Ignition switch problem ahhhh please help!

[daledubourg]

hi all I'm new to the forum, but not new the headaches that general motors seems to create

first off i own a 1994 pontiac grand prix with the 3.1

heres my issue ive had all the common problem pointing me to a new ignition switch, random lights on the dash, sometimes starting sometimes not so on and so forth... I coughed up the change for a new one crawled under the dash to change it, after a little bit of struggle i got it out and went to get the new one in. Something didnt seem right to me so i started tearing more apart to identify the issue, and i saw this

 

now i could be wrong but looking at this i think that bar coming from the column is supposed to be attached to the switch, also when i turn the key through all the positions that bar wants to press against that switch which seems odd to me. anyway im at a loss here im not sure what this was supposed to look like before i took it apart and also how much this bar is supposed to move and how to fix whatever is broken. Any help would be greatly appreciated

[ron350]

Doesn’t the rod go in the hole in the ignition switch before you bolt it down?

Look at the wear mark on the steering column where the switch rod has been moving.

[daledubourg]

Thank you Thank you Thank you! I owe you a beer!

[19Cutlass94]

That metal rod goes into the hole on the ignition switch on that side. When you turn the key, its that metal rod that moves the ignition switch bewteen all its points.

[ron350]

Did the same thing years ago on the first GM switch I replaced.