2006 Mitsubishi Lancer
Key Replacement - Save vs Dealer in Ventura County

2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Transponder Key Replacement - Fast, Affordable & Professional

There's a pullout just off the road near North Fillmore where people stop when something goes wrong with their car. That's exactly where I found a guy standing next to his 2006 Lancer, holding half a key.

The blade had snapped clean at the shoulder. One piece still in the ignition cylinder, one piece in his hand, and the car sitting there locked on a warm afternoon. He'd already called another locksmith who gave him a phone quote for a full ignition replacement before even seeing the vehicle. That kind of quote, sight unseen, usually means someone doesn't want to deal with the extraction work.

I used a Lishi tool made for Mitsubishi's keyway to work the broken fragment out of the cylinder. The tool is designed to get around a lodged blade without dragging it across the wafer surfaces, so the lock stays intact and readable. Once the fragment was out, I decoded the cut depths right from the lock, which told me everything I needed to cut a working replacement blade.

Then the transponder programming through the OBD port. The 2006 Lancer's immobilizer needs the chip in the new key registered to the car. That's a separate step from cutting and it's the part a hardware store can't do.

His original ignition cylinder worked perfectly with the new key, exactly as it always had. No drilling, no replacement parts, no tow to a dealer. The other locksmith's approach would have added a cylinder replacement on top of everything else. He saved a good chunk by not going that route.

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