Thank you for the video it saved me XD In my particular case the key was stuck but before removing all the housing I started to hit it several times at the same time I giggled the key and I could finally turn the key to the 0 position and remove it. Apparently the jaws, as you call them, of my housing where just stuck and not broken.
If you have the correct key, try rotating the steering wheel a bit while turning the key. It’s possible the steering column is just locked and binding a bit. Otherwise, it would have to be something related to the tumbler or ignition lock housing internals, it sounds like you have the correct key, as I believe an incorrect key just keeps the tumbler spinning, I’d only try a spare key if you run out of options, good luck and keep us in the loop
My steering wheel is locked and I can’t turn the key past the “off” position. I’m hoping it’s not the lock cylinder since BMW discontinued it. Im guessing it’s the shaft, gonna open it up today and see what’s wrong
For me, drilling out the bottom of the housing and removing the spring that locks the steering wheel in place fixed my issue. I can now move my steering wheel and turn my key to start the car. It’s a temporary fix for now, but I will replace my ignition lock housing in the future.
i think the shaft in my lock housing is faulty, i am able to start my e36 when i have the key in, and turn the ignition switch with a screw driver(albeit the steering wheel is locked) but when i do turn the key, i noticed that the shaft will push outwards, but not turn, any advices would be greatly greatly appreciated.
@@jush471 yes, sounds like your shaft broke in two pieces, the part on the key side (right) still rotates which make the left side get pushed out, but it will no longer turn as it’s broken in two pieces. You can drill out the spring from the bottom which will unlock the jaws and lock mechanism to rotate the steering wheel again, but you will have to continue to use a screw driver for the ignition switch. If this is your daily vehicle, I recommend replacing entire lock housing, or at least the shaft to keep all functionality in place
@@Ciubaka thank you very very much for the quick reply, and yeah it was my daily until i went for college, in abt 4ish months of not being used the amount of things that started to deteriorate was insane(200k miles)
@@Ciubaka will be drilling the spring out tomorrow, any recommendation of where i should drill before i do it, dont want to put a bunch of holes under the thing, but i guess i will replace the entire housing in the future
@@jush471 its pretty difficult to describe, but its the flat, bottom portion of the lock housing, just about in the middle of it, the good thing is the spring is very thin and malleable, so as long as you drill big enough of a hole, you should have enough access to get a pick in there and fish it out. Check out a couple other "e36 drilling steering lock" videos to get a better idea and let us know how it went. Good luck!
@@Ciubaka thank you, i got it done wasnt hard, only issue is car wont change out of park unless i lift the cover and manually take it out of park, brake lights work fine so i guess the car just doesnt know its on, oh well
Hi, i am looking to remove my steering lock to save any headache down the road, i have removed the assembly from the car, am i okay with just removing the top piece of the locking assembly?, i don't want to disassemble the whole part if i don't need to
@@Realstevejobs39 I don’t like altering the existing design as it can introduce problems, in this case they can be fatal. But at your own risk, if you have already removed the top piece, you could additionally drill a hole at the bottom of the lock housing to remove the spring, this will drop the bottom locking piece. This way both top and bottom pieces are no longer functional, removing the steering lock entirely
You could simply remove both the jaws mentioned and the shaft will rotate freeley. I would also take out the bottom springed piece to avoid it catching the steering shaft (although it would be unlikeley, anything is possible). This would be the lowest risk of steering locking up while driving imo.
As in the steering wheel does not lock when the key is removed from the ignition? In this case, the cause will likely be the jaws being jammed into the open position, likely due to being broken as you see in the video. There will be no other way around it but to remove the ignition lock housing and replace it.
@Ciubaka yes that's the problem. I am investigating and I don't have the anti theft bolts so someone has been here before. I can't get the antenna ring off currently so I'm stuck for now. Thanks for the information 👍
Would the ignition rod be able to be slightly pushed in or pulled. I noticed when I try the Bobby pin it does rotate the rod but I can’t manage to get the tumbler out. I did disconnect the battery and tried putting the key in but as I rotate clockwise it only rotates as far as the on position. But counter clockwise it rotates all 360. Any tips? Thanks
The rod will not be able to be pulled or pushed from the ignition switch side as it requires rotating to move back and fourth, that’s what the tumbler does as you rotate the key. You will have to work patiently from the tumbler side. As long as you are able to get to roughly the accessory 2 on position with the key, that’s all that’s required. The rest is all done by feel using the bobby pin, 1 try and a couple different angles at the end of the bobby pins. 2. Ensure you are about 1 inch deep with the bobby pin inside the tumbler. 3 once you have the bobby pin in the correct place, rotating it clockwise should require to overcome slight tension. If the bobby pin rotates back and fourth, you are there, rotate bobby pin clockwise and pull at the key, tumbler will pop out, it is very unlikely the rod is preventing the tumbler from coming out.
What if your steering wheel is locked but your ignition has no power doesn’t ding or anything when you put the key in but will spin but your whole car has power😭
@Ciubaka hiya. Yeah I managed to see that in the end. Got it out and the shaft is fine. The only conclusion I can make is that the key and or cylinder is the problem and I cant find one anywhere so I'm going to put a push button start in and that should fix it. thanks.
Thank you for the video it saved me XD In my particular case the key was stuck but before removing all the housing I started to hit it several times at the same time I giggled the key and I could finally turn the key to the 0 position and remove it. Apparently the jaws, as you call them, of my housing where just stuck and not broken.
Excellent, glad it helped, thanks for sharing your experience for others
What if the lock doesn't turn at all? What would that be on an E39?
If you have the correct key, try rotating the steering wheel a bit while turning the key. It’s possible the steering column is just locked and binding a bit. Otherwise, it would have to be something related to the tumbler or ignition lock housing internals, it sounds like you have the correct key, as I believe an incorrect key just keeps the tumbler spinning, I’d only try a spare key if you run out of options, good luck and keep us in the loop
My steering wheel is locked and I can’t turn the key past the “off” position. I’m hoping it’s not the lock cylinder since BMW discontinued it. Im guessing it’s the shaft, gonna open it up today and see what’s wrong
@@JittyMR2 could just be the tumbler but at least you’re now armed with the info. Do let us know what you find and best of luck
For me, drilling out the bottom of the housing and removing the spring that locks the steering wheel in place fixed my issue. I can now move my steering wheel and turn my key to start the car. It’s a temporary fix for now, but I will replace my ignition lock housing in the future.
@@JittyMR2 excellent, I’d recommend replacement as the locking mechanism “jaws” might still find a way to act up. Glad you’re back on the road
i think the shaft in my lock housing is faulty, i am able to start my e36 when i have the key in, and turn the ignition switch with a screw driver(albeit the steering wheel is locked) but when i do turn the key, i noticed that the shaft will push outwards, but not turn, any advices would be greatly greatly appreciated.
@@jush471 yes, sounds like your shaft broke in two pieces, the part on the key side (right) still rotates which make the left side get pushed out, but it will no longer turn as it’s broken in two pieces. You can drill out the spring from the bottom which will unlock the jaws and lock mechanism to rotate the steering wheel again, but you will have to continue to use a screw driver for the ignition switch. If this is your daily vehicle, I recommend replacing entire lock housing, or at least the shaft to keep all functionality in place
@@Ciubaka thank you very very much for the quick reply, and yeah it was my daily until i went for college, in abt 4ish months of not being used the amount of things that started to deteriorate was insane(200k miles)
@@Ciubaka will be drilling the spring out tomorrow, any recommendation of where i should drill before i do it, dont want to put a bunch of holes under the thing, but i guess i will replace the entire housing in the future
@@jush471 its pretty difficult to describe, but its the flat, bottom portion of the lock housing, just about in the middle of it, the good thing is the spring is very thin and malleable, so as long as you drill big enough of a hole, you should have enough access to get a pick in there and fish it out. Check out a couple other "e36 drilling steering lock" videos to get a better idea and let us know how it went. Good luck!
@@Ciubaka thank you, i got it done wasnt hard, only issue is car wont change out of park unless i lift the cover and manually take it out of park, brake lights work fine so i guess the car just doesnt know its on, oh well
I undid the shear bolts with a screw driver held by vice grips. Not easy. Lots of torque on them.
Nice going, it’s a tough area to work in as the shear bolts are located right under the dash in a tight spot!
@@Ciubaka Had my entire dash out which made access a little easier.
Hi,
i am looking to remove my steering lock to save any headache down the road, i have removed the assembly from the car, am i okay with just removing the top piece of the locking assembly?, i don't want to disassemble the whole part if i don't need to
@@Realstevejobs39 I don’t like altering the existing design as it can introduce problems, in this case they can be fatal. But at your own risk, if you have already removed the top piece, you could additionally drill a hole at the bottom of the lock housing to remove the spring, this will drop the bottom locking piece. This way both top and bottom pieces are no longer functional, removing the steering lock entirely
You could simply remove both the jaws mentioned and the shaft will rotate freeley. I would also take out the bottom springed piece to avoid it catching the steering shaft (although it would be unlikeley, anything is possible). This would be the lowest risk of steering locking up while driving imo.
Did you replace it or is there a way you can leave this peice out? Did you buy a new complete unit from bmw?
You can replace it, however I bought the entire assembly from BMW for mine, don’t forget the tamper proof boots, if that’s the route you go. Good luck
What about when your steering lock doesn't engage?
As in the steering wheel does not lock when the key is removed from the ignition? In this case, the cause will likely be the jaws being jammed into the open position, likely due to being broken as you see in the video. There will be no other way around it but to remove the ignition lock housing and replace it.
@Ciubaka yes that's the problem. I am investigating and I don't have the anti theft bolts so someone has been here before. I can't get the antenna ring off currently so I'm stuck for now. Thanks for the information 👍
Would the ignition rod be able to be slightly pushed in or pulled. I noticed when I try the Bobby pin it does rotate the rod but I can’t manage to get the tumbler out. I did disconnect the battery and tried putting the key in but as I rotate clockwise it only rotates as far as the on position. But counter clockwise it rotates all 360. Any tips? Thanks
The rod will not be able to be pulled or pushed from the ignition switch side as it requires rotating to move back and fourth, that’s what the tumbler does as you rotate the key. You will have to work patiently from the tumbler side. As long as you are able to get to roughly the accessory 2 on position with the key, that’s all that’s required. The rest is all done by feel using the bobby pin, 1 try and a couple different angles at the end of the bobby pins. 2. Ensure you are about 1 inch deep with the bobby pin inside the tumbler. 3 once you have the bobby pin in the correct place, rotating it clockwise should require to overcome slight tension. If the bobby pin rotates back and fourth, you are there, rotate bobby pin clockwise and pull at the key, tumbler will pop out, it is very unlikely the rod is preventing the tumbler from coming out.
Hi there, did you use the same bolts to put the housing back or replaced them?
the bolts have to be replaced, you have to use new ones every time
What if your steering wheel is locked but your ignition has no power doesn’t ding or anything when you put the key in but will spin but your whole car has power😭
Not sure I understand your problem. If the tumbler spins, you either have the wrong key or a broken tumbler. Let us know what you find out
Where can buy this broken pice? I have the same in my car. '97 e36 compact
The jaws from inside the lock housing are not sold separately, you will have to purchase the entire lock housing.
found it on ebay
Hi. Do you know yo get the shaft out? thanks
I believe you have to remove the c-clip retaining ring shown a 1:02 in the video, it is located on the tumbler side. Good luck let us know how it went
@Ciubaka hiya. Yeah I managed to see that in the end. Got it out and the shaft is fine. The only conclusion I can make is that the key and or cylinder is the problem and I cant find one anywhere so I'm going to put a push button start in and that should fix it. thanks.
thanks a lot
Glad this helped
Yes good explanation and this video has helped me, I would have enjoyed it more without hearing you say "Um" 753 times :)
No se entiende donde se coloca la llave para que gire suba o baje el botón mal explicado profesor