How to Fix a bad VW Ignition Module for FREE! (STUCK KEY FIX) 

WARNING!!! IF YOU BUY A NEW IGNITION DO NOT TURN IT WITH A SCREWDRIVER! It will lock the ignition and you're screwed again. You can only turn it if the cylinder lock is placed in the housing. I learned that the hard way... This guy's video is on point though.

Just finished fixing my wife's EOS. The problem was EXACTLY like yours so not only have you saved us a bunch of money, I now have a couple of new small tools that I purchased to do the job. You're an absolute legend! What I did do though instead of the drill and screw extractor method was to use my multi tool with a metal blade to cut a slot in the head of those pesky bolts. I could then remove them with a flat blade screwdriver with very little effort. I also then replaced the bolts with standard hex key bolts. Cheers!

I stumbled on your video when I was trying to find a good resource on how to find all the clips on the steering column assembly, after I couldn't locate one that I had previously popped off (by a pure fluke it now seems). After watching this video I am now going to disassemble my old lock and see if I can clear and reinstall it before the replacement I ordered arrives (luckily only cost $50)., so many thanks for making the vid and giving me the peace of mind of knowing where the exact problem is so I can re-use my old key and lock in a new or repaired barrel/cylinder. Of all the "old car" issues I inherited with the Mk5 Golf that I purchased a few months ago, a suddenly-jammed ignition barrel with little or no warning has been the only one which I had never encountered before in several decades of old car and motorcycle ownership, and one I never even thought to look up and preemptively address like I have done with the timing belt and fuel pump cam follower. I've had several ignition locks wear out on me over the decades on several vehicles (most memorably on two different Suzuki GSXR motorcycles) but in every case I had plenty of warning and several months or even years before I had to replace the barrel/lock. Usually I just lived with the problem until the key broke or looked like it was about to break before I fixed it, but the point is I always had plenty of warning and it was always my own fault if I chose to ignore the issue for too long. The Golf went from "working perfectly normally" for several months to "a little difficult to turn the key" a few days ago to "everything's back to normal" immediately afterwards and for the next 10 car starts or so, to "ignition barrel now jammed and cannot switch vehicle on" two days later. I am incredibly lucky this happened when I had the car parked in front of my house when I went to go out the other day, and not the previous time I started the car which was on my way home from visiting a friend 45km away. This issue seems to be quite common and serious so I'm not even going to send the new barrel back if I can fix my old one. I'd rather have a spare to drop in immediately should the problem recur.

Thank you for that video, i just finished the same job, 2012jetta, my previous 2006jetta had the same problem a few years ago and i ended up ordering the whole ignition lock with the switch from vw, they ship it from Germany cause there are codes in the switch matching the key, so i had to wait 2 weeks. This time it was free. THANK YOU. Try to monetize that video, i would definetly tip you since i saved a lot of money with your video(and as someone mentioned below, using the hammer when you cant set the key in the right position to remove the switch helps a lot).

This video help me a great deal with my old Rabbit; especially the part aligning the key switch. The way you point the camera at it allowing everyone to see, and then you explain detail by detail the assembly back, was a real pro dude. You certainly earned my like and my subscription.

Thanks so much for the clear, well-lit video. I fixed my 2013 MK4 Jetta with the help of this video. I didn't remove my cylinder assembly from the car, and didn't want to remove the plastic modules to get to the side access port, so I just went in the larger main hole with a drill, and ground out the steering lock parts that I could see moving when I turned the steering wheel. After drilling, I got the metal shavings out with fingers and a damp paper towel. Then I rolled a 3"x2" piece of duct tape into a tube (sticky side out), then held it with needle-nose pliers and stuck them in the hole, fiddling around, then pulling it out. I repeated this part 25+ times until I was no longer pulling out shavings. When reassembling, I applied a bit of grease to the moving parts to keep them lubed. I don't have the steering wheel lock "feature" anymore, but the key turns freely now, and I don't have any trouble starting the car.

Thank you Top Man! Did exactly what you said and found 2 bits of metal in chamber,now back on road and happy. Top 3 hardest tasks was from hardest 1: 2 bolts holding ignition switch 2: side hole on the switch 3 : removing the key barrel ( 2x as misaligned the antena slot 😬) P.S if someone struggling with ignition lock and can't turn your key to on position, I used big flat screwdriver to break loose the ignition lock default position then put key and aligned used wife's hair pin to get it off (DO NOT USE THIN WIRES ) One broke off had 15 min extra work to get that out as I was lucky to leave some wire at eng to grab on.. Anyway good luck guys

I managed to pull the aluminum splinters from the mechanism, without removing anything other than the ignition cylinder, and the parts that is accessible from that side. No removal of the steering wheel, only the plastic surrounding the stem. For me it was possible without drilling the thing on the side out. Easy 20min fix + YouTubing😂. Thank you for leading the way❤

Just a huge thank you. Exact same problem, broken piece. Had a big mess up reassembling back, got the alignment wrong, ended up braking the keyfob. Eventually everything fell into place and working fine. Thank you. Jazakallahu Kairan. Alhamdu Li ALLAH.

Thank you. You gave me all I needed to sold my issue. Just one thing. I used a right angle drill and removed 2 screws to remove instrument cluster. DONT melt it out of your way.

What if the holes on your ignition lock won’t line up? How do you get it out then?

Was a beautiful demo. I had to figure a couple small details out along the way. Replace a spring with a lighter spring. The end game was the same. Works smother then it has been. Did it all an a hour and a half.

Thanks for your sharing. I repaired my Caddy's barrel however after 3 weeks had the same problem. My car was 12 years old. Now I replaced the barrel with a new one. My advice is to renew the barrel part since it seems to reoccur due to metal fatique.

Thanks very much for your informative video. I had the same problem lately and had to have it repaired. But the good thing is that this was covered by Volkswagen because there was a recall, at least in Canada for the steering wheel lock and that fixed the problem! My car is a 2013 Jetta.

Maestro !!! Only 5 sec to remove this barrel with your video. Thanks bro !

The best solution is to sue VW

This video saved me HOURS of messing around. I had the exact same problem, followed the steps, and am back up and running in about 3 hours. Thanks Bulli Kid!

I had the exact same failure, little half moon piece came out in my hand. Was trying to drill out that little cap on the side and it started spinning. The drilled a little sideways into the hole I’d started and the spring came out, so i didn’t bother removing it and the plunger, just put it back together. Great vid and thanks for the help!

Get some m8x40 Allen head bolts to replace the shear bolts. If your key is stuck like mine was, I found once it's off the car, if you bash the whole unit into a bench while turning it will eventually come out of place and you can get the lock out 😊

Thank you so much, because of your video I found out that they forgot a montage part inside what was a blockade for everything. Just a little pin on the side! Awesome video for me! Thanks from Switzerland bro

Yesterday i did work this out on Vw Scirocco R and it works great and yes indeed there was small piece broken inside THANKS

Good video, I remove the whole locking and put it back together. Works like a charm.

Thank you for this. Helped me resolve an issue with our 2011 Sportwagen. Sure enough - found small metal fragment in the cylinder. Works great now.

Had the same piece of metal and hope they improved that top portion of the barrel on later models. Hope is the key word because looks like this has been a common problem for decades..

Yhank you for your video. I just made a hole on the steering lock hinge and got the metal out. Way simpler

Thank you so much for making this detailed video. I did exactly what u described and I spend $0 to fix it like new. May 2006 be Jetta 2.5 liter. My key wasn’t stuck but the key would turn forward to start the engine. I couldn’t have done it without you!

what if I can't turn the key so that the holes meet?

Hi, can anyone tell me how to drill the hole in the side of the barrel to counter act the anti tamper mechanism, which type of drill bit and what size? Thanks for the video!

Thanks for this it was fantastic help. I got to the security screws drilling a small hole through the plastic then could "chisel" them loose. I too left out the rods and bent spring and a similar broken piece. works fine now.

I have never serviced one of these before, though I have been doing service on most makes of car locks since 1979. On this ignition type, I have always had client order a new lock cylinder by VIN, and a new lock bolt housing. You covered this all quite well, and the videography is excellent. Thank you for teaching me something that actually is a heck of a lot easier than servicing a Honda or Toyota. The broken piece jamming the works was shaped IDENTICALLY to the one you show. I could not find where that piece of die-casting came from.

I literally just did this an hour ago. Everything is working perfectly. I was amazed. Same piece came out of nine but it was broke in 2. Thanks for the help.

My key guts stuck before the in position, so how do I remove the key lock if I can’t align the holes to pop it out?

Great video friend! I just fix mine thanks to you Bulli Kid, my car is a Jetta 1.8L 2018 and has the same switch as yours, my problem was the same as yours, it took me several hours but it was worth it, regards from Morelia, Michoacan, Mexico.

FOR EVERYONE WHO CANT TURN THE KEY IN THE SWITCH! I had the same issue not being able to turn the key to on to get a pick through to pop it out and what I did was take off the barrel completely and get a hammer and smack it a few times to shock the debris inside the barrel ( I did change the barrel ) took a little but got it working now all fitted !

Question - How did you install the old key cylinder into the new ignition housing? I turned the insides of the new housing with a screwdriver before installing the old key cylinder. I can get the key cylinder back into the housing, but it will spin backward until a stop point, and will spin forward without ever actuating the steering lock. Any tips on getting it to go together now?

Awesome video. I did all that and switched the ignition cylinder to the new one. Quick question, I sent the ECU to a repair place. Since the VIN is attached to the ECU still and the key is with the ignition cylinder, shouldn't I be able to reinstall the rebuilt original ECU and start the car without reprogramming? Thank you for your help!!

Thanks for making this video. I have to fix my sons car that is 12hrs away, and I needed to understand the problem before going.

The paperclip/ locking mechanism trick is really getting the best of me. Pushing and bending....new clip pushing and bending, REPEAT .. any special trick😕

how do you remove the top pins? i saw a video where they smack the top pins with a hammer and punch. This is for removing the ignition from the starting column.

This worked perfectly so thankyou!. Just one question though - is the airbag warning light common on reassembly?

Hi , i do respect the way of dismantling the ignition assembly of VW tiguan , but i noticed that you ignored to mention two pin were installed inside the mechanism , one long pin installed at the side of the mechanism and this allow to steering lock part moving up and down, and the other one installed internally on the moving parts for steering lock.

Aweesome video got me out of a really sticky situation im genuinely thankful my guy keep going and making these great content we need more of this ;)

What if the key won't turn

I have the same problem with Skoda, I think. Thanks for this video. Can you tell me how long took it to remove, repair and install the ignition switch? Thank you.

Helpful to see inside of the lock etc. My car is VW Golf Mk5 same ignition lock Thanks

Also. Used a dremmel with a disc to cut slots in the bolt heads

Thank you,. good sir. You're a scholar and a gentleman. Ignition plays nice now.

Happened to my car yesterday! This helps a lot! Thank you!!!

What happens when the key won't turn to the ON position? Does that mean I need to replace the lock mechanism AND cylinder?

Didn't need to drill that pin out on mine, just pulled the barrel part out then lifted the middle section out sliding it back off the pin.

What if i cant turn my key far enough to where the paperclip hole aligns to take out the steering wheel lock

I can't turn the key to on position to so I can remove the ignition lock Any other hint in removing the ignition lock without lining thev the hole with the dot 2013 Vw jetta SE

So the paper clip will make it turn? Will just the paper clip alone temporarily fix the issue? My steering wheel will turn easily as far as I want in either direction, does that mean I have the same issue?

The key barrel is stuck in ignition lock and the key won’t turn to the position where you can put the pin in, what do I do?

Many Many thanks solved my problem!!! exactly the same broken two pieces!!!!

my key wont go to first position to get ignition switch out any ideas

Hi, really liked you video. Im in the process in dismantling my ignition switch. Thanks

Ordered new barrel and ignition housing on 15 Passat. After installing paper clip the jetway in the barrel does not much the location of the jetway on the ignition housing. Please help!!

I NEED HELP PLEASE. So the paperclip trick WILL NOT work to get the key cylinder out. Ive tried mulitple wires clips anyhting and it will not unlock and slide out what so ever.

Please help I've been battling for more than a month to replace my ignition eventually I managed to find a 2nd hand however they didn't have the key so I took my original key with the new ignition to a lock Smith he matched it to my old key. My mech then fitted the ignition in however now the van doesn't start There is dashboard display the van swings but doesn't start. Note before the ignition problem the van would start on the turn. What could be the issue should we remove the ignition and recheck our connection. Note this is a complete ignition with housing barrel and switch

4:08 If little bended spring fell off from this part does it mean it’s a bad sign and it’s not repairable?

How do you remove the lock if the key won't turn far enough to line up the marks?

where is that piece of broken metal coming from ?

I have the same problem. if I replace the ignition cylinder do I need new keys?

Do I insert the ignition cylinder lock on while the rest of the assembly is also in the on position?

Do you not have to put that pin back in that you removed after grinding the cover off? Im having the same issue on my 2015 jetta

I had someone fix my problem with my golf key would not work in the ignition barrel but now the buttons on key doesn't work so no central locking unless i manually lock it any idea was fine before

My ignition module isn’t working do you think I can just purchase one from amazon and use it with the key that comes with it ? I only need the car to turn on don’t need the key to lock or unlock the car

ok, how do you get the cylinder out of the steering column.

Thanks for the info, the key in my Touran won’t turn. Where did that broken part come from though? Doesn’t the lug you drill out need to go back in?

Good day , very good video , but the problem that I have is the key doesn't turn to on position, any recommendations? Volkswagen passat 2013 thanks !!!

What, if you can’t turn the ignition to get the lock off?

my key won’t turn all the way to the dot does this mean i have to get a new ignition lock cylinder plus key?

Thanks mate for this video, i got the sameprobs

My key pops out as soon as i turn off the car..I cant turn the car off and keep the key in the ignition..any thoughts?

What if you can’t turn the key far enough that both holes line up so I can take the lock off

Thanks for the video! Where did that loose piece come from btw?

Thank you, found the same piece!

What if my key will not go in my ignition of my 2007 GTI Golf

Can I just pop my ignition lock off for now??

Did you have to replace broken piece

Thank you so much! Fixed main.

Video: How to fix STUCK key module Step1: Make sure key isn't stuck -_-)... Literally 1:33 how are we suppose to turn it to the ON position when the key is stuck before that LOL..

If the whole housing is replaced, would we need new keys or is it transferred from the old one?

Thank you. Everything is fine now👍

Ok, but what if the key does not go to the ON position? How can we get the first part out?

What about the 2 inch pin?

Mine only turns half way and doesn't get to align with the on position. Do I need to gring out the tab on the side before I can remove the cylinder? Otherwise I have no idea how to go about it.

Excellent job. Thanks & Thanks to You tube.

I just saw it in the middle, and replace the ignition cylinder. Bought the part for 20 something

Thanks

My key won't turn that far, do you have any suggestions?

I put in the ignition lock in wrong, Help! Now I can’t get a paper clip in to get it out to reposition it! What do I do now? Please help

You rocks ! Many thanks

thank you for the explain

Thank you

Thank you for your help.

Great job my friend

My key won’t turn to the on position at all. Any other ideas?

😄 Great video. Video was clear and it was easy to see what was being done. Excellent job. Dave. 3-18-24