What Can an Auto Locksmith Do?

It is certainly one of the worse things to discover that you're locked out of your car or you've lost the keys, especially when you need to be somewhere. Auto locksmiths specialize in getting you back into your car if you're locked out.

Most of us think of an auto locksmith as only unlocking vehicles. But they can do much more than just unlock cars. They are often needed to create new keys with a process called key cutting).  They can remove a broken key that may be stuck in an ignition, and replace locks on your car door. 

Because of all the advances in technology, a locksmith needs even more training than before. Technology has made being a locksmith even more complicated than ever over the past 10 years. The locksmith industry has become more complicated over the past 10 years, especially because of the advances in security systems for cars. All Auto locksmiths need special training to successfully unlock, rekey, reprogram, and replace locks on cars and ignition systems. 

The main specialty of an auto locksmith is in their mobile services.  This means the locksmith will come directly to you and your location, and if they are a good locksmith, they will get there quickly. Sometimes as early as 10 minutes.  This is helpful when you're stranded in a parking lot and are obligated to be somewhere else. Speedy mobile locksmith services are highly sought after by customers needing an auto locksmith when they're locked out of their car in an inconvenient location. 

In-shop services can be provided by an auto locksmith. These services include duplicating a car key or solving a similar issue.  It's important to know that a locksmith is almost always cheaper than the dealership, which will often charge a premium for these services.

Car keys can suffer from normal wear and tear and believe it or not, often snap with a sudden torque while the key is in the ignition. Locksmiths have special tools to get the broken part of the key out of the ignition. 

It can be extremely difficult to remove a broken car key, because it commonly breaks at the place where the crevices of the thin part of the key are exposed. Special key extraction tools that attach to these crevices are needed to remove the key successfully. This kit is specially designed to be used by a locksmith to grasp both sides of the key.

Don't try to extract the key by yourself, as we have seen plenty go wrong with this approach. Damage to the car is inevitable without the right tools. Sometimes that damage can be more costly than having a locksmith come out and do it for you. 

The second kind of key is on a fob. Here, things can be more complex. Also known as a transponder key, this kind of key involves a chip that is programmed uniquely to a specific car.  

The only way a transponder key can start the car is if the ignition is able to read the code programmed into the chip. An auto locksmith can duplicate just the key part of the key fob. There is an increasing number of transponder keys and keyless ignition fobs that do not allow you to lock your keys in the car while that particular key is in the vehicle.  Regardless, it is highly recommended that you duplicate your key in case of an emergency. 

If you hire a skilled and experienced locksmith in Boulder, they should know how to reprogram a transponder key. These kinds of keys are becoming the norm, and therefore, locksmiths access advanced training to not only reporgram these keys, but also make a new one, entirely. We suggest you have a spare, for obvious reasons.