How in blue blazes do you get the steering wheel cover off? The one that covers the air bag. I may have to replace the clock spring. I'm confident that I can do this job without setting off the air bag as I'm following some instructions that I've downloaded but it doesn't say how to remove the very first thing that needs to be removed. The two torx screws on the back of the steering wheel are not the answer. I think that they hold the air bag module in place. Has anyone here done this job and can guide me in removing the air bag cover in the middle of the steering wheel?

 

Those two screws hold the speed control switches in place. Remove them, then remove the speed control switches. Under the switches you should find the bolts that hold the airbag in place.

Before you start working, disconnect the battery and wait two minutes to de-energize the airbag firing system. The waiting is important because the system is designed to be able to fire the airbag even if the battery is destroyed in a crash.

 

I had removed the battery cable and gave it about ten minutes for the capacitor to discharge. After removing the two torx screws at the back of the steering wheel, I tried to remove the cover first but then tried to remove the cruise control switches but stopped for fear of breaking something. I guess I will have to have another go at it this weekend. I've been wrenching my own vehicles since the late sixties and if there is one thing that I've learned it's patience. That and that I hate to pay someone else good money to do something that I could have done.

 

My patience has paid off. It was just as dcotter had said. After removing the cruise control switches, two larger torx screws and the whole air bag and cover assembly comes right off. It was getting the cruise control switches off that stumped me for a while. They lift straight toward you. Initially they were being held back by the steering wheel/airbag cover. After fiddling with it for ten minutes one of the switches popped off and examining it showed me how they mount and the other was easy. Now it's only a matter of removing the steering wheel and old clockspring switch and rplace and reassemble. If anyone else wants to try this be sure to disconnect the battery and wait for the airbag capacitor to discharge. I gave it 30 minutes. I also removed the two airbag fuses.