Unfortunately I only post on here when I'm having a problem...My civic has almost 200,000 miles on it....sooo....I have another problem.

A little background: A little over a year ago I lost my key somewhere while walking my dogs. I had a spare made by Walmart earlier, it wasn't great but it always worked fine. So that became my only key and then I got copies made of that key. I know a copy of a copy doesn't work nearly as well as the original but they're my only options right now.

The problem: This morning, my drivers side door decided to longer unlock while using my key. It locks fine, and the passenger side unlocks and locks fine...but the drivers side it being moody. Is it possible that perhaps the lock is just worn out and needs to be replaced? I think it may be my key, but since it locks fine, I don't know if that is actually the case. Oh and they key works fine in the ignition. While my car is capable of keyless entry, it doesn't have the OEM stereo in it that controls the keyless entry system. I bought one, just haven't found someone to put it in yet. So that's my backup plan if I can't get this repaired easily.

Any ideas? Should I just tear it apart and clean it/grease it? Do I need to go to Honda and get them to put in new locks (that would suck btw...)?

This damn car is nickle and diming me to death...I suppose it's to be expected from a car with that many miles on it. Oh and it's a 97 Honda civic EX.

 

Start simple.

There is a graphite spray used to lubricate locks. Try your local Walmart, hardware, or auto parts store. Spray the graphite into the key hole of the lock and on the part of the key that inserts into the lock, insert the key into the lock, and then turn the key back and forth many times from the lock to unlock positions. If successful, the lock will eventually loosen up and will again work with the key.