Please remember I am a newbie to this forum so I hope this is not a stupid question.

Would it not be easier to just pull the fuse? That way all the other "memory" settings don't have to be reset? Or does the car some how remember all the radio, seat, keyfob, etc. presets?

 

I took many steering wheels off, and I never disconnected the battery. I am NOT suggesting to anyone to do it, but that's the way I do it, and I assume the risks.

Now,....pulling the fuse will not render the airbag "safe". The capacitors need to be emptied, and the only way to do this is to disconnect the battery (BOTH sides!), and then touch positive and negative together for 10 seconds (AFTER THEY WERE DISCONNECTED FROM THE BATTERY!!). This will ERASE everything, and empty all capacitors. At that point the airbags are "safe".

So few years back, my BMW was parked behind my warehouse, locked. A forklift operator didn't see it, and slammed into it (HARD!). The airbags did not deploy. The car was empty and locked with alarm on (it went off of course).

So I started taking steering wheels off without disconnecting the battery. Just to see if it can be done. And it worked for me so far (three steering wheels, and front X308 seats removed and reinstalled so far).

Like I said,.....I don't recommend anyone doing it. If you do, you are on your own. Couple of months ago I replaced a steering wheel on my S430, and my front seats in X308 back in November. I think the airbags are active only if the key is in the ignition, and I KNOW for sure that the passenger's airbag does not deploy during the crash, if there is nobody sitting in the front passenger's seat (I've seen MANY vehicles after the crash, where only the driver's bag deployed, if only the driver was present).

Anyway,.......battery disconnected or not: Place the wheel in the most downward position (easier access to the screws), remove two screws from behind the airbag, disconnect the airbag, disconnect the switches, remove the center nut, and the wheel is off. All together 15-20 min at the most.

 

Thanks for the info.

Are there any adjustments for the airbag module? I mentioned that I had my "old" airbag put on my "new" steering wheel, and the final result is that the airbag doesn't seem to fit as nicely on the new wheel as the old one - it sticks out a bit more on one side than the other. I would've notice if that was how it fit on the old wheel.

 

I don't think so. But my old airbag does not fit as nice in the new wheel, as it was in the old, on my S430. Almost like they were made for a specific wheel (imposible!).