How you wonder? Well here is the saga:
Monday morning I get into my truck, turn the key, nothing happens......... I can get power to the radio, no startum, no clickies, and the key keeps turning, round and round. This tells me my ignition key cylinder is now dead. It has been widgy for awhile and I kinda knew this was coming, but still am NOT excited about it.
So, I call some locksmiths. I GAG at the prices $150 to $180 to replace the silly thing. You know, they do have to come to your house (That costs) because if it don't start..... (Yeah we had some giggles about what if's involving driving it somewhere to get it fixed.)
Then I get on the internet and search a few auto stores, they have the cylinder for $15-16. OK. Do a few searches, the procedure doesn't look too hard. I'm a doin' this puppy myself. Problem: I don't have the correct type of star head screw drivers to take the housing off. Sigh. I'm sure my Dad does, so we pack the kids up after homework, drive over, taking his ladder back. (I hate to have one thing out and go borrow another thing.) Get what I need. This morning, I take the old module off (With the battery disconnected thank you very much!!!) and spend 45 minutes getting the old cylinder out. Then I can't get the new one in, one part sticks out. So I drop off Laur at her Visiting Teaching Appt. and go to Auto Zone, together two clerks and I figure the thing out, get it back in and I come home. Stopping at the park so patient Emma can play and show me how good of a climber she is. Quite excellent by the way, she kinda scares me sometimes.
So I have the thing back in, turn the key it works right, everything is hunky dory, right? Nope, as I put the old cylinder in the box to save for now, I notice a pin that is supposed to be in the silly thing. Sigh, take it apart install the pin, put it back together. Now I am done.
It took me about 2-3 hours of time and chasing, but I changed my own ignition key cylinder. How cool am I?
