This steering wheel and column repair section
covers the Supplemental Restraint System (SRS)
steering column. The following repair procedures
are specific to SRS Components. When servicing a
vehicle equipped with Supplemental Restraint
System, pay close attention to all WARNINGS and
CAUTIONS.
For detailed explanation about SRS, refer to Section
12M "SUPPLEMENTAL RESTRAINT SYSTEM (SRS)"
of manual.
The steering column has three important features in
addition to the steering function:
1. The column is energy absorbing, designed to
compress in a front-end collision to minimize
the possibility of injury to the driver of the
vehicle.
2. The ignition switch and lock are mounted
conveniently on the column.
3. With the column mounted lock, the ignition
and steering operation can be locked to
prevent theft of the vehicle.
The column may be disassembled and
reassembled. To insure the energy absorbing
action, it is important that the specified screws,
bolts and nuts be used only as designated and that
they are tightened to the specified torque.
When the column is removed from the vehicle, a
sharp blow on the end of steering shaft or shift
lever, leaning on the column assembly, or dropping
the assembly could shear or loosen the fasteners
that maintain column rigidity.
WARNING
THIS VEHICLE HAS A SUPPLEMENTAL RE-
STRAINT SYSTEM (SRS). REFER TO THE SRS
COMPONENT AND WIRING LOCATION VIEW
IN ORDER TO DETERMINE WHETHER YOU ARE
PERFORMING SERVICE ON OR NEAR THE SRS
COMPONENTS OR THE SRS WIRING. WHEN
YOU ARE PERFORMING SERVICE ON OR NEAR
THE SRS COMPONENTS OR THE SRS WIRING,
REFER TO THE SRS SERVICE INFORMATION.
FAILURE TO FOLLOW WARNINGS COULD RE-
SULT IN POSSIBLE AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT,
PERSONAL INJURY, OR OTHERWISE UN-
NEEDED SRS SYSTEM REPAIRS.
SAFE HANDLING OF INFLATOR MODULES
REQUIRES FOLLOWING THE PROCEDURES
DESCRIBED BELOW FOR BOTH LIVE AND
DEPLOYED MODULES.
SAFETY PRECAUTIONS MUST BE FOLLOWED
WHEN HANDLING A DEPLOYED AIR BAG AS-
SEMBLY (AIR BAG). AFTER DEPLOYMENT,
THE AIR BAG ASSEMBLY (AIR BAG) SURFACE
MAY CONTAIN A SMALL AMOUNT OF SODIUM
HYDROXIDE, A BY-PRODUCT OF THE DEPLOY-
MENT REACTION, THAT IS IRRITATING TO THE
SKIN AND EYES. MOST OF THE POWDER ON
THE AIR BAG ASSEMBLY (AIR BAG) IS HARM-
LESS. AS A PRECAUTION, WEAR GLOVES
AND SAFETY GLASSES WHEN HANDLING A
DEPLOYED AIR BAG ASSEMBLY, AND WASH
YOUR HANDS WITH MILD SOAP AND WATER
AFTERWARDS.
WHEN CARRYING A LIVE AIR BAG ASSEMBLY,
MAKE SURE THE BAG AND TRIM COVER ARE
POINTED AWAY FROM YOU. NEVER CARRY
AN AIR BAG ASSEMBLY BY THE WIRES OR
CONNECTOR ON THE UNDERSIDE OF MODULE.
IN THE CASE OF AN ACCIDENTAL DEPLOY-
MENT, THE BAG WILL THEN DEPLOY WITH
MINIMAL CHANCE OF INJURY. WHEN PLACING
A LIVE AIR BAG ASSEMBLY ON A BENCH OR
OTHER SURFACE, ALWAYS FACE THE BAG AND
TRIM COVER UP, AWAY FROM THE SURFACE.
NEVER REST A STEERING COLUMN ASSEMBLY
ON THE STEERING WHEEL WITH THE AIR
BAG ASSEMBLY FACE DOWN AND COLUMN
VERTICAL. THIS IS NECESSARY SO THAT A
FREE SPACE IS PROVIDED TO ALLOW THE AIR
BAG ASSEMBLY TO EXPAND IN THE UNLIKELY
EVENT OF ACCIDENTAL DEPLOYMENT. OTHER-
WISE, PERSONAL INJURY COULD RESULT.
TO AVOID DEPLOYMENT WHEN TROUBLE
SHOOTING THE SRS SYSTEM, DO NOT USE
ELECTRICAL TEST EQUIPMENT, SUCH AS
BATTERY-POWERED OR A/C-POWERED VOLT-
METER, OHMMETER, ETC., OR ANY TYPE OF
ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT OTHER THAN SPECI-
FIED IN THIS MANUAL. DO NOT USE A NON-
POWERED PROBE-TYPE TESTER.
INSTRUCTIONS IN THIS MANUAL MUST BE
FOLLOWED CAREFULLY, OTHERWISE PER-
SONAL INJURY MAY RESULT.
GENERAL DESCRIPTION