on the metal. People say the plastic part on the Key fails.

The Meyle Lock Tumbler is made in the PRC.

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84 300D, 82 Volvo 244Gl Diesel

Grinding the locking pin off does not alter how the Steering Colum Lock works. It just means that no matter what happens to the Lock Tumbler you do not need to have the Key in a specific position to remove the Steering Colum Lock.

In my own case I pushed in the Steering Colum Locking Pin and dented the hole to hold the pin down and then filled the hole with JB Weld. Doing that allows you to remove the Steering Colum lock just as if you ground the pin of but more importantly it holds the Steering Colum Lock Plunger away and keeps it from locking the Steering Colum and at the same time when you turn the Key you no longer have to move the spring loaded plunger out of engagement making it easier to turn the Key.

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84 300D, 82 Volvo 244Gl Diesel

Email me your vin, I KNOW I can get a better price than that at my dealer!

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John HAUL AWAY, OR CRUSHED CARS!!! HELP ME keep the cars out of the crusher! A/C Thread
"as I ride with my a/c on... I have fond memories of sweaty oily saturdays and spewing R12 into the air. THANKS for all you do!

My drivers:
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 560SL convertible
1987 190D 2.5-5SPEED!!!

1987 300TD
2005 Dodge Sprinter 2500 158"WB
1994GMC 2500 6.5Turbo truck... I had to put the ladder somewhere!

that which I put off several years ago. My only key was in the tool bag of another car. When I returned to retrieve my tool bag I discovered that car's rear window had shattered and my tool bag was no longer in it. If and only if you bring the car to Mercedes they will get you a matched key for $25. Unfortunately my wheel lock was quite functional, wheels hard-over, car parked in a steep driveway, completely inaccessible for a tow-truck, and bassackwards to boot. Drilling out that column lock was not an easy task for me. Currently my ignition system consists of the switch, custom key, vacuum hose cap, and hood release handle.