Busted ignition - ignition cylinder rod replacement

[cmw]

Just played this game myself.

1999 LC with ~330k feel like I leaned on or bumped the steering wheel while turning the key, lucky the rod broke in the OFF position.

Points I might add or stress:

Watch the video a few times, it really does cover the topic
Read post #180 as to inserting the new rod
You should not need to remove the ignition switch (the "white thing") it needs to be loosed to create a ~1/8" gap
Fishing out the broken-off stub with a bent wire was a BI+CH, hemostats would have helped
I didn't need to disconnect any electrical connectors from the bracket assembly or ignition switch
A 3" piece of galvanized conduit was the perfect size to hold back the steering lock bolt, approx ID .615 OD .715
Made a 7"pick with a 90° 1/4" end to push the steering lock bolt
Replacement 7850B rod from Amazon required delicate file-work to reinstall the brass bits

WRT installing the new rod, as described in post #180
Put the ignition switch fully to OFF (fully counter-clockwise with a long flat head screwdriver)
The white ignition switch needs to be away from the back/bottom of the tube 1/8" (screws loosened)
The rod needs to be inserted in to the housing with the brass tab at 12 o'clock and wiggled a little counter-clockwise to seat
The rod is then turned to put the tab at ~4pm - this is the ACC position to match the lock cylinder because...
The key cylinder within the lock MUST be turned to ACC for the cylinder to be inserted into the housing
Once the lock is back in the housing, having easily mated to the properly positioned rod, turn the key to OFF
With the key set to OFF you can now press the ignition switch back into place easily, indicating everything is aligned.
Tighten the screws securing the white ignition switch.


Conduit and pick are going into the vehicle tool bag

 

[saucebox]

Oof, not even my worst enemy. Finally back on the road after 2 months of diag, broken parts, and a severe inability to work on it more than an hour or two at a time. Root cause on this one: me. Heavy 37" tires/steering, less than careful sometimes during crank, and somewhere in the process of getting things replaced I broke the ground wire for an aftermarket alarm system and just wiped out any immobilizer signal.

Even with 36 pages of the right answer, I still managed to install it 180º out, which creates the super fun condition of your steering locking up when driving. So you park it, and get to the second condition: battery drain. Yeesh—so very, very strange that it's designed this way.

All said though, thanks to all that did all the figuring out and posted here. Chunky to read through and sort out which position applies to which model year, but it's here. I'm no longer considering arson.

 

[Tinkerer]

...Root cause on this one: me. Heavy 37" tires/steering, less than careful sometimes during crank, ...

Was not tracking this forum for a while, missed this issue. Holy cow. Hope my stock wheels/tires and unloading steering wheel lock while turning key save me from this. Don't have time or inclination to replace as PM.

 

[Tinkerer]

Given the time and hassle to replace the rod, plus the pitfalls and the likelihood of sub-par aftermarket rod which may itself break in service, why not just replace the assembly, $251 + shipping for OEM Toyota part 45280-60510 ?

Busted ignition - ignition cylinder rod replacement - https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/busted-ignition-ignition-cylinder-rod-replacement.57050/post-15177004

https://lexus.oempartsonline.com/oem-parts/lexus-upper-bracket-4528060510

Time is money. $251 seems like a good investment to make the repair much easier, less time-consuming, and more likely to last.

Side note: There are multiple aftermarket 7853B compatible rods on Amazon. That implies that this is significant problem worldwide, creating a market for rods.