How to open the lock on a car door if you're frozen

Winter is a special time of year for every car enthusiast, when the operation of a vehicle is accompanied by numerous difficulties. After all, it is impossible to predict what other vagaries of nature the car will be subjected to in the coming days. Typical problems include freezing of doors. What to do if the lock on the car door is frozen, how to open it? In particular, this unpleasant situation often happens after washing. But a problem may arise due to prolonged parking in conditions of low temperatures and high humidity. Let's figure out how to fix this.

The most effective methods for opening a frozen lock

What to do and what to do if the lock does not turn. How to open? First of all, there is no need to panic or fall into hysterics, since there are a huge number of solutions to the situation. Let's consider the most effective options. You can open the central locking using a liquid key (or a lock defroster).

Another effective way (if you don’t have a special product on hand, or for some reason you don’t want to use winter car chemicals) is to use an open fire - regular matches or a lighter. It is necessary to carefully warm up the key with the lock and, having inserted it into the hole of the lock, try to tug a little. This must be done very carefully so as not to break the key itself.

Attention: if the lighter has a directional flame, then there is a possibility of heating not only the key, but also the lock itself, and this is very dangerous. You can also use any products containing alcohol, for example, eau de toilette or cologne, as well as the alcohol itself. This method is effective due to the properties of such organic compounds. Alcohol can dissolve ice due to the active release of heat.

Another way to help defrost a frozen lock after washing is to use windshield washer fluid or anti-freeze. When using such a modern product, do not forget that it contains a particularly aggressive substance - isopropyl alcohol, which is harmful to the skin.

You can also use kerosene-based products designed to loosen nuts. But there are some nuances here. Such substances are hygroscopic (similar to brake fluid), which is why, along with being effective, they can only aggravate the situation in the future, since they draw in moisture.

Of course, if none of what has been listed helps, you need to transport the car to a warm place. There, both the door seals and the lock itself can thaw.

Attention: Do not, under any circumstances, pour very hot water into the door well. Such actions may result in liquid entering the electrical wiring.

The lock in the car is frozen: how to open it?

There are many ways to defrost a car lock: from pouring hot water from a kettle to a completely exotic one, which involves blowing tobacco smoke through the keyhole. But let’s start from the realities of life and consider those that help.

Thin wire

Before opening a frozen lock, heat a metal wire in the flame of a lighter and then insert it into the car's keyhole. Repeat the operation until it is free of ice, only then try inserting the key into the door and turning the lock.

Brake fluid

If there is brake fluid in the apartment, it should be taken into a syringe and poured into the keyhole. After a few minutes the lock will open. In this case, you need to make sure that the brake fluid does not get on the paintwork of the door, which it can damage.

Lighter

Warm the key in the flame and place it in the lock without moving it all the way. Hold it for a while, then quickly heat it up again and insert it completely into the well. After a couple of minutes, slowly turn and open the car door. If it doesn't work the first time, repeat the steps again.

Lock defroster

Recently, portable defrosters have appeared - special key fobs with a retractable probe that heats up to 200 degrees. They run on batteries, are inexpensive and help you open your car door in a couple of minutes if the lock is frozen. The built-in flashlight allows you to use the device at night, and due to the flat heating element it fits all locks.

Pure ethyl alcohol is the most effective option to open a frozen car in severe frost. It interacts with frozen water, releasing a large amount of heat, and is guaranteed to allow you to open the car door in winter. The liquid can be easily purchased at your nearest pharmacy, as can a syringe for injecting it into the door lock. As a last resort, you can buy levomethicin alcohol - its cost ranges from 8 to 60 rubles, depending on the volume of the vial.

What can I do to prevent the lock from freezing?

To ensure that neither doors nor locks freeze, it is important to follow some rules. Let's look at them in more detail. Have you noticed that car locks systematically freeze? Just try to dry them more thoroughly. What to do for this? Leave your vehicle in an insulated box or garage for literally a day, until all the moisture in the door holes evaporates.

In the case when the lock has already thawed, but it is not possible to open the vehicle door, there is only one reason - the door is frozen. Under no circumstances pull it towards you, as you will tear off the seal or handle. You need to push away from yourself, back. A more rational action would be to press on the door. This way you will slightly deform the rubber of the seal and ensure that the ice begins to crumble little by little and eventually stops blocking the entrance.

When clearing snow from your car, be sure to carefully brush along the driver's door panel from the very bottom and top. Otherwise, snow will be able to get inside, it will then quickly melt and then easily freeze again in the cold.

In order to avoid freezing of car doors after washing, thoroughly wipe the rubber seals and be sure to lubricate them with a special water-repellent liquid.

Before parking at night, in order to prevent the windows in the car from freezing, it is necessary to ventilate the interior. If freezing, however, could not be avoided, and the car is equipped with electric windows, do not open them under any circumstances. In this case, damage to the electric drive cannot be avoided. First, warm up the inside of the car, and only then, when the window has thawed, can it be opened and then treated with silicone-based lubricants.

In order to reduce humidity levels in the car interior, place several layers of ordinary newspapers under your feet. They will actively absorb excess moisture, so its level will not be so significant. As a result, nothing will freeze in the car.

What to do if a car door is frozen?

You left your car in the cold for literally two or three hours and when you try to open it you realize that the door is frozen almost tightly. What to do? How to fix it? If a car door is frozen, you can do this: using a brush (or, if you don’t have one, any other tool available to you), carefully clear the snow from the edges of the car doors. If you don’t have a brush at hand, and your tool is a knife, a regular screwdriver or some kind of key, then you should act very carefully and carefully. Very carefully pull the car door towards you. She didn't give in at all? Then apply a little pressure and gently tap the edges. Then pull the door towards you again. Repeat this simple procedure several more times until you manage to open the doors.

If one of the doors is very frozen, you can try opening the trunk of the car or the second door. In addition, you can use all kinds of alcohol-containing liquids. It is necessary to lubricate the seals and door edges with such products. An excellent effect is achieved using a regular hair dryer. But, of course, if the door is frozen in the parking lot, then this method will not be available for use.

Never pour boiling water on car doors, as it can easily damage the paintwork. Do not use extreme force when opening the door, as this may damage the handles or the door itself. It would also not be a good idea to tear off a frozen seal from a car door using coins, keys or knives.

Many car owners who do not have a warm garage and park their car next to their house are faced with frozen car locks in winter. Moisture easily gets into an open keyhole, causing the locking mechanism to ice up and block the doors. Although it is troublesome, the problem is solved! The main thing is not to damage the lock, otherwise you will have to contact an emergency car opening service.

Starting the engine in the cold

Starting a vehicle engine in severe frost conditions should be taken very seriously, since in this situation it is quite difficult to do. From the very beginning, you need to think about how to warm up the battery. To do this, turn on the ignition and low beam for just a couple of minutes. This way you can quickly warm up the battery.

Before turning on the ignition, carefully check that all devices that draw energy from the battery are turned off. And only when the battery warms up can you start the engine. To do this, you need to depress the clutch and then turn the ignition key, turning on the starter. All this will take literally a few seconds. As a rule, such operations help start the engine. But in severe frost, they may not provide the desired effect, which will require repeating the above algorithm until the desired result is obtained.

But if nothing worked, that is, the car could not be started or the lock could not be opened, then it is better to contact the specialists directly, who, using special means, can warm up your vehicle in just 15-20 minutes.

If the lock in your car is frozen and you can’t open the door, this is not a disaster, but a completely normal situation that requires quick and effective solutions. In this publication, we have presented the most effective ways to fix the problem, one of which will definitely help you.

Why does this happen?

The main reason for this phenomenon in most cases is the presence of moisture in the locks or door locking actuators. Most often it appears there after washing the car and not drying it sufficiently, when traveling in wet weather or rain. There may be other circumstances under which it ends up in locks. But the important thing is not how it gets there, but how to open the frozen locks of your own car.

This situation is not only unpleasant, but in many ways incomprehensible to many, since the eternal question arises: what to do? The central locking system of cars, especially of the budget class, involves the option when you turn the key in the driver's door lock, and all the others open at the same time. Sometimes you can find a car that doesn't even have a lock on the passenger door. In this case, access to the interior of a frozen car becomes especially difficult.

What to do if the central lock in your car freezes? List of methods and tips