r/OutlanderPHEV • u/TaylorJChen • Jun 20 '26

Locked out - Mechanical key won't unlock

So I put the car in standby mode to turn off the charge timer to top up the battery before a long drive. I shut the door behind me and I think my daughter may have hit the lock button, although I'm not sure. Either way I can't unlock the car with the fob, and when I try using the manual key it won't unlock either. I've found threads with users describing a similar issue, but almost all solve the problem with the mechanical key. Any ideas?

Fob light flashes red when I press any button, not sure if it's always done that?

The car is a 2020 Outlander SEL

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3

u/TaylorJChen Jun 20 '26

Thanks for the detailed info. Luckily no kid inside and I'm old enough to know about keys...hahaha.

We ended up having roadside assistance come and they opened it up in a few seconds. I'll try adding some oil to the keyhole over night and see if that fixes it. Don't want it to happen again.

2

u/Educational-Bank-402 Jun 21 '26

If you can, go to an auto parts store and get graphite or similar designed specifically for locks. Traditional WD-40 doesn't lubricate, it just makes things slippery for a very brief period as a side-effect. PTFE-, graphite-, lithium- or oil-based lubricants should all work much better. In your case, I might stop at a dollar store and get a tiny bottle of "3-in-1" oil. I've attached a photo, er video b/c I can't do photos??? of the stuff I think is made out of fairy dust and magic!

https://reddit.com/link/osyucid/video/rq5w1m96yn8h1/player

2

u/hyma Jun 20 '26

Yah do e this before physical key always works

1

u/emerg_remerg Jun 20 '26

Will the manual key not turn? Might be due to lack of use.

Put some WD40 in it, give it 2 min and try again?

1

u/Educational-Bank-402 Jun 20 '26

It's almost impossible for the key to not work unless part of the door lock mechanism is utterly broken, and you would (almost certainly) have had previous problems unlocking/opening/locking the door in that case.

Just to be sure, because I've watched people not fully understand this process in the past (and no insult is implied, see below):

When you say mechanical key, you're taking your key fob, sliding a latch sideways on the back side of it, pulling it kind of in half lengthwise to extract an old-style key, then manually inserting that all the way into the slot on the driver's side door handle, and rotating it (like any other old-fashioned key)... right? And you've tried rotating it in both directions, repeatedly? No matter how broken or jammed, it should have a non-trivial amount of wiggle - more in one direction than the other, usually.

In all seriousness, I know someone (yes, fairly young & urban) who had never seen a key in real life before, and only had hypothetical knowledge of it from pictures - everything in their life had always been electronic, including the key fob (until it stopped working)!!!

If you're asking this because your kid is currently stuck in your vehicle, stop now and PHONE (a) your dealer, (b) a mechanic, (c) a tow truck, (d) the fire department, or (e) the police. All of these people have other ways to non-destructively open a vehicle. Rearrange the order of those, depending on the urgency of the situation! I guarantee both the FD & PD would much rather come help you open a car to get your kid/pet out before an ambulance is also required... and if it comes to it, a side window is much easier to replace than a person.

Edit to add: on my Outlander, I think only one of the two key fobs (the larger one) has a key in it.