Hello all, I have a 2003 Jaguar X type. Just bought it and LOOOOVE It. Except for one small things...
The steering wheel is badly worn and the the airbag is curling up at the edges. I've been doing some research and have found that the newer type steering wheel from the 2004+ jaguar does physically fit.

Does anyone know if the wiring harnesses for the steering wheel controls are the same?

How about the airbag? Would a 2004+ on a 2004+ steering wheel work in an 03 X-type?

The reason I am doing this is that since I am going to have to replace the steering wheel and airbag anyway, Id like to update both to the newer style to avoid the problems I had before. Besides I found a mint black and wood one that I think would look SWEET on my car.

 

I'm pretty sure it's plug and play, should be identical wiring. Jag doesn't change much if they don't need to

 

I have the same problem with the curling... Is there an easy fix??

I have seen wood replacements for the outer steering wheel but no replacement for the air bag bit.

 

I talked to a jaguar service guy and he said the only option to "fix" the curling is to get a whole new airbag, and that the new ones don't seem to have this problem. He didn't sound terribly confident on that, so I decided to go the other route.

 

So it's the airbag curling?

But you can just replace the steering wheel, airbag and all right?

 

Well, technically its the airbag cover thats curling, but they dont sell the cover by itself, so you would have to buy a whole new airbag. The cover has a design flaw where there is nothing supporting the back in the areas by the spokes. If you live a climate that has alot of heat, these will curl up in no time.


My understanding so far is that I can replace the whole thing....iE: steering wheel/ airbag.

Im going from this style
http://tinyurl.com/2d5q8mg

to this style
http://tinyurl.com/2u7qfby

 

Odd, my '04 X has the steering wheel listed as the 2003 style. Was this changed midyear? Can't say for sure, but the steering wheel mounted controls don't look like they would be quite as easy to use on the newer wheel.

 

thats annoying there isn't a way to just replace the cover. how hard is it to change an airbag?

 

My magic 8 ball says, you are right. Just kidding. My understanding is that they were changed for 04. But I dunno. Are you in the US?

 

Not too difficult at all. Heres the procedure.

To remove the old air bag you need a long T30 torx driver. First disconnect the battery and wait about 30 minutes before doing any work. Use the Torx driver and loosen the screws in the side of the steering wheel that hold the air bag. You will see two small round holes. Then disconnect both wiring connectors to remove the airbag. Please be very careful when working on airbags and if you are not comfortable in doing this take it to a professional.

 

Yes, in the US; although I'm the third owner, the car has spent its entire life in the DC metro area (LOL, come to think of it, that's not exactly paradise to a car).

 

Hi, I also have a 2003 x type and the curling problem of the airbag cover. I even got an used airbag but the curling problem returns so I thought changing and upgrading with the new steering wheel but I got the information that it is not plug and play, the wirings are very diferent. I am keeping my old one and the hugly curling cover.

 

is not difficult to change the airbag, I have done it but the curling cover problem returns......and I was told that the new steering wheel after 2004 does not fit cause of wirings.

 

Funny, I guess the conversion I did last year could not have possibly worked...lol. Whoever told you the wiring is different is both wrong and right..... the airbag and steering wheel controls all work "plug and play" with the exception of ONE thing..... the cruise control would not set. What I ended up doing was taking the cruise control module from the old steering wheel, then spliced the harness, made a bracket, and mounted the old module on the bottom left of the column out of sight... Perhaps not the most elegant solution, but it works and doesn't look too bad. One of these days I will get around to figuring out what the jag needs to see to set the cruise. It will turn on, just not set. It may be a resistance value or whatnot....it frankly hasn't been high on my priority list since its "working" at the moment. With the exception of the cruise control, the X Type's steering wheel upgrades were cosmetic. The airbag is mechanically and electronically identical to the old one, Jaguar simply redesigned the cover after a multitude of complaints about it curling.

I don't accept it when people tell me something "can't" be done. "Anything" can be done, its just a matter of knowing "what" and "how" to do it! Just like the Jaguar dealer who claimed there are NO parts in common on the X with any Ford parts, when I can see things with Ford part numbers stamped on them. I tend to find that people say "can't be done" when they don't know how. No offense intended, friend.... just imparting my experience.

 

I am from Portugal and my english not so good but I think I understand that you upgraded yr 2003 steering wheel with one after 2004 ? is that so and the airbag and sound wiring just match ? my steering does not have the cruise control.
I need to be shure of this cause I am thinking of getting a past 2004 steering to solve the curling problem of the old model and do not want to loose money. Can you help ? I was told by a Jaguar dealer that they dont match.
Thanks

 

Well, if you do not have cruise control, then you will have no problem at all. The wiring harnesses are exactly the same, and don't let the dealer tell you otherwise. Ive had my dealer tell me flat out lies about parts interchange. If you have wheel mounted audio controls, those will work as well.

 

I have a 2003 X-type and it has the curling airbag cover problem. I thought about it for a while and finally decided to have the dealer replace the airbag for $650 part and about $100 labor. Given that this is a cosmetic repair only, I wanted/expected it to be perfect. The dealer replaced it with a new part and it looks about the same. I told them I was unhappy. They agreed and ordered another airbag and it also looks the same. They have the car now and are going to attempt to make it look better somehow. Has anyone had a successful airbag replacement for this issue? Any tips welcome. If nothing can be done I am going to ask that they give me the airbag at their cost (about $400+) and no labor. They already activated my original airbag and it is worthless now.

 

Why don't you go for a new steering wheel with a new type of airbag? Everything is the same so it's just plug and play. It's about 15 min to change everything. You can buy all necessary part on ebay.

 

How did this turn out? Do you still use the pre-facelift cruise control module, or did you manage to use the new one? I've been looking at a wood/leather steering wheel swap but it'd make sense to get a post-facelift one to rid myself of the airbag cover curling issue.

 

I changed the steering wheel. There is no need to use the old cruise module as everything works from the new one.

Cheers