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What's the best way to...

Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2004 1:05 am
by tris91ricer
Break into our own cars, if all the windows are rolled up right/tight and your keys are inside?

There's no big(real) rush on this, even though I really have locked my keys in my car, in my driveway.
I have a wire coat hanger, and some more tools, and much more time than a would-be-thief --what's your guys' technique for getting in when you're locked out? (Please, don't say spare key, I have the valet one. :D)

Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2004 1:35 am
by evolutionmovement
Spare key in wallet ... :lol:

I did this two (real) jobs ago once with my old GL and themethod should be nearly identical. I got a scrap strap of aluminum that was about 1.5" x 36" x .05" ground one end for easier weatherstipping to window penetration (ahem) and cut some notches in the end to use to grab the linkage. After abouta minute a curious cop approached and I had to explain it to him. He then tried to do it for me, but was clueless as to where the linkage was even while I tried to explain it. Frustrated, he gave it back and I popped it almost immediately. Surprisingly, he didn't want to take the slim jim he had complimented me on with him.

The rods go sideways a little ahead of the cylinder and in (towards you)from the glass. There may be a plate to guard in the Legacy, I never really noticed. If you can catch it and push it forward (I believe) the door should open. You could try it at the interior lock button, but I think getting behind it will be extremely hard. A coat hanger would be marginal for this task - something stiffer would be a great help.

The other thing you could try is just peling the window off the weatherstripping slightly and getting something slim, relatively stiff and long (ahem again) and feeding it through the gap to actuate the inner button.

Steve

Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2004 5:07 am
by vrg3
Yeah, the spare key in the wallet is... uhm... key.

The big weakness is the framless windows. Glass flexes much more than people generally realize.

If Steve's suggestion for a homemade Slim Jim doesn't seem to work for you, you might try using a coat hanger with a tight hook at the end to grab the lock button and pull it. You'll almost certainly scratch that orange part though.

Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2004 7:49 am
by scottzg
Use a spatula to peel out the window trim. This gives you about 2 inches of gap to push the button. If you have a long handled spatula, you can break into your car. :lol:

Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2004 8:13 am
by LaureltheQueen
at work, we have a long piece of metal, bent lengthwise at roughly a 120 degree angle, we stick that into the window(using cloth so we dont scratch the glass) and then use a hangerlike thing with a hook at the end to pull the latch

Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2004 8:14 am
by jake15
like steve was saying, just get a long metal rod, not to thick, with a 90 degree bend in it, and once you get it in the car you can just hit the button, thats how we get into our cars when we lose the keys :lol:

Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2004 8:22 am
by vrg3
Hmm, this got me thinking... It could be a neat idea to splice into the wires of, say, the rear right door's lock actuator and kind of run a pair of wires out under the car into an inconspicuous spot, ending in some kind of weatherproof connector maybe, hidden inside a frame rail or something. If you did it right, you could make it so in an emergency you could unlock that door by digging the connector out and shorting it with a knife or something.

My old Benz had vacuum-operated door locks, and there was actually a way to get to the vacuum lines under the car, cut one open, and blow into or suck on the line -- I forget which -- to get the doors to open. I forget the details.

Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2004 8:27 am
by LaureltheQueen
or just a switch, hidden randomly would work as well

Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2004 8:34 am
by vrg3
Yeah... I was just thinking that a weatherproof connector could be made to look like it's some kind of connector that was there stock.

Actually, hanging down in the engine bay would be a good place to put it. Maybe just behind the bumper.

Hmm... I shouldn't be giving away these potential security secrets about my car to you weasels.

Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2004 11:50 pm
by evolutionmovement
TVR has a button under the sideview mirror. If for some reason I ever made my car into a 'Nomad' I'd shave the handles and use this method.

Steve

Posted: Thu Dec 16, 2004 12:11 am
by tris91ricer
I knew I should have sprung for the Lexus LS450 biometric locks!

Yeah, I'll try the spatula when I get home then, and while that doesn't work, i'll rig up some design for Vikash's idea, which is a pretty good one.
Thanks y'all, keep 'em comin!