Automotive Locksmith in Lancaster, CA

What does an automotive locksmith actually do in Lancaster?

An automotive locksmith works on the part of a vehicle that decides who gets in and who gets it started: door locks, trunk and tailgate locks, ignition cylinders, keys, transponder chips, and key fobs. When one of those fails, or when you've lost the only key, you need someone who can solve it at the vehicle instead of towing it somewhere first.

That's the job we do in Lancaster. We're an auto locksmith and car locksmith first and foremost, which means the work is mostly the following:

• Getting into a locked car, truck, motorcycle storage compartment or RV without damaging the door, window seal or paint
• Making a new key when you have none, or copying one when you have a spare
• Programming transponder keys and fobs so the vehicle's computer recognizes them
• Removing a key that snapped in a door or ignition
• Repairing worn or sticking ignition cylinders and door locks
• Handling keys for a business's trucks, vans and fleet vehicles

Why do car keys cause so much trouble in the Antelope Valley?

Lancaster sits in the high desert at roughly 2,350 feet. Summer brings triple-digit heat, winter nights drop below freezing, and strong winds carry fine dust almost year-round. None of that is kind to a car key or a lock.

Heat is hard on plastic key heads and fob cases, and a key that's been riding on a dashboard or in a hot cupholder can crack or lose its shell. Cold and big daily swings make metal contract and expand, so a worn key that barely turned in August can fail to turn in January. Dust works into door lock cylinders and ignition cylinders, and gritty tumblers wear faster and bind sooner. A key that's been sticking for months often finally breaks on the coldest morning of the year.

Then there's the ordinary stuff that has nothing to do with the desert: a spare that was never made, a fob dropped in a parking lot, a key locked in the cab while the engine ran. We see all of it, and the first step is the same every time: find out exactly what happened before we pick up a tool.

How do we handle an automotive call, step by step?

Every vehicle job follows roughly the same path, though the details change with the make, the year and what's wrong. Here's how it goes when you call (213) 577-1366.

1. You tell us the vehicle: make, model, year, and where it is. If you can read the VIN from the dashboard or the registration, that helps, but it isn't required to start.
2. We ask what happened: locked out, key lost, key broken, fob dead, ignition stuck, or key won't turn. The answer decides which tools and parts we bring.
3. We tell you plainly what the job is likely to involve and what will affect the cost, and we give you a realistic arrival window for your location once we know where you are. We don't make up a number to get you off the phone.
4. A mobile van comes to the vehicle. Our storefront is in Westwood, and Lancaster is a mobile-service trip, so we plan the call around that.
5. On arrival we confirm you're the person who should have access to the vehicle, usually with ID and registration or insurance paperwork that matches the vehicle.
6. We do the work: opening the door, cutting or programming a key, extracting a broken piece, or repairing the cylinder. We choose the method that protects the vehicle.
7. We test everything before you pay: the key in the door, the key in the ignition, the fob functions, the car starting and running.
8. If something can't be done on site, we say so and explain what the next step is rather than guessing.

Which vehicles do we work on?

The keyword list for this page is long because vehicles are varied, and each type has its own quirks. Here's how we think about them.

Cars and SUVs are the bulk of the work. Most late-model ones use a transponder key or a proximity fob, and programming is a normal part of the job. For lockouts, see our page on car lockout service in Lancaster.

As a truck locksmith we handle pickups and work trucks, which tend to have simple door locks but sometimes separate locks for toolboxes, tailgates and caps. Older trucks are often quicker to key than newer ones, but that varies by make and year.

Motorcycle locksmith work usually means ignition keys, fork locks, and storage compartment or trunk locks. Many bikes have small key blanks and chip systems that vary a great deal between manufacturers, so we confirm by VIN before promising anything.

RV locksmith calls involve more locks than people expect: the cab doors, the entry door, and each outside storage bay, which are often keyed differently. We deal with the cab separately from the coach.

Fleet locksmith work is for businesses with several vehicles: duplicate keys, a tidy record of which key goes with which vehicle, and fast replacement when a driver loses one. If you run a fleet in Lancaster, tell us how many vehicles and we'll plan the work around your schedule.

What affects the cost of automotive locksmith work?

We won't quote a number on a web page, because with vehicles the honest answer is that it depends. Here are the real factors, so you can see why two calls that sound alike can come out differently.

Making a replacement key is usually the more economical route compared with having a vehicle towed to a dealer, but that's not true for every make, and we'll tell you when it isn't.

• The vehicle itself: make, model and year decide what kind of key it uses and how it must be programmed.
• Key type: a plain metal key, a transponder key, a laser-cut key and a proximity fob are all different parts with different costs.
• Whether you have a working key: copying an existing key is simpler than creating one from nothing, which can mean reading the vehicle's data.
• Lockout versus key creation: opening a door is a different job than making and programming a new key.
• Condition of the lock or ignition: a worn or dust-packed cylinder may need repair or replacement, which adds work.
• Time and place: after-hours calls and locations farther from our Westwood base can affect the total.
• Quantity: several keys or several vehicles in one visit are handled more efficiently than separate trips.

When is the dealer the right call?

We'd rather tell you straight than waste your afternoon. Some vehicles, depending on make, model and year, have security systems that only the manufacturer's dealer can fully support, or that require equipment or codes we can't access in the field. Not every vehicle is a locksmith job, and we won't pretend otherwise.

Chip and programming details differ from one vehicle to the next, and the details published online for the same model are often incomplete or contradict each other. So we don't promise on a phone call that a particular key will work. We confirm by VIN and in person, with the vehicle in front of us, and then tell you whether we can do it or whether the dealer is the right place.

If it turns out to be a dealer-only case, we'll say so before any work is done, and you won't be charged for a job we never could have finished.

Why call Wilshire Lock & Key for your vehicle?

You have plenty of options when you search for a mobile automotive locksmith, and many of the listings are national call centers that pass your job to whoever is closest. Here's how we're different:

• We've been in business since 1987, so we have decades of experience with how keys and locks fail.
• We have a real storefront at 10740 Wilshire Blvd in Los Angeles (Westwood), plus mobile service vans. You can see where we are.
• We're one company. No dispatch middlemen, no handoff to a stranger you've never heard of.
• David, the owner and lead technician, oversees the work.
• We answer the phone 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, all year, at (213) 577-1366.
• We serve 140 cities across Los Angeles and Ventura counties, Lancaster among them.

What does automotive locksmith service look like around Lancaster?

Lancaster is spread out. Vehicles end up locked or stranded in every part of it, and the setting changes the job.

One of the calls we plan for is car key replacement near Antelope Valley College. A student or staff member who has lost a key on campus needs a new one made at the vehicle, since a car with no working key can't be driven to a shop. Our page on lost car key replacement explains how that works when no spare exists.

In the west Lancaster tracts around Avenue K and 30th Street West, and across the larger 1980s-2000s stucco tract homes of the westside in ZIP 93536, most households have two or more vehicles parked in driveways and on the street. That means a lot of keys in a lot of pockets, and a lot of spare fobs that were never made. If you're in 93536, tell us the nearest cross street when you call.

Central and east Lancaster, in 93534 and 93535, hold the older postwar neighborhoods: the 1950s-1970s ranch homes on grid streets. Older vehicles parked there often have older keys, worn from decades of use and sometimes already cracking, so a duplicate made now can prevent a breakdown later.

The same goes for Downtown Lancaster and The BLVD district, Mariposa, Piute and Desert View in the north: wherever you are, we come to you. Quartz Hill and Antelope Acres, to the west, are on our service map too, though rural large-lot properties at the city's edges can mean longer drives, and we factor that into the arrival window we give you.

If you're stuck at a public place, such as Antelope Valley Hospital, the Antelope Valley Fair & Event Center or General William J. Fox Airfield, tell us exactly where you're parked so the van can find you.

What should you do before we arrive?

A few small steps make the visit faster and safer, and some of them can save you money.

• Get somewhere safe and shaded if it's hot, or out of the wind if it's cold. In summer especially, never leave children or pets in a locked vehicle. If someone is inside and in danger, call 911 first.
• Find your registration or insurance card if you can reach it, and have your photo ID ready.
• Look for a spare key at home, with a family member or at work before you decide you need a new one.
• Note the VIN: it's on the dashboard by the windshield and on the registration.
• Don't force the key. A key that sticks in a dusty or cold lock can snap, and then we're looking at broken key extraction as well.
• Tell us if the vehicle has been in a recent repair. Some programming issues come from earlier work.

How do you check that a locksmith is legitimate?

California requires locksmith companies to hold a Locksmith Company (LCO) license issued by the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services (BSIS). Ask any locksmith for their license number before work begins, and check it with BSIS if you want to be sure. That applies to us and to everyone else.

Other signs worth watching: whether they give you the business name when they answer the phone, whether they can tell you what the job will involve, and whether they ask for proof that the vehicle is yours. A locksmith who doesn't ask is a locksmith who'll open anyone's car.

For more on our full service area, see our Lancaster locksmith hub, or if you need us to come out to you, our mobile locksmith service page explains how that works.

More locksmith help in Lancaster

• Car Key Replacement in Lancaster
• Ignition Repair in Lancaster
• Key Fob Replacement in Lancaster
• Lost Car Key Replacement in Lancaster
• Transponder Key Programming in Lancaster
• 24 Hour Locksmith in Lancaster
• All services in Lancaster

Automotive Locksmith near Lancaster

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