So I locked my keys in my car. I just called the first number that came up, and when he got there charged me $29 for the service fee plus $169 for a total of $198. Is this typical (for other people that is)? It took him like 10 seconds.

Argghh everything's a scam these days! I miss the old days of campfires and mammoth meat.

Also, get off my lawn!

I think if you call a locksmith it's basically gonna be $150 at least.

I've never locked my keys in my car, TBH I'm not really sure how it's possible! But these days, anyway, I also don't stick the key in the ignition anymore, so it never has to leave my pocket.

That's about right. I locked mine in my trunk recently, had it towed home, and took apart the back of the interior to get to a hole i stuck a tire iron with a coat hanger on it through to snag them over the CNG tank. Locksmith on a car like mine would basically be a lot of labor to replace the super expensive trunk lock so I took the time.

Well that sucks.

Also it's amazing how fast I get a reply here.

this is a very active comoonitie

$1 for unlocking your car, $197 for knowing how to unlock your car.

One time I had a $500 tow from the middle of nowhere, rural Alberta. Got a AAA membership the next day.

True story, when I lived in California I had lockpicks and got pretty decent with them. One day my neighbor locked herself out of the house and was stuck figuring out what to do. Cue me with lockpicks, within five minutes she was back in her house. Probably saved her a hundred dollars or so.

Too bad the great state of VA treats lockpicks as prima facie evidence of intent to commit a crime.

Now that I retell this story, I realize showing your neighbors you can pick locks isn't the wisest thing, in case they ever get burglarized. But hey.

letting your neighbor spend a hundred bucks on a locksmith

vs

letting your neighbor know that you can unlock her door any time you want

I wonder if I'll be locked out of my future car on the first day of the year 2038.

I told this story here once before but I helped a lady that had locked her keys in the trunk after roadside assistance came and told them there was nothing they could do. The doors were open but the switch to pop the trunk was non-functional. I opened the fuse box and jumped the appropriate pins in the relay socket with some scrap wire and it opened right up.

These inflated prices are due to the complexity of many vehicles now. The 10 second open isn't the norm anymore. I have a key stashed on the outside of one vehicle (in the receiver hitch) and another has a keypad so I can't get locked (easily) out of that. One car is so much plastic that I haven't thought of a good place to mount a key yet but the doors are keyed separate so I really showed just stick one in my wallet or house key ring and give one to my wife to keep in her purse/wallet.

Part of the reason it's expensive is because he's not going around unlocking cars all day, every day. He gets $200 a pop, but only does one, maybe two per day. He also has to pay for his own fuel, insurance, warehouse, advertising, licenses, etc. He didn't make $200 in ten seconds, he made around $100 in about half an hour, and might be lucky to make another $100 that day.

Drive a horse next time. The parts aren't cheap, but if you treat it right it will run for years.

All you really need is a wedge to pry the door open just far enough to stick something long enough to hit the power locks in.

Tbf, people should be aware that your typical Shlage lock offers only the bare minimum security. I had made a bumpkey with a dremel and it's scary how effective they are. If you want decent locks, be ready for $100+ per cylinder.

OTOH, criminals smart enough to master those techniques are rare. Most will just pry your door anyway.

The best security is just to live in a neighborhood with nosy neighbors and responsive police.