First my engine light came on and I was told it was an oxygen sensor. A couple of weeks later the ignition key would not come out of the switch. When my husband removed the battery post the key came out. We have an appointment with our local dealer next week but they told me on the phone they had no idea what might cause this problem. We also have the sliding rear doors and they wont open by pushing the button. For now we have to take the battery post off every time we want to get the key out and force the sliding doors open. Do you have any idea what might cause these problems so I will have something to suggest to our dealer?
I have a 2002 Mazda MPV. No other problems with it before this.
Thanks!

 

Hmmmm. I didn't want you to feel ignored, but my answer is, no I don't. It obviously has to be electronic and involves the theft deterrent system though.

 

Key coding might be the problem?? The system reads enough of the code to start the car, but is incomplete. 'Just a guess.

 

The other thing I found was if you really slammed the thing into park, it would hit the pin and the key would come out. My wife found that if rather than slamming, if you lift on the shifter, while putting pressure on the key, it will shut off that way too. The dealers are aware of this issue, but will do nothing about it. I even had an extened warranty on my vehicle, and of course, this item was not covered.

 

For some reason, I lost half my post. The problem is in a swith in the dash area. It costs over 200 in parts, and 100 in labor. The dealer is aware of the problem but will do nothing about it. My extended warranty was useless too. If you pull the slidding door fuse, the key will come out. You can also install a push button switch that opens that circuit, and the key will come out, however, it does what you already know, screws up the operation of the slidding doors, until they relearn how to work.