Cruise Control and leather wheel upgrade for Base Manual S
Posted: Wed Jun 25, 2014 5:25 pm
I bought a leather wrapped wheel from a CVT "s" from a junkyard for $125. After installing it, I have fully functional cruise control and leather-wrapped wheel on my base manual S kizashi.
WARNING: YOU AND YOU ALONE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES THAT MAY RESULT FROM WORKING ON YOUR OWN CAR. NEITHER MYSELF NOR ANYBODY ELSE AT THIS FORUM WILL BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR ANYTHING THAT HAPPENS AS A RESULT OF YOU ATTEMPTING THIS MOD, REGARDLESS OF FAULT.
Now that that's out of the way, here's how to do it.
First, remove negative lead from battery with a 10mm socket and wait a few minutes before doing anything with the airbag.
To remove airbag, undo the two t-30 torx bolts that are behind the spokes of the wheel at 9 and 3 oclock. You can also remove these with a 10mm socket but it will have to be a 1/4 inch drive, 3/8 will be too wide and won't fit through the hole in the plastic case of the steering wheel.
Once airbag is lifted out of wheel, remove the orange and black connectors on the back of it. To do this, use a very small flat-head screwdriver (I used one from an eyeglass repair kit) to lift the yellow part straight up, entering from the wire-side of the connector. This will unlock the connector, and you can now lift the entire plug straight out.
Remove the other connector at 12 o clock which connects the steering wheel buttons to the car. To do this, squeeze the latch on the top in the center of the connector, and it will unlock and slide out.
To remove the wheel, first undo the 17mm bolt in the center. I tried smacking the crap out of the wheel, but it wouldn't budge, so I caved and bought a steering wheel remover tool. It was $15 at NAPA.
Installation of the new wheel is opposite of removal. Torque is 25 lb/ft for the 17mm nut and 7 lb/ft for the t-30 bolts.
A few notes:
1: The splines on the new wheel are not aligned EXACTLY the same as the splines on the old one. My wheel used to be dead-centered when driving straight. Now it is about 5 to 10 degrees to the left. Personally this doesn't bother me, YMMV.
2: I originally bought an AP900C cruise control module from Brandon Distributing at www.brandondist.com for a very good price of $225 for the module and harness. Unfortunately I have no use for it now, and am returning it. Just wanted to shout out that the folks there were very professional and helpful throughout the ordering and returning process, it is a totally legit business.
3: Cruise control only works in 4th gear and above, and at 25mph and above.
4: Oh, and the leather wheel feels great. All told I spent 160 for this mod including the tool, dollar-for-dollar its the best mod i've ever done.
WARNING: YOU AND YOU ALONE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES THAT MAY RESULT FROM WORKING ON YOUR OWN CAR. NEITHER MYSELF NOR ANYBODY ELSE AT THIS FORUM WILL BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR ANYTHING THAT HAPPENS AS A RESULT OF YOU ATTEMPTING THIS MOD, REGARDLESS OF FAULT.
Now that that's out of the way, here's how to do it.
First, remove negative lead from battery with a 10mm socket and wait a few minutes before doing anything with the airbag.
To remove airbag, undo the two t-30 torx bolts that are behind the spokes of the wheel at 9 and 3 oclock. You can also remove these with a 10mm socket but it will have to be a 1/4 inch drive, 3/8 will be too wide and won't fit through the hole in the plastic case of the steering wheel.
Once airbag is lifted out of wheel, remove the orange and black connectors on the back of it. To do this, use a very small flat-head screwdriver (I used one from an eyeglass repair kit) to lift the yellow part straight up, entering from the wire-side of the connector. This will unlock the connector, and you can now lift the entire plug straight out.
Remove the other connector at 12 o clock which connects the steering wheel buttons to the car. To do this, squeeze the latch on the top in the center of the connector, and it will unlock and slide out.
To remove the wheel, first undo the 17mm bolt in the center. I tried smacking the crap out of the wheel, but it wouldn't budge, so I caved and bought a steering wheel remover tool. It was $15 at NAPA.
Installation of the new wheel is opposite of removal. Torque is 25 lb/ft for the 17mm nut and 7 lb/ft for the t-30 bolts.
A few notes:
1: The splines on the new wheel are not aligned EXACTLY the same as the splines on the old one. My wheel used to be dead-centered when driving straight. Now it is about 5 to 10 degrees to the left. Personally this doesn't bother me, YMMV.
2: I originally bought an AP900C cruise control module from Brandon Distributing at www.brandondist.com for a very good price of $225 for the module and harness. Unfortunately I have no use for it now, and am returning it. Just wanted to shout out that the folks there were very professional and helpful throughout the ordering and returning process, it is a totally legit business.
3: Cruise control only works in 4th gear and above, and at 25mph and above.
4: Oh, and the leather wheel feels great. All told I spent 160 for this mod including the tool, dollar-for-dollar its the best mod i've ever done.
i bet the paddle shifters would be plug and play!