Feature or Foul-Up

[Gary in NJ]

My first 240 had a "feature" that I always thought was cool. I could remove the ignition key while the vehicle was running and it would still run. Yes, I could just pull the key straight out. I always found this useful if I needed to unlock the hatch or running in to a store on a cold day.

The Z I have now doesn't allow this. It got me thinking; was my '71 ignition set just broken? If so, I liked it better broken.

Edited May 7, 2010 by Gary in NJ

[prilofx]

hehe. the key for my old truck did that. It usually fell out of the ignition. it was just old and worn down. Bonus was that anyone who locked themselves out of their 80s Toyota could borrow my key and get into theirs.

[sblake01]

Rather than the key being 'broken', the more likely scenario is that the pins/wafers in the the ignition tumbler are worn. You couldn't pull the key out of either my 78 280 or my 79 810.

[Jeff G 78]

I have owned 10 S30s over the past 25+ years and the ignition lock was worn out in every single one of them. Not only can you remove the key in most Z cars, but other similar keys will start the car. Toyota keys work just as well as Datsun keys. Not much good for theft protection.

[sblake01]

The three S30s I've owned you couldn't pull the key out. I had other Datsuns where you could but not Zs.

[Arne]

I could remove the key in mine when I bought it, but the owner's manual specified that the key should only be able to be removed when locked. I replaced the wafers (tumbler pins) in the ignition lock and that improved it a lot. Having a new key cut from key code (instead of from the worn originals) fixed it completely.

But in short, per the owner's manual, if you can remove the key in any position other than LOCK, either the key or the ignition lock is worn, and more likely both.

[mlc240z]

Yup, my son just got a taste of it this past weekend.

I let him have the first non-owner (me) drive and when he shut the car off and pulled the key, he got the "buzzer of death" when he opened the door.

Since it was part of the shakedown cruise, he said "What's up with this"

Only after I pointed out that the key was in the 'Off" position instead of 'Lock' did he realize one of the quirks of owning a 39 year-old beauty.

Might have to look into this.

[Arne]

Yeah, I left that damned buzzer connected as long as the key could be removed in the non-LOCK positions. As soon as I repaired the lock and eliminated the possibility of leaving the ignition unlocked, I unplugged it. I hated those things back in the '70s, still hate 'em today...

Edited May 8, 2010 by Arne

[Walter Moore]

My 71 doesn't have a buzzer, not that I intend to do anything about that...

But the key does pull right out of the ignition any any position. Someday I will replace the ignition switch, but I will wait until I can afford to replace or re-key all of the locks at one time. That day is far off at this point.

[Bonzi Lon]

The key has always been able to be removed in the off position, the buzzer never worked in the 3 years I drove it, never knew it had one. Flash forward 26+ years, put a battery in it and all the buzzers are going off. Didn't take long to find and disconnect.

Bonzi Lon

[GreenZZZ]

My car is really high mileage and all the tumblers were shot. You could remove the key from the ignition while the car was running like yours. I bought the complete lock set way back in the day when MSA had them and the replacement holds the keys in the lock until you stop the car. Prior to replacing the locks, every lock on the car (including the glove box) had a crazy trick to get the lock to work rendering the car useless to anyone but me.

[Jeff G 78]

I'm going to have to find some good used locks for mine soon. Both door locks are worn to the point that the key will barely unlock the door. The "D" post in the pack of the lock is rounded such that the lever doesn't move far enough anymore.