c3 69 Lost Alarm Key

[Jimmy B.]

I was not given the key for the alarm on my 69 when I purchased it. I was thinking there was another lock on the car possibly I could remove and take to a locksmith that uses the same alarm key so I could have one made. Can some more knowledgable individual please clue me in on this?

Thanks.

Jim Blakely

[Chuck S.]

Re: c3 69 Lost Alarm Key

A smaller, round key is used for the alarm switch in 69...there is no other lock of that type on the car. In 70, the oval key used for the locking center storage compartment and for the spare lock is also used for the alarm switch.

A good locksmith should be able to disassemble the cylinder and figure out the pin lengths and therefore the key profile. When 70 and later alarm switches are disassembled, the locksmith has to destroy the outer trim bezel. The 69 switch is configured differently, and it may not be necessary to damage the switch to take it apart.

[Jimmy B.]

Re: c3 69 Lost Alarm Key

Thanks Chuck, curiously in 69 when I worked at a Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Cadillac dealership they had a set of master keys on a big key ring and when we ever lost a key or did not have one for a car, I just went to the parts department, got the master ring of keys off the hook on the wall and never ever could not find a ignition, door, or trunk that the master set did not have a key for. What happened to these master sets of keys the dealership had?

Oh by the way, the dealer back then sold me a 1 owner trade in 64 Impala SS for $1000.00 Aqua with a white interior. My 1st car with factory ac!

Jim

[Jim T.]

Re: c3 69 Lost Alarm Key

The alarm switch should be real easy to remove on your 69. Only two electrical wires to disconnect and if you will look up under the car you will see what has to be removed and the switch will come out and you can take it to a locksmith.

[Terry M.]

Re: c3 69 Lost Alarm Key

Don't waste time and money on a locksmith. New locks are available -- I believe from Paragon, but if not them the successor company to Brigs & Stratton: Stratek(sp?). That early style alarm lock had no protection from exhaust gasses, and the lock internals corroded solid in no time. A new replacement is the best solution.

Chuckster – Late 1970 (after 12K s/n) for the newer style alarm lock.

[Chuck S.]

Re: c3 69 Lost Alarm Key

I probably knew that once...but, if I did know it, that portion of my hard drive has been "reformatted".

Once you are familiar with 70 model year, you realize it was a strange, albeit short, transitional year for Corvette. Many of the planned features for 70 were dropped before the MY even started (LS7, sidepipes, tripower), and many running changes were made during the MY (ignition shielding, air cleaner, alarm switch, etc). It was almost like a 70 MY never really existed; there was only 69 1/2 and 70 1/2.

It was in 70 MY that the car first began reflecting change from the old traditional, raw-gasoline-in-the-smokey-noisy-exhaust Corvette, to a performance car struggling to adapt in a changed new world. It took decades for technology and design skill to fully recover the performance.

Another such time may be just over the horizon...better buy up those C6s, Z06s, and ZR1s NOW!