Citroën C3 All Keys Lost: Lock Picked, Decoded and a New Key Programmed
A Citroën C3 owner in Longsight had no keys. Autobahn opened the car without damage by picking the door lock, decoded it to cut a new blade, and programmed a new transponder to the immobiliser so the owner could drive away.
What the job record confirms
- Vehicle
- Citroën C3 (year not stated)
- Problem
- All keys lost
- Entry
- Non-destructive: the door lock was picked
- Work carried out
- Mechanical decode of the lock; new blade precision-cut; new transponder programmed to the immobiliser
- Result
- Owner started the car and drove it away
- Location
- Longsight, Manchester
- Equipment used
- Autel IM508S
- Service
- All keys lost
Source: this record is taken from Autobahn’s own Instagram post of 2 March 2026.
How a key is made with nothing to copy
With no key to copy, the lock itself provides the cut: decoding reads the lock so a matching blade can be cut. The transponder is then programmed to the immobiliser so the engine will start.
Background: all keys lost
The points below are general information about this kind of job. They explain the work; they are not additional details about this particular vehicle.
An all-keys-lost job has two halves, the mechanical key and the immobiliser, and both have to be recreated from the vehicle. That is why it takes longer than adding a spare.
Not recorded
To keep this record accurate, the following are not published because neither the original post nor Autobahn’s job notes state them: the model year.
No keys at all?
Send the registration and where the car is. We will confirm what is involved and the price.