WD-40 fixes it all

I have a ‘98 Ford Taurus (you can stop laughing now) and when it was cold the door ajar and dome light would stay on until it timed out. The switch that tells the control unit that the door is closed is located inside the door latch. I couldn’t tell if it was broken or just stuck so I did some Internet searches. Every forum I found dealing with this problem had the same solution.

WD-40

I sprayed WD-40 into the door latch and sure enough it worked. The latch was just sticking and that prevented the control unit from recognizing the door was closed. That isn’t the only problem WD-40 solved.

Not long after I bought the car, I found out that the ignition key didn’t work on any of the door locks (nor the trunk). Great. If my battery dies, I’m locked out of my car and the only hood release latch is inside the car. Did the previous owner replace the ignition and not bother telling me?

I took the car to the Ford dealer where I bought the car. They tried my key and, upon realizing it didn’t work, said they too thought the ignition had been replaced. They cut a key based on the VIN and tried it out. It didn’t work either. As they were talking about what it could be, a mechanic yelled from the back of the shop, “Hey, did you try WD-40?”.

We all looked at each other and the mechanic figured it was worth a shot (no pun intended). He sprayed WD-40 in all the locks and it worked! The guy said that the locking mechanism on that model was notorious for sticking and WD-40 works every time.

No charge and they gave me the key they just made. Now that’s good customer service.

I guess the old saying is true. You only need two tools: WD-40 and Duct Tape. If it’s moving and not supposed to, duct tape it. If it doesn’t move and it’s supposed to, spray it with WD-40.

We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude. – Cynthia Ozick

16.May.06 General

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One Response to “WD-40 fixes it all”

  1. Lineman | May 16th, 2006 at 3:50 pm

    There are only two things we need in this world. WD40 for stuff that won’t move but should and duct tape for things that move but shouldn’t.

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