Ice pop door locks

[s p a c e m a n]

Let me set the scene for you...

It's a glorious Monday morning and I'm already running late with a slight hangover as is required on the first day back at work, to find that the door button is frozen solid and I can't push it down. The can of de-icer and most of my tools.... are in the boot.

After failing with a kettle I end up standing there, with 2 of my neighbours watching and giggling, as I try to break into my car with a wooden spoon and an old suspension damper. Didn't work, did break the spoon.

Finally got in after 20 minutes and half a can of de-icer, anyone got a decent solution to prevent this? I'm tempted to spray a load of oil down there as a sort of water repellent.

The only time that I've suffered this before was with a mk5 escort cabrio (I put an rs2000 engine in it, it wasn't completely an Essex hairdressers car) where the door rubbers would freeze onto the door. I ended up fashioning a rubber sleeve onto a crowbar to get into that one, I like my chim too much to be doing things like that though

[swallet]

Get a facelift car. ...
Get a garage/car cover
Get up early

Sorry. :-)

Prophylactic antifreeze night before.

When I had an Austin mini I had something on my keychain like a battery powered "hot key". You plugged it in and after a minute the lock would pop.

[s p a c e m a n]

Getting up earlier certainly isn't an option, I need all of the beauty sleep that I can get

I like the idea of mini key heater things though, is the door button metal and hollow? Could make something up on a timer from the central locking, so when I turn off the alarm a little heater is powered inside the button....

[swisstoni]

When I had these locks I sprayed a load of WD40 down there and it seemed to help to stop them freezing up.
Failing that, urination is a traditional temporary workaround

[s p a c e m a n]

How am i supposed to hold that when its so cold outside? I have trouble finding it in a warm bedroom.

[Goaty Bill]

You simply can not be locked out of a Chimaera (or Greiffith for that matter).
It's impossible.

[rigga]

Goaty Bill said:

You simply can not be locked out of a Chimaera (or Greiffith for that matter).
It's impossible.

This ....but if you want to get in the normal way lots of wd40 to disperse moisture that then won't freeze your locks up.

[s p a c e m a n]

I know that in theory that I couldn't be locked out and have made certain that I will be a bit quicker if it happens again tomorrow, all of my tools were either in a rucksack in the boot or at work. I need to buy a swiss army knife keyring, but I would rather it not happen again. Had my head in the hole earlier ant there is a lot of metal up there to attach a little 12v warmer too, so will be buying some tat/2nd hand stuff off of ebay to bastardise and bodge in some way

[Goaty Bill]

rigga said:

This ....but if you want to get in the normal way lots of wd40 to disperse moisture that then won't freeze your locks up.

An ounce of prevention etc...

[s p a c e m a n]

Had no WD4o, found a can of release oil from when I did the manifold gaskets though. I now can't open the door because my finger slips off of the buttons

[s p a c e m a n]

I live quite close to a river so more or less get freezing fog when every one else gets frost, the entire car was coated in thick ice this morning with lumps like frozen raindrops.. apart from the door buttons.. and most of the surrounding area, might have been a bit of overspray as I made sure it had a good coating


Oil works a treat, if I cover the windscreen with it I won't have to scrape ice off of that in the morning too

[Goaty Bill]

swallet said:

Prophylactic antifreeze night before.

This works quite well on the other car's windscreen.
Never tried in on the Chimaera of course.

[rickprice]

Tell the wife to get up 10mins early and park her bum on it?

Get a good divorce lawyer first, I would suggest

[rickprice]

Tell the wife to get up 10mins early and park her bum on it?

Get a good divorce lawyer first, I would suggest

[shake n bake]

White grease is good for this, its not as messy as wd40 and doesn't wash off.