Question: 1997 crown victoria lx can't turn on and can't turn off accessories?

1997 FORD CROWN VICTORIA
99,625 MILES • 4.6L • V8 • RWD • AUTOMATIC
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CUZZY187
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Ok so i put the keys in the car turn the key but seems to me it moves more freely no type of resistense accessories are all on but when i turn the car on it doesn't turn over. Not only that but now i cant turn the accessories off i have to disconnect the battery. when i took out the ignition cylinder i went to auto part store to replace it but it wasn't the problem i took the steering column off to see whats going on. It has something to do with the piece inside this metal part it moves to freely cant turn on car or turn off accessories found a piece of black plastic in the ignition cylinder don't know if it had something to do with it. Cant someone PLEASE give me some help. key won't turn off accessories or turn car over and ignition cylinder turns too freely back and forth no resistense ?
May 26, 2014 at 9:02 PM
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CARADIODOC
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If you have tilt wheel, there's a two-piece plastic slide that connects on top on the back side of the lock cylinder, and on the bottom it attaches to the ignition switch. The bottom piece has a curved slot, about half an inch long, at the upper end, and the upper piece has a hole on the lower end. A small metal pin goes in that hole, and the other end rides in the slot of the lower piece. Together they form a link between the lock cylinder and the ignition switch that can flex in the middle when you move the tilt wheel up and down. Most commonly the metal pin falls out of the hole, so all you're doing is moving the upper half of the link, and not the lower half or the ignition switch.

The column is real miserable to take apart, but you'll find two bolts, one on each side, that are the hinge pins for the tilt wheel. If you remove those, it will reduce the pressure on the tilt wheel spring, so you can remove it without too much trouble. Look for the missing pin on the floor of the car. It's silver, about 3/4" long, and about 1/8" in diameter. Push that pin back into its hole, then pop the lower half of the slide over it. You'll probably need a strong needle nose pliers to squeeze the tilt spring to pop it back into place. It's easiest to do if you do that before you reinstall the hinge bolts.
May 26, 2014 at 10:10 PM