[ImperialCrown]

Welcome to Allpar. Have you tried turning the steering wheel slightly to take the pressure off of the lock and then tried turning the key?
The lock housing has a bottom cover with theft-proof torx (?) if you need to try and disable it. You may find that you can't as they don't want to make it very easy for thieves either.

 

[dak4x4]

Worth a try--- jack up the front end so wheels are off the pavement, this will take torque off the steering column.

 

[valiant67]

Sometimes inserting the key and tapping it (not too hard) with a hammer may help as well.

 

[dana44]

I have a buddy's elder wife has had to have him meet her at several stores around town because she didn't straighten the steering wheel when she gets out of the car and the steering lock is more than she can tug on the wheel to unlock the key after inserting it to start.

 

[jomadav]

My neon is stuck at the high school. Wheel is locked and key will not turn. Tried replacing the ignition switch but still have same issue. Help- I need my car.

In my 2005 Neon SXT I had a similar problem. Check the button ( if it's an automatic ) under the shifter. The one you press in to shift from Park to Drive under the actual shift knob itself. Mine would stick occasionally and I couldn't get my key out. It seemed to be electronically locked up. Worth a shot.

 

[B10alia]

+1 on turning the wheel. No need to jack the car up, just turn the wheel away from the lock and try. My '95 Spirit has a similar issue-- when the wheel locks, the tires push the wheel back against the lock hard enough that the key won't turn. I can take it out and put it in, but it won't turn to start the car. Very confusing, but it's a neat little (albeit unintentional) antitheft feature.
"Theft-proof" or "security" Torx bits are actually quite easy to come by nowadays at well-stocked hardware stores... not so theft-proof anymore. However, even if you get the lock retainer plate out, you still may not be able to remove the cylinder itself because of the pressure. If you change the cylinder and have to have a new key cut, you may need both original keys to enable the new one to work with Sentry Key. Many lock shops do not (at least they didn't a couple years ago when I was in the field) have the equipment to program the rolling codes used by the transponders.

 

[BlackSheep01]

Did this fix it?

 

[chuzz]

Don't you just love when the OP never returns?