vistablue mustang

I just noticed that my leather wrapped steering wheel has a small (about half inch) spot on it that looks the the leather got snagged and has 4 little dent like marks that did not rip through but have a white mark above them. I don't know how it got there, but I am pondering if I should take it in, but I don't want to give my brand new baby over to have interior work done. Especially knowing the likely hood of them scratching something else. So does anyone know how easy/hard this would be for someone to replace?

DynamicmustangGT

its easy if the dealership does it under warrantee, or if you foot the bill to the people who would have snagged it

vistablue mustang

Thats the thing, I don't know how it happened. I just got my stang and I could have missed it at pickup (meaning it came from Ford that way) or I somehow did it my self. I just don't want some guy tearing through my car doing all kinds of who knows what. Thats why I am asking if this is an easy swap on and off or if there is a lot of work that has to be done.

mrkabc

The warranty won't cover it - they'll claim you did it and since you can't prove the dealership damaged it I'm afraid you'll be eating the cost on this one.

The steering wheel R&R isn't too bad, it's the airbag that makes it tricky. Any time you mess with the airbag you have a possibility of being injured or worse.

Others on this board have done it, most notably by disabling the electrical circuit that runs to the bag and disconnecting the battery (and then waiting for a period of time to be "sure!" )

Also in R&Ring your airbag you may trip the computer which will cause your "airbag" light to light up on the dash, necessitating a dealer visit to reset.

DynamicmustangGT

the battery can be unplugged but you need to wait between 5 and 10 (i think thats right? maybe longer)mins otherwise it will still go off. So leave the battery unplugged for an hour or so if you are going to do it yourself. I would recommend having a ford parts manual with you when you replace it.

Cam07

I changed my steering wheel and had the dealership do it. It was cheap...like 20 or 25 dollars.

mikes rx

I did it myself (with the help of my dad...an ex-mechanic in college back in the day). It was pretty simple. But, I have the shop manual, which details what to disengage and how. Also, what's nice about the S197 steering wheel is that NO steering wheel puller is needed. It only takes a few minutes to remove and replace. It actually takes more time making sure that the airbag system is "inactive".

The only hangup we had was removing the harnesses for the airbag assembly itself. It was unlike anything we had seen before, so we were very careful not to break clips or do something worse. Also, I should note that my new steering wheel came with the cruise buttons already, so I didn't have to switch them out (I'm don't think that it would be difficult, but I'm just advising that it will need to be done if you are using your old switches).

Compared to the steering wheel that we replaced on my 2000, this was much easier (again, because the 05-up doesn't require a puller).

Anyway, I would recommend finding a shop manual with the info about how to disengage the airbag (you have to go to three different sections in the manual...it's a do this, then see this section, then see that section). That way, you can see what you're getting into, then go from there in deciding whether or not you want to do it yourself.

Like some others have said, whenever you are dealing with the airbag, there's a *chance* that the airbag could deploy. but, if you know what you're doing, you can minimize those chances to "slim to none". This is where the shop manual comes in handy. Since you're a team mustang source member, you should have access to that info.

mikes rx

One more thing that I forgot to add:

The shop manual states that you need a new nut when you replace the steering wheel. I called up a dealership, and they told me that they've replaced some new steering wheels (not for the mustang, but for other Fords with the new mounting style), and they said that they just reuse the original nut. So, I just re-used my old nut too.

But, I would recommend calling your dealership and asking them what they do (if you provide the part # in the shop manual, they can tell you if they've purchased it before, which is a good start if they've replaced wheels yet haven't purchased the nut). Better safe than sorry.

and one last thing: I don't think you will be able to get it covered under warranty, unless the stitching is falling apart or something. From what you're describing, they will just claim "abuse" or "wear and tear"

karman

If the car is less than a month old, wear and tear doesn't enter into the equation. It would have to be major abuse or willful damage for the dealership to deny it was substandard assembly.

mikes rx

He could have had a ring on that scratched the steering wheel. That's not major abuse, but wouldn't be grounds for warranty work.

It's hard to tell what kind of "damage" he has based off words. Obviously, a picture would be better so that we can see what happened.

It wouldn't hurt to try getting it replaced, but unless it's due to improper manufacturing, I don't think the dealer will replace it, unless they really want to value your business (which is possible).

vistablue mustang

Don't have a pic, but the dealership I am going to for the service is not the one I bought the car from, so I don't know how much they "care" about me returning for future business. The marks kind of look like bubbles in the leather, so I will see how this goes. I am going in tomorrow to let them look at that and the crackeling noise from behind my Tachometer (I had this on my V6 and they replaced my tach but that dealership is closed now), but I did not like his attitude so it may be time to find another dealership for service, we will see.........by the way anyone know how much a new steering wheel would cost? Cam07 I can't believe it was only 25 dollars, can that be right?

mikes rx

The IUP wheel is ~ $150. The cheap plastic wheel may possiblyl be found for $25 on ebay.

BTW, what crackling noise behind the tach are you talking about. If you're talking about the noise that the gauges make when turn the key to on (without starting the engine), mine do the same thing. I thought that it was normal...

kevinb120

Are you nuts? Take it into the dealer, we have a girl that fixes leather issues comes in every Friday. It'd be fixed in 20 minutes. If it's a defect, you'll get a new wheel.

vistablue mustang

Well, the dealer I took it to said it's not covered under warranty. He said the famous "if you bought it here, we would replace it out of good nature" so he recommended I take it back to where I bought it. Either way I am working on doing that, just need the time and to get a good pic of it, which is proving impossible.

As for the crackling noise it's the same sound you describe but, it keeps doing it after the guages rise while the car is idle.

mikes rx

I highly doubt that they would have just changed it out if you bought the car there under "good nature", as that would have cost them money.

Ford reimburses the dealership for warranty claims, so they could have just said there was a defect in the steering wheel, and then have all costs reimbursed, costing them NOTHING.

So, sorry for the bad luck. I wonder if you made a comment like, "Well, you're closer, and you're the dealer that I want to get my service, etc done at...", if that would have made a difference.

Also, would you please let me know what they said about that gauge issue.

DynamicmustangGT

I would never consider them for anything ever again. Don't even bring it there for service again.

vistablue mustang

Thing of it is I am running out of places for service. This guy was one my grandparents went to for their Mercury all the time. He is a nice enough guy just not willing to help. Mike I did not even ask about it when I went as I did not have time that day for them to go through the process of calling Ford ect, ect. So that will have to wait.

Back to the running out of dealers comment. The other local dealer was very rude when I brought the tach noise up. His responce was "sure we can look at the noise, but seeing as your so sensitive to noises you should know that if we have to take the gague cluster out we make create additional squeeks and rattles that you did not have before." So basically they tell me if you want this looked at we may fix one problem and make 4 more. Seeing as my car makes ZERO noises from anywhere (except the spare tire which I just tightened) this scared me off real quick. I am literally running out of dealers.