Key stuck in ignition

[rockinjwolf]

You know the old feeling, love my truck--hate my truck. My '13 has been good but always throwing a code and back to dealer etc. Well, I know I saw it here on this forum but cant seem to find the answer. It is happening alot lately too. I go to turn off the truck and it will not go far enough to the left to be able to pull it out. I have played with the tran. lever, making sure it is in park, step on brake, turn wheel, etc. The only way is to re start the truck and then try to turn off again. Any fixes out there for this?? I mean, this is basic stuff. Thanks all.

 

[Deleted member 995608]

Welp, at least you won't lose your key . Has to be some debris or possible broken parts floating in there somewhere if it's a sporadic thing. Let us know when you find out what the culprit is.

 

[Bob4x4]

2 main possibilities,The gated park switch(part of the shift lever bracket) and the win module

 

[rockinjwolf]

Yes, it has to be an electrical issue. The ignition will not let go of the key, it is not debris in the slot as noted in another post. I can't be the only one who is having this issue though.

 

[Minnow101]

My '16 3500 does it also from time to time. So far I've been able to switch the key back to accessory and then back and can get the key out. I've also put the truck in drive and then back to park to release the key. It's probably happened 6-8 times so far and I have 13,000 miles on it. I just dread going to the dealer service garage so I have been ignoring it. I'm sure something else will go wrong with the truck before the basic warranty is up and when that happens, I'll have this looked at. The problem I see, is that if the service tech. can't duplicate it at the time of the service then they'll not fix anything. And it happens so random that I'm 100% sure it wouldn't do it while at the dealers.

 

[MJWenrich]

I had the issue about one year ago. I was out of town, of course. Went to a dealer and they diagnosed it as the module but did not have it in stock, of course. Three to four day delay. I was told I could disconnect the battery and it might reset but the problem would come back. Did that and managed to get the key out. Then when I got back home, and one of my many trips to the dealer, I reported the problem. They could not repair it unless they saw the condition. Told them about the other dealer and they could call them. That would not do for them. Told to bring it back again when the problem arose. About six months later it happened again. On a Friday. Told to bring it in or have it towed. I asked if they would disconnect the batteries after diagnosis and they could not guarantee that. Did not want the batteries to go to complete discharge so I disconnected them again and got the key out. So I am waiting for it to happen again but carry the metric tools to disconnect because I am pretty certain it will happen when I am out of the area. BTW, got a call from the dealer that saw the condition and unknown to me they ordered the part. Called to schedule replacement, 300 miles away. Had to turn them down. Real fine warranty, eh? Been that way with this truck. Still have the 04.5 in case I need a truck. And for those that say I should have reported it to the RAM warranty folks. I did. No love there.

So you can disconnect the batteries and get your key back but it does not throw a code. No evidence it happened. No fix w/o going in with the problem.

 

[Minnow101]

I guess the answer is that when it happens again, call Ram and have the truck towed to a dealer. LEt Ram pay for the part and a $200 tow bill.

 

[mike65cobra]

That happened to me and drove to the dealer and the replaced the ignition switch, today it's called a module. When it happened the mechanic unplugged the switch and plugged Bach in and it turned and the key came out.

 

[Eagle6.7L]

Bob 4x4 does the shift gate in the shifting lever get bent from not pulling back the shifter lever,when moving to the Park postion,or does the shifter not move completely into the gate itself allowing for the removal of the key.Is this also a safety issue in which WIN module detect's truck could be out of Park,and disagrees with the lever position therefore not allowing the key to be removed,forcing the owner to restart and attempt another shift into Park...

 

[Bob4x4]

It is an electrical switch,the module itself has a solenoid that must be powered to release the key and of course there is some logic built in so that it all happens under the right conditions

 

[Mountain]

My 2013 3500 does the same thing. Dealer says if it doesn't happen while it's at the dealership they won't fix anything.

 

[EDankievitch]

There is something about this in the manual. Seemms that if there is an issue with the truck the switch will lock the key in the switch for the dealer.This is why they give you that key inside so you can still lock the door. Next time leave the key fob stuck in the switch and call Chrysler road side assist have them bring the truck in and see the issue.