Matching lock sets

[takayuki]

Can you re-tumble the ignition, door locks, and hatch locks so that they match? I'm having a tough time finding a lock set. No problems finding pieces individually, but of course, they are all keyed different.

[Arne]

Yes. The ignition is the easiest, followed by the doors. Any competent locksmith should be able to do it, I even borrowed a wafer set and did an ignition switch myself. Not hard with the correct parts. I'd recommend leaving the hatch lock as is and keying the others to match it.

[djwarner]

When I got my Z, it had no door keys. A competent locksmith was able to determine the correct key profile and code from the drivers door. His key also worked with the hatch and glove box. It wasn't until I got home that I discovered it didn't work in the passenger door. I pulled the passenger door lock and made the trip back to the locksmith. Apparently the door had been replaced without retaining the original lock.

I asked if he could re-key the existing lock and he said he could, but he needed new chrome bezel rings as the old ones would be destroyed in the process. This raised a problem for the hatch lock because of its unique profile.

Since we already had a working hatch key, I asked to re-key the passenger door lock. This turned out to be a problem because the passenger lock had a different profile. I ended up getting a set of door locks for a '90's Sentra, so I ended up with a three key set.

[Arne]

If the bezels are NLA, I'd recommend re-keying the ignition to match the doors (as I'm assuming that door locks are still available in matching pairs, possibly a bad assumption). The hatch may have to be different.

[takayuki]

Good to know. Thanks guys! Worst case scenario, I think I can live with 2 different keys.. I would rather not have 3 or 4 different keys. lol

[djwarner]

I suppose someone should ask what model/year Z you have. Early Z's had two different keys, one for the doors and a different one for the ignition. Later they changed profiles and eventually changed to a single key. There are two different locations to find the key codes. A tag on the back of the glove box door and on the door lock body. Having the code will make the locksmith and your wallet happy.

[jfa.series1]

I suppose someone should ask what model/year Z you have. Early Z's had two different keys, one for the doors and a different one for the ignition. Later they changed profiles and eventually changed to a single key. There are two different locations to find the key codes. A tag on the back of the glove box door and on the door lock body. Having the code will make the locksmith and your wallet happy.

His profile lists only a '71 model.

[Arne]

His profile lists only a '71 model.

Which means it could be either way, depending on whether it is early or late.

[Carl Beck]

I asked if he could re-key the existing lock and he said he could, but he needed new chrome bezel rings as the old ones would be destroyed in the process.

I ran into that issue when I wanted to get locks on my 510 rekeyed. The first locksmith that looked at the locks said he had to destroy the bezel - - but then another locksmith happened to come over to see what the problem was - and he showed the first locksmith how to take things apart without destroying the bezel. Turned out the bezels on the Datsun Locks I had - are made in such a way as to be removed and reinstalled. The first locksmith was surprised and admitted that he really didn't look closely enough at them in the first place - just assumed at first glance that they were all the same.

Find old and very experienced locksmiths…
FWIW,
Carl B.