When The Glove Compartment Won't Open

It happens mostly to older vehicles where the glove compartment won't open.

You see I have a 1991 Chevy S10. The glove compartment would open and close all the time. Then one day the locking mechanism stays locked.

I never had a key to the glove compartment so there was no way for me to lock it with a key, but the mechanism was locked when latched close.

I went to different Youtube videos of people with glove compartments that won't open. It seem to happen a lot according to the comments under these videos.

There was one video that went through the routine shooting WD-40 into the lock, sticking in the key at different angles, then in frustration he just took two screw drivers and pried the glove compartment open.

Well in doing that it really looked ugly with a bent up looking glove door.

So after doing all the other things I could think of and knowing that I do not want to force open the lock from the top, like in that video and not wanting to pay over $90 an hour at the mechanic's.

I decided I will break it from the hinges underneath. You see if I break it from the hinges then it won't look as bad.

So that is what I did. Now it opens slightly enough for me to get out the things I need to get out. Well you do want to get out the registration if you are stopped by an officer and he asks for it.

Also I had my GPS in the glove compartment that I wanted to use.

If I ever figure out a way to unloose the locking mechanism, I can still buy a used glove compartment door at a wrecking parts place.

You see I broke the glove door open at the hinges, but the holes where the door hinges attach are all intact. So it is still fixable.

The other thing I had to worry about is when I broke the hinges the glove compartment light stays on.

Well that can be trouble in the future, cause if I don't solve that problem the battery will run out. You don't want to have a dead battery.

So I just put a folded strip of cardboard that would make sure there is enough pressure to push on the button as when the glove compartment is closed.

I used Gorilla Tape to hole the cardboard in place so it won't fall off and the light goes on again.

Well, how does it look? I know it looks a lot better then if I would have broke it from the top.

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Thank you, David.
Image is mine taken with my Moto G.