Frozen Key Locks and Locked Out Of Your Car: How To Navigate This Complicated Problem
It is bad enough when you lock yourself out of your vehicle. It is even worse when you lock yourself out and the locks are frozen tight. Here is how you can navigate this complicated problem.
Call a Locksmith for Car Lockout Services
Your first step should be to call a locksmith who offers car lockout services. Be sure to explain to him or her that your keys are not only stuck in the car, but that the locks are frozen shut too. He or she will bring tools to solve both of these issues.
Watch What the Locksmith Does
There are tricks to unfreezing locks that can help you in the future. By watching a locksmith at work, you could learn one or two of these tricks to unfreeze your locks the next time they freeze up. One such trick is to use a lock de-icer. This can of fluid comes equipped with a tiny spout that can depress the key entry in the lock. The locksmith then squirts the de-icer into the lock and waits. The solution melts the ice inside the lock that would otherwise prevent the locksmith from unlocking the door.
Another thing you can do, if you are able, is find a very small funnel to insert into the lock. Pour a small amount of rubbing alcohol into the tiny funnel, which will then enter the lock and de-ice it. If your keys are outside the car, you can pour the rubbing alcohol directly onto the key. Then you can stick the alcohol-soaked key into the lock, and de-ice it as you turn the key in the lock.
Next, Slim-Jimming the Door
Next, the locksmith will use some sort of prying device to pull your door away from the car frame just enough to create an opening to the inside. The tool of choice is a "slim jim," a type of long, flat prying bar that is strong enough to force the door open just enough to slip another tool inside. If you have power locks on your doors, it just takes a long, slender metal rod (like an unbent coat hanger) to reach through the opening and poke the unlock button on your power locks. If you have a pull-up button lock, the locksmith tries to encircle the knob/button and then pulls up to unlock the door. If you have an angled push-button lock under the door handle, then the locksmith has to apply enough force to move the button to the open position.