The ignition lock cylinder on my 1988 F-150 is stuck in the "lock" position. If I could get it to the "run" position, then I know how to remove and replace it. But that's now out of the question as I have already buggered up the cylinder by trying to drill it out with, so far, no success. Does anyone here know how a Ford dealer would go about removing such a broken lock cylinder? I'm guessing there's a plug in the housing that must be drilled out to access the pin holding in the cylinder.

Thanks.

 

Is it a tilt column? If so, the pin to drill is right below the lock cylinder. If it's a non-tilt, you have to pull the steering wheel to drill the pin.

I've never done it, but you can find detailed instruction at the site where these pics came from - Chilton's

 

Thanks, Steve83, for your reply. Yes, it IS a tilt column and I have already removed the steering wheel and the turn signal assembly. Those are nice drawings you included but I'm a bit confused. You see, I can't move the lock to the "run" or "on" position. Does that matter? Should I go ahead and drill at that same place anyway? As long as the lock can be moved to the "run" position, then removal of the cylinder is straightforward.

Please let me know if you think I should drill into the access hole even if the cylinder is stuck in the "lock" position.

Bye!

 

Click the "Chilton's" link in my previous post and look up the instructions. They tell exactly what to do.

 

Wow! That's a great Web site! Yeah, it DOES look like I should drill through the access hole. I've already drilled through the lock cylinder.

Thanks very much for the reference. I'll let you know tomorrow if I get that thing out of there.

 

OK. Just a follow-up to let you know that the information online at the Chilton's site was accurate and I was, indeed, able to extract the broken ignition lock cylinder in the manner described there.

Thanks again to Steve 83.

 

My 1988 F-150's lock cylinder has broken... so I can't turn the ignition ON to remove it. The previous posts said to drill out the access hole, but I can't find a diagram to show where. I have the steering wheel off already but don't want to drill the wrong thing! The very tip of the cylinder broke off inside the housing and the center of lock cylinder came out, leaving only the larger piece of the cylinder in place. What a mess.......

I tried the website listed as well, but it's not a good link. And the Chilton website now charges to look at anything, unless I haven't looked in the right spot. So if someone can show me a diagram and point out what to drill or tell me what else to try, I'd really appreciate it!!!

Michael