Patent ID: 7393014

Claim:
A vehicle steering assembly, comprising: a steering column; a mounting plate adapted to be carried by the vehicle and having a slot and a raised contact surface adjacent to at least part of the slot; a bracket coupled to the mounting plate, operably coupled to at least a portion of the steering column, and having at least one opening aligned with the slot in the mounting plate; and a coupler extending through the slot and the opening, and having a head overlying at least a portion of the contact surface, and a connecting portion overlying a portion of the bracket to releasably retain the position of the bracket relative to the mounting plate wherein the combined thickness of all members between the head and the connecting portion is greater when the head overlies the contact surface than when the head is not overlying the contact surface so that a greater clamping force is applied by the coupler to all members between the head and the connecting portion when the head overlies the contact surface than when the head is not overlying the contact surface.