So the steering wheel locked up because the engine cut off? Must be due to the push-button ignition, the old manual key ignition switches won’t lock up if fully engaged, and it has to be in order for the engine to be running.
The cars in question were the econobox Cobalts and it’s mutations.
Supposedly if you have 5 pounds of useless junk on your key ring it wears out the lock and can cause it to slip out of the “run” position.