Hello,

I recently got a 1993 rx7 and the exterior lock cylinders are very stiff and I've recently almost sheared a key due to how difficult it is to open the lock. Does anyone have a recommendation on how to clean and lubricate the internals? For context the car has been sitting for at least 5 years and the plastic covers over the locks are missing, so I assume there might be dirt and stuff in the cylinders themselves. Thanks in advance for the help.

 

Have you tried a squirt of light oil into the cylinder? If that doesn’t work, how about pulling the inside cover, removing the two 10mm nuts and with the assembly loose, try to determine the source of stiffness and maybe lubricate other pivots?

 

I tried to spray a dry lubricant into the cylinders. The plastic shutters on the locks are broken/missing so I was able to spray into the cylinder. It felt a bit better but it looks like i will have to pull the cylinders out and inspect further.

 

The cylinder may be fouled with bits of the shutters.
Once you access the back of the assembly removing it completely is pretty intuitive.

 

Hopefully not, but possible. I'm planning on tackling this this weekend and will update this post with results, in case someone might find it helpful.