Ignition Repair in San Francisco
An ignition that drags, will not turn, or turns and leaves the dash dead, rebuilt or swapped where the car stands. $189 to $449.
$189–$449
Typical price
18 min
Avg. arrival
24/7
Availability
An ignition fails in a way people put up with for months. First it needs the key jiggled. Then it needs the wheel rocked. Then one morning it does not turn at all, generally when somebody is late. The cause is usually a worn cylinder, a worn key that has been reshaping the cylinder for years, or on this coast, corrosion in a lock that lives in a car parked outdoors in marine air.
The distinction that matters is between the lock and the electrics. A cylinder that will not turn is ours. A cylinder that turns while the dash stays dead is often the ignition switch behind it, which is auto electrics. Both get diagnosed at the car and you are told which one you have before any work is agreed, because the second one is a garage job and paying us to discover that helps nobody.
Where the cylinder is the fault it is rebuilt or replaced where the car is parked. If a new cylinder goes in, it can usually be keyed to your existing key so you are not left carrying one key for the doors and another for the ignition, which is worth asking for.
Work runs $189 to $449 with the $89 service call inside it. A rebuild on a common model sits at the low end; a replacement cylinder keyed to match, on a car that needs the column opened up, sits at the top. Evening adds $55 and after midnight $95. A worn key is replaced at the same time where that is the real culprit, because a new cylinder turned by an old key wears out early.
All sixteen jobs and their ranges sit on this page, nothing saved for the phone. Describe what the key is doing and the range closes to one figure on the call, with the evening or overnight hour already folded in.
- Daytime (7am–8pm)standard rates
- Evening (8pm–12am)+$55
- Overnight (12am–7am)+$95
FAQ
Ignition Repair: quick answers
The key turns but nothing happens. Is that you or a garage?+
Probably a garage. A cylinder that turns while the dash stays dead points at the ignition switch behind it, which is auto electrics. It gets checked at the car and you are told plainly, and you are not charged for a lock repair that would not have fixed it.
Can I keep using my existing key?+
Usually. A replacement cylinder can generally be keyed to your current key so you are not carrying two. Ask for it, because the alternative is a second key on the ring for the rest of the car's life.
Does salt air get into an ignition?+
In a car parked outdoors on the west side, yes, though slower than a door lock because the cabin is drier. The usual signs are a key that needs coaxing and a driver's door that has been stiff for a year. If both are true, they are worth dealing with in one visit.
Related
More automotive services
Open 24 hours, 7 days
Say what the key is doing, hear the figure, get back inside
San Francisco plus Daly City, Colma, Brisbane, South San Francisco and Pacifica, 24 hours, holidays included. Stiff, halfway, snapped, or a healthy lock on the wrong side of a closed door: one number comes back with the $89 visit and the hour of the night already inside it, and it is the number on the receipt.