I did two very dumb things. First, I tried to use my key as a lever to remove the lid from a pot. It broke. Second, I inserted the broken key into the ignition and attempted to start the car. The broken piece is stuck deep in the ignition. I removed the entire ignition and a locksmith came over to try and remove the broken key, with no luck. He said it was too stuck and since the key won't turn, it's inaccessible.

I'll probably continue to try and remove the broken key with the little lockpicking tools, hot glue, or whatever, but I don't expect that to work. I could keep trying locksmiths but that seems unlikely to work. So at this point, what are my options?

I assume it's near impossible to get a new tumbler given that it took about 15 months for a new key a couple years ago. It seems to me like I should be able to tape the fob to a screwdriver and use that as a key, but for now, even a screwdriver will not turn the tumbler. Would it be possible to replace the ignition with a used one, using the transponder ring from my car and the chip from my broken key fob? Could I somehow hot wire the car given that there are no skreem issues? It's a 6-speed '04.

Any advice would be much appreciated, thanks!