Keys locked in Car in Blacktown – a tricky manufacturing problem.

We recently rescued a lady in Blacktown who had locked her keys, shopping and 2 year old in her car. Modern motor vehicle security is great when it works… but when it goes pear shaped?  Well – it a whole bag of pears.  

The young lady had just bought a 2nd small car, a VW.  Beaut looking little car and it comes with loads of safety features.  Even though is was not designed for the hot Australian sun its got features like safety prevention for accidentally locking your kids in the car.  All the doors have sensors, so if you put a child in the back seat, drive off somewhere, get out, lock the car doors using the remote and then go to walk off… forgetting their is a child in the car?  The car alarm will sound within seconds to alert you.  Great huh?

Its also got some other not so well thought out features…. and when combined with faulty door sensors… these can get you into trouble.  

So this is what happened.

The young lady came home from shopping with her baby, had some bags on the front seat, came around to grab them and take them inside first.  Bub was asleep, and she figured the trip inside would take less than a minute.  It was not a super hot day, baby would be fine.

She gets to the front door with her hands full, fumbles around for keys and realises she does not have them, she must have put them on the front passenger seat.

She returns to the car, to find the car now locked. Whatthe?  Keys are in the front, on the seat, car is locked.  Panicked, she rang us, we were there in 15 minutes and had the car open in 3 more.  Her baby never woke up.

A week later she rang us back and said the problem was a faulty door senser that somehow was confused that the car had been accidentally unlocked, no one had got in or out of it, so it relocked itself to ensure it was secure.  No faulty door sensors… and the car’s computer does this perfectly.  But throw in a faulty door sensor and you have a self locking car from hell.  Well… from Europe anyway.

Alls well that ends well… but whatever make and model car you have we don’t recommend you ever put them down in the car.  Our biggest callout for keys locked in car scenario is where someone has put the keys in the boot, left them there whilst they get groceries out and the boot has somehow shut, or they have shut it out of habit and the key are now safely locked in the boot!