Hey guys, long time lurker, first time caller.

I've got a fun one. Last night when I got home from work, I went to turn my car off, and the key stopped at 1st position. I tried everything; wiggling the steering wheel, turning the car on and off again, driving a little bit and cycling through gears - everything. After an hour of Googling (how many blogs do I need telling me the same five steps?!) I gave up and went to pull the fuse to cut power to the radio so my battery didn't die overnight, and I heard a mechanical click from the ignition. The key turned the rest of the way and came out. I replaced the fuse, went to bed, and tried again this morning when I got to work and I had the same issue. I work at an auto parts place, so I grabbed a fuse and replaced it, and the problem persists. It's only removing the fuse for the radio that gets my key out.

Now, I guess I can't phrase the issue and it's resolution properly in Google, because I can't find a dang thing about this anywhere. Ideally I'd like to fix this myself, but if this requires a whole new ignition system, I'm going to have to phone a friend. The place I work is a heavy duty truck parts specialty, so no one here even wants to touch my Fit. Frankly, they'd all love it if I traded it in for an F-150 or something.

I don't need the radio, so I can just pull the fuse and forget about it, but I want to at least know what the hell is going on.

 

The same fuse for the radio is also for the "key lock." I'm betting that either your key is worn down or you'll end up needing a new ignition assembly. It's one big piece that includes the ignition and steering/key lock.

If you have a second key, I'd start by trying that and hope it works.

 

I have been using the same key for a decade now. It's pretty conceivable that it's getting worn. I'll give the spare a shot when I get home tonight. Thanks!

 

Well??????