Alright so i have multiple issues going on that i was hoping i could all take car of at the same time.
1-my brights on can be turned on and off when my tilt wheel is in the highest possible position
2-my left turn signal light comes on but does not blink (to be honest i havent' checked if the bulb is out yet so that might be that problem)
3- my ignition cylinder is busted because the car was stolen from the previous owner. i know its a big hassel to remove the wheel and all that and i was hoping someone could help me through that, as well as the fact that my mechanic told me that i would have to have the dealership do it to get something recoded (i really have no idea what he was talking about)
i'd really appreaciate help because i would like to do as much on this car myself as i can (partly to save money, partly to kill time)

 

#2 is most likely a burnt out bulb. It's pretty easy to change. Have someone check the front and back when you turn the signal on. You will then know if it the front or rear that is burned out.

I would highly recommend purchasing a Haynes repair manual. Any time I have any issues with my car, I refer to that manual. 9 times out of 10 it has all the info you need. I just flipped through mine and it has the instructions on how to replace your ignition lock cylinder.

 

there is a switch mounted to the steering column up under the dash that can be adjusted for the hi low beam issue. You might have to drop the steering column down to get access to it.

 

OK if the column has been jacked from a theft /attempted theft then you are going to need to get the column fixed properly for this all to work right. Now if they jacked the column for the best way to get the car started they hit the bowl on the left side and ripped out a chunk to get to the rack and then pulled the rack out to start the car. This is the side of the column that the rod for the hi/low beam switch is located on. THe mech for the hi/lo is usually damaged with the jacking for the ignition.

I used to rebuild these columns for a couple of the local body shops in the area. I would spend about $45 in parts, the body shop would provide the core or if I had a core laying around (I usually had a few since they were so popular) and I would get $100 - $150 depending on if it had an air bag or not. It was a pretty good business until the theifs stopped stealing the GM and Chrysler products that used that column. (yes chrylsers had the same column). If you are not sure what you are doing I would say buy a column from a wrecking yard and just swap the whole thing out. This is a very complex column and if you dont get things lined up properly you can have issues including blowing the airbag or making the airbag inop, or of course what you have now.

Massey

 

A 97 Firebird with the 3.8/auto setup and a gray interior just hit the local U-Pull-It. There was even a genuine GM pellet key in the ignition cylinder yesterday afternoon. Price with air bag would be $100. Is the Camaro column the same?

 

Yes they are the same and $100 for the column and airbag is a great price. Even without the air bag that is about the average price for a column. The key will not work in your car without getting your BCM reprogramed. That costs about $100 ish at GM to do. Also you cant swap the keys from one column to the other but be careful about the airbag coil, dont over wind it or it will break on you. Trust me on that one I cost my body shop a coil from over winding one in a 91 Firebird.

Massey