Steering Column Repair: 1997 Chevy Tahoe Ignition, chevy tahoe, torx bit

Question
I have a 1997 chevy Tahoe 4wd 5.7L. I have had an on going problem with the ignition switch that for the most part happens randomly. Basically the ignition circuit looses power and the car dies. This may happen when the car is running (in motion and at rest) also when the ignition is switched on from the off position. I have narrowed it down to the ignition switch. Is this a common problem in these cars? It seems if thier are contacts in the switch that are bad I should be able to repeat the problem but I can't. That fact and the price of the part lead me to believe that it is elctronic and not actual contacts, is that true? Another question I have is where can I find the rally small inverted torx bit to take the switch/module out with? I think it is a T6 size?


Answer
Hi,

I don't know this to be a common problem. I believe in 1997 you have contacts. In 1998 up it got screwy because of their anti-theft system that used a magnetic field to sense the rotation of the lock.
Snap-on, Matco and maybe Sears or a Hardware store will get you the inverted torx you need.