Drop-in Ignition Replacement (The ONE key, to rule them ALL)

by **Omikron** » 13 Dec 2005 2:10

Mmm'kay,

I'm not 100% sure this question would be answered in the public forums or not, but I feel it's fairly benign so I'll ask away, and see what happens.

I was pondering the other day how nice it would be if I had ONE key that opened all the locks in my home, my padlocks, and my vehicle. While keying all of my other locks alike would be but a drop in the bucket, I am at a loss as to whether or not I would be able to relpace the locks on my vehicle with something that is not an OEM replacement, preferebly something of my own choosing.

I know there are many factors to take into account, and I honestly don't expect this to be possible but since I wasn't able to find any theads discussing the issue, I thought I'd see what the community thought.

The vehicle in question is a 1995 Toyota Camry Sedan.

Any takers?

by **digital_blue** » 13 Dec 2005 2:24

I think you're probably on a bit of a goose hunt, but the biggest issue at hand would be matching keyways. I don't know how you're going to get a standard residential keyway on your vehicle. KIK maybe? With some creative fitting? Not sure I'd want to do that, but I suppose perhaps it could be done.

I dunno... better your car than mine.

db

by **Omikron** » 13 Dec 2005 2:34

I'm in agreement on the goose hunt part...but it would be REALLY, REALLY NIFTY if it could be done, without compromising the security of the vehicle. I have way to many keys on my keyring, and it is quite heavy. If I could consolodate half of those to a single key, I would be jumping about with glee.

Is there anyone familiar enough with automotive locks to advise further on the issue?

by **vector40** » 13 Dec 2005 2:41

You'd probably do okay with a car key and an everything else key

by **Omikron** » 13 Dec 2005 2:46

vector40 wrote:You'd probably do okay with a car key and an everything else key

...but then I wouldn't have the ONE key, to rule them ALL!

Surely, I can't be the only one who is interested in joining me on this quest!

by **digital_blue** » 13 Dec 2005 2:48

Alright... take all the wafers out of your car locks and fit in only one that can be set by your house key. Sucks for security, but you can take pride in your pwnage.

db

by **Omikron** » 13 Dec 2005 2:57

digital_blue wrote:Alright... take all the wafers out of your car locks and fit in only one that can be set by your house key. Sucks for security, but you can take pride in your pwnage.

db

Right, and every time my car gets broken into, I douse all of your locks with a good helping of WD40...

by **vector40** » 13 Dec 2005 3:01

I suppose it's conceivable that someone makes auto cylinders with residential keyways, but... I can't imagine why.

I guess you could try milling out the keyway yourself, but you'd be pretty lucky if the wafer/pin spacing was the same.

by **Omikron** » 13 Dec 2005 3:08

I think we are perhaps mis-understanding what my ultimate goal is. I do not want to modify my existing locks in order to work with my other keys. I want to completely replace, all five locks in the car with different cylinders.

Unfortunately, I have not ever dissassembled an automotive lock and therefore do not have adequate knowledge of how they are installed in the first place, and what alterations would be required to make this idea work.

by **vector40** » 13 Dec 2005 3:31

I'm just saying that I don't think you're going to find an auto door cylinder with a keyway you can use, nor vice versa.

by **Omikron** » 13 Dec 2005 3:57

vector40 wrote:I'm just saying that I don't think you're going to find an auto door cylinder with a keyway you can use, nor vice versa.

! I can't see why this hasn't been yet. Of course, I'm a fairly eccentric fellow and I come up with some wacky ideas on a regular basis. Maybe it only makes sense in my own head...

by **digital_blue** » 13 Dec 2005 4:04

I'm sure there is likely a reason why common automotive locks are nearly all wafer locks and common household locks are nearly all pin tumblers. It can't be one of those "it just is" things. Somebody with more knowledge than I might jump in and offer a reason why, but I'd say there's gotta be a reason for it.

db

by **Omikron** » 13 Dec 2005 4:28

digital_blue wrote:I'm sure there is likely a reason why common automotive locks are nearly all wafer locks and common household locks are nearly all pin tumblers. It can't be one of those "it just is" things. Somebody with more knowledge than I might jump in and offer a reason why, but I'd say there's gotta be a reason for it.

db

I suppose automotive locks have a very high duty cycle compared to the average residential lock. I would venture to guess that a good wafer lock would require less maintainance and would last longer than some pin-tumbler designs.

I suppose wafer locks also deal with the issue of wear and tear on the soft metal of the key differently, too.

Any other reasons why this might be? vector?

by **Chrispy** » 13 Dec 2005 4:47

Perhaps, if the springs wear out on a "pin tumbler ignition", the pins won't be pushed down against the key properly and result in being unable to turn the car off.

Maybe?

by **raimundo** » 13 Dec 2005 13:16

One key that is used on every lock would have wear problems probably in a year or two. Your best bet is wait ten years, then your cell phone will be the car key the house key garage opener and the credit card. you would only have to worry about losing the cell phone, not paying the phone bill or phone cloning. On the upside, use is not the type of wear that would kill an electonic key. but the wear and tear of just carrying it and dropping it would.

Drop-in Ignition Replacement (The ONE key, to rule them ALL)

Drop-in Ignition Replacement (The ONE key, to rule them ALL)

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