[njsteve]

I spent the day pulling apart the steering column to fix the tilt assembly. All late 1960's through the late 1970's Ford tilt units have a flaw in their design. The .25 cent pin that is supposed to be press fitted into the lower tilt housing slides half way out over the years and no longer fully engages with the teeth on the locking pawl assembly. So if you tilt the wheel and apply pressure downward, it will disengage and ratchet down into your lap. Rather disconcerting if it happens while you're driving.

Luckily my Grandfather bought all the repair manuals for the car back in 1971 so I just followed the instructions on how to get to that spot in the column. Three hours later I arrived at the destination.

A Cougar specialty store sells an upgraded pin made from tool steel that has C-clips on both ends so it wont slide out. I had to get mine out to get the correct measurements before buying it.

You can see from the photos, the hanging pin, and the chipped bottom tooth on the pawl. Luckily this is the uppermost tilted position that only Private Detective Frank Cannon needed to drive his car.