ritz7

Well my key doesnt like to unlock my door so i just ordered a new cylinder for it (95 ex coupe) and i was just wondering how hard it is to change?

robbys89

very easy! all you have too do is remove the inside door trim, pull back the plastic sheet and you will see 2 bolts holding the handle on, remove the rods, take handle off and you will see a clip that holds in the key barrel, pull it up and your good to go

shailoche

It isn't very hard to change but you have to be really careful:

1. Don't disassemble the cylinder in your car. Take the whole thing inside your house and use a proper table with a work lamp and a colored cloth or t-shirt covering your workspace. The colored cloth/t-shirt will catch the springs and tumblers when they fall out and the color will allow you to see the tiny silver parts easier.

2. When you disassemble the key cylinder there are things called tumblers that have to be placed in a certain order or else your key doesn't work. So, keep track of which tumbler goes into which hole in the cylinder. If you are not careful you will render your lock useless. So, number the holes in the cylinder...1,2,3,4,5,6,7...and then keep the tumblers in exactly that order.

3. Pay close attention to the tiny little springs that hold the tumblers into place. When you pull the tumbler out of one hole and put it into the new cylinder you will see a tiny spring that pushes the tumbler up. If you loose any of the springs the cylinder will be useless. The springs are only 3-5mm long and like 1mm in diameter. They are so small that if you aren't using a good work surface...like the kitchen table...you will loose them. The springs push the tumblers up against the key cylinder and as such you cannot make your cylinder work if you loose even 1 of the springs. There is a spring and a tumbler inside every single one of the holes on the cylinder. So, keep track!

4. Take you time and make sure that you put each tumbler in it's correct place with the correct spring. Swap each tumbler one at a time. Don't be tempted into taking the whole cylinder apart and all the tumblers out at the same time. If you do that you won't remember which tumbler goes into which hole and the lock will not function.

5. Once you have swapped the tumblers and springs from one cylinder to the other test fit the key to make sure it slides in and out easily. The tumblers should all line up and be at the same height. If they aren't then something went wrong and you may be in trouble.

Like I said to begin with...this isn't that hard to do. But if you have any concerns about your ability to do this I would recommend taking the old cylinder and the new one to a qualified locksmith and let them do the swap. It usually isn't too expensive...like $40.

I have done this too two of my Hondas. I did it the same way I told you to do it. But even though I have done this twice it still takes time and patience. Keep track of your tumblers and springs and if all else fails take some digital photos of your progress and that will help you get things back together if something goes wrong.

shailoche

Getting to the cylinder takes only these steps that you have listed...but replacing the cylinder with a cylinder repair kit requires a bit more than what you have listed. If you have ever had to fix a cylinder before you would know that you have to remove the tumblers and tumbler springs in order to do a proper cylinder repair. That requires a few more steps than you have listed.

robbys89

true man, i should have thought about that a bit more, i just got into my head that he was replacing the entire barrel! i only relized what the op really ment after i red your post! my bad!

CivicSpoon

I think this is pretty much exactly what shailoche said, but includes picture as well:
https://honda-tech.com/forums/honda-civic-del-sol-1992-2000-1/diy-fixing-doorlocks-open-any-key-2237857/

shailoche

Great link! That was exactly what I was saying. I had pictures of my own but I was trying to organize them and make a how-to. Now I don't need to. Thanks for the great update and helping me help the OP.

MDRGuy88

i bought a new ignition for my 91 integra, how much would it cost to have the driver side lock fixed to fit my new key (from a locksmith)?

ritz7

well i bought a new cylinder from honda the other day (50 bucks) so i think i just swap it not actually change the tumblers and ect. thanks

shailoche

The new cylinder doesn't include the tumblers. That $50 part from Honda is just the casing of the cylinder as well as a new key-door. You will absolutely have to go through and remove the tumblers from the old lock and install them in the cylinder. Otherwise, how would Honda know exactly which cylinder to send you for your car? They don't know what your key looks like and for $50 there is no way it has been modified by the factory to work on your specific car.

The tumblers reside inside the key cylinder which means you cannot replace one without removing the parts from the other. If you look at the link in the previous post you will see why you can't "just swap it not actually change the tumblers."

shailoche

First you would have to remove the key cylinder from the ignition as well as the cylinder from the doors. Then you would need to take those to the locksmith and let him see what the cylinder tumblers look like. He may have to purchase new tumblers from Honda to put into your door cylinders in order to make them match up with the ignition cylinder. For all that work you are going to pay at least $100 plus whatever parts he needs to do the job.

The only other thing you can do is roll with two different keys, one for the ignition and one for the doors, just like the old 1980's GM cars did.

ritz7

they said it comes with a new key :dunno:.

ill just have to rock two diff keys.