I presume you disconnect the battery before unplugging the steering wheel to reset it.

 

ianb, what are you attempting to reset? The information that you provide does not give me enough information to adequately answer your question. Also, stating the specific make and year of the car is also helpful as some years have oddities associated with them and I would hate to tell you something that causes something much worse to occur.

P.S. Welcome to the Forums. I think you will find that we are a friendly bunch here and love to help out people. With that being said, because we are friendly, we like to get to know one another. We ask that you stop by the New Member section and tell us a little bit about you and your kitty. There you will learn who the movers and shakers are around here.

 

Hi Thermo, My car is a 53 2.1 petrol X type with 40000 miles in red. Just bought it, its a nice looking car.I think any way. I have had hassle with the garage I bought it from. trading standards thing. One thing they did not reset the wheel after it had been tracked. Rather than retrack it I would like to reset the wheel in the right position. The tracking is spot on. I have done this before but not with car with a air bag in it. I understand this could get messy if it goes off. I have been told that you take the battery off before you unplug the bag from the wheel, will research a lot more before i take the plunge. Ta

 

ianb, if the steering wheel is angled to one side, that is telling me that the last guy that aligned the car did not do it right. They are supposed to get the steering wheel straight and then make the wheels point straight ahead from that point.

NOw, if you want to straighten the wheel by simply pulling the steering wheel off and then reclocking the steering wheel, then yes, disconnect the battery, wait about 5 minutes for the residual power to decay away. From there, you can unbolt the airbag and then remove the steering wheel without fear of the airbag accidentally going off.