steering wheel removal....

Cliff330i said:

Guys, I got the DYI instructions from the 330ci site. It says that because the battery is disconnected, the trip computer and clock have to be reset. I was wondering, does the air bag light come on and have to reset at the dealer? I also have the navigation system. Bascially, I don't want to make any trips to the dealer. So, anyone that knows, please share your info. :thumb:
Regards -Cliff

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The reason why you HAVE to disconnect the battery is a) You can't possibly set off the airbag by accident and b) you won't trigger the airbag warning light. If you disconnect the battery then you don't have to worry about that.

Hack, one more question if I may....

The whole reason for me asking this question is because the wheel is not centered correctly. The car is in alignment after the dealer did so. After they gave me the car back, it was off to the right so I asked them to fix it. They gave it back to me and now they over compensated and it's turned too much to the left. Basically, when I remove the center bolt, and I see the spline marks, will the wheel spin freely around the center or do I have to take the wheel off and put it back on straight? Do you get me? When I look at pics of this process on 330ci.com, I see something resembling gear teeth like there is some mesh that keeps it in place. Could you clarify this for me? Thanks Hack. -Cliff

Re: Hack, one more question if I may....

Cliff330i said:

The whole reason for me asking this question is because the wheel is not centered correctly. The car is in alignment after the dealer did so. After they gave me the car back, it was off to the right so I asked them to fix it. They gave it back to me and now they over compensated and it's turned too much to the left. Basically, when I remove the center bolt, and I see the spline marks, will the wheel spin freely around the center or do I have to take the wheel off and put it back on straight? Do you get me? When I look at pics of this process on 330ci.com, I see something resembling gear teeth like there is some mesh that keeps it in place. Could you clarify this for me? Thanks Hack. -Cliff

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Your question sounds a little confusing to me, so I'm going to answer to the best of my abilities and what I know:

First of all, I must again :bigpimp: Bentley's Manual. If you don't already own one, it's well worth the $80 spent. It goes into detail issues regarding alignment and how to install/remove the steering wheel with pictures.

Anyway, according to the Bentley's manual, there's a center mark on the "teeth" or gear looking insert on the steering wheel and the steering column to indicate a perfect alignment. Those should be lined up perfectly. There's also a line in there about "align steering wheel to alignment pins located on steering column switch block", then install the center bolt. My best guess is when your dealership re-aligned the steering wheel, they just moved the wheel 1 or 2 notches off center on the hub.

I hope this helps. :dunno: