Steering wheel will not unlock

ROYMULVANEY722

MEMBER
1998 SATURN SL1
4 CYL
2WD
AUTOMATIC
100,000 MILES

I have tried all the tricks to unlock the steering wheel in my car but none of them are working. The key wont move and the wheel stays locked and the gear shift wont move either. The car has also been sitting for more than a year, but it has got a brand new battery and all the fluids seem fine if I am correct.

2 Replies

VERBATIM68

MEMBER
10 POSTS

If the steering is loaded up hard against the steering lock, you'll have this problem. If this is the problem, you'll have to pull very hard on the steering wheel in the opposite direction to move it away from the lock so that you can turn the key. Some of them can lock up really hard and it takes a lot of effort to move the steering wheel away from the lock enough so you can turn the key.

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Monday, July 15th, 2019 AT 8:49 AM

KEN L

MASTER CERTIFIED MECHANIC
47,536 POSTS

It sounds like the shift cable needs to be replaced. Here are diagrams and instructions to do so. Check out the diagrams (below). Please let us know what you find.

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