AUTOMOTIVE · COUNTER + VAN

Car keys, fobs and ignitions in Kennewick.

Car door unlocks, keys cut and programmed, fobs repaired, and Honda ignitions rebuilt in the shop at 415 W 1st Ave.

Chapter 01

Getting into a locked car without a mark on it

A locked car door is one of the most common calls a locksmith takes, and the goal never changes: get you back in without scratching the paint, bending the frame or cracking a window. That work is done with the right tools and a patient hand, not muscle. If you're in Kennewick, Pasco or Richland, call 509-586-9300 and tell whoever answers the year, make and model, and where the car is parked.

The emergency line answers 24/7, so a lockout in a grocery store lot at midnight isn't something to solve alone. Keys left on the seat, keys locked in the trunk and a door that has stopped answering the fob are three different problems, and describing yours accurately on the phone helps the van arrive with the right gear.

Expect to be asked to show that the car is yours before anyone starts. It takes a moment, and it protects you as much as it protects the shop.

A worn ignition cylinder pulled from a car, held in an open hand beside the steering wheel

New keys cut and programmed, key fobs repaired

Most cars on the road carry a chip in the key, and a blade cut to match isn't enough on its own. The key also has to be programmed so the car will accept it. Mount's cuts and programs new car keys, and repairs key fobs that have quit responding or come apart after a year in a pocket. Lost the only key you had? Usually the answer is still yes. Call with the year, make and model and the shop will tell you what the car needs.

Fob repair is something customers mention by name. One Google review from September, written by Angel Ventura, says Chris came out on short notice, was thorough in his work and had the key fob repaired. The mobile van is how a job like that happens at your house or your workplace instead of across town.

Duplicates are cut at the counter at 415 W 1st Ave. Mike Beasley's review says Mount's duplicate keys work every time and don't need pushing and pulling to get the key to turn. A copy should turn like the original, and that's what the key machine is there for.

Chapter 03

Ignition repair or replacement, and Honda ignitions rebuilt in-shop

When the key goes in but the ignition won't turn, the trouble is usually the cylinder, not the key. Inside it sits a stack of small pins and springs that wear a little with every start, and once they're worn the lock stops reading the key properly. Mount's repairs or replaces most ignition systems.

The reader board out front says it plainly: we rebuild Honda ignitions. Rebuilding means the worn cylinder is taken apart and its parts are brought back to working order so it reads your key again. If you drive a Honda and the ignition has started acting up, ask about it when you call.

Here are the signs a cylinder is wearing out. The key sticks going in or coming out. It needs a wiggle to turn. It turns on some mornings and not others. Any one of those is worth a look before the day the key won't turn at all. Call 509-586-9300 and describe what it does, or bring the car by the shop in downtown Kennewick.

Mount's has been cutting keys in the Tri-Cities since 1948. Washington contractor licence MOUNTLK909QZ. Call 509-586-9300.

The front of Mount's at 415 W 1st Ave with KEYS LOCKS SAFES lettered on the wall and a reader board reading WE REBUILD HONDA IGNITIONS

Bring it to the counter, or send the van to you.

If the car still runs and the key is the trouble, the counter at 415 W 1st Ave in downtown Kennewick is the simplest stop. Bring every key you have, working or not, and the work can be done right there. The counter is open Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:30 PM.

If the car is stuck in a parking lot, you're locked out, or the ignition has quit and the car can't be driven, call 509-586-9300 instead. The emergency line answers 24/7, and the yellow van covers Kennewick, Pasco and Richland.