How to: Steering wheel control w/ 3G steering wheel
Okay, since I don't find one here on the forum, I shall make one here.
Like any other how-to threads, I'm not responsible for any damage to your vehicle, evaluate the feasibility before you dive in ;)
This project is heavily influenced by this thread:
http://www.club3g.com/forum/car-audi...ge=1&_k=0ogjax
So I have been wanting to get my steering wheel swapped to 3G steering wheel for so long, and has been watching a few items on eBay, until one day when I saw a picture of the back of this 2003 3G wheel, there are these buttons that draws my attention, and later realized they are for radio control, and after lots of research and confirm, mine's is working flawlessly now.
Let us begin!
Ingredient:
- 3G Steering Wheel w/ the buttons on (this features becomes available since 2003 with probably the infinity package, or something like that)
- 3G airbag (if you are coming straight from the 8G steering wheel)
http://i646.photobucket.com/albums/u...C/P1000138.jpghttp://i646.photobucket.com/albums/u...C/P1000139.jpg
http://i646.photobucket.com/albums/u...C/P1000140.jpg
- Harness that connects the control buttons and cruise control to the clockspring (it should come with the 3G wheel, but just double check)
http://i646.photobucket.com/albums/u...C/P1000141.jpg
- 2003+ clockspring, MR583934 (it should be the same as the 2003 Galant, but I had some trouble with a used one off a 2003 Galant, so I would suggest either get it off from a 2003+ Eclipse or new from wherever still have it stock)
http://i646.photobucket.com/albums/u...C/P1000143.jpg
you will realize that the older clocksprings don't have this plug hole in the front
http://i646.photobucket.com/albums/u...C/P1000142.jpg
- The plugs and wires that comes from the car to the back of the 2003+ clockspring (if you get the clockspring off from a 2003+ 3G it should come with it, just cut the wires and leave the plugs on, or if you are driving a 2003 8G, then leave the yellow plug alone)
- Universal Steering wheel control interface (I suppose any interface that supports the 3G Eclipse will work, but FYI I am using the Axxess ASWC-1, it is self-programmed and easy to connect, I can even reassign the buttons to different functions)
http://i646.photobucket.com/albums/u...C/P1000146.jpg
- A headunit that supports steering wheel control (for myself, I picked the Pioneer DEH-X6900BT)
Tools:
- 17mm socket wrench and breaker bar
- T27/T30 torx bit (can't remember exactly which one, and the handle of course)
- philip screw driver
- flat head screw driver
- soldering tools
- Lots of muscle power
Sorry for whatever confusion these maybe causing, see if some pictures later on will help :)
Assuming you have the parts ready, on your 8G:
1) Before everything starts, disconnect the negative terminal on the battery, wait for awhile, some suggest about 15 mins.
2) Use the T27/T30 torx to unscrew the screws on the back of the steering wheel, both sides, they should be just on top of the cruise control and the other side. These screw won't come out completely, so just keep unscrew them until the airbag/horn can freely comes out. (It may drop, so be careful, be gentle to the wire of the airbag)
3) Unplug the airbag plug and the horn connector, a flat head screw driver may come in handy here, but the horn you can just use your muscle to pull it out.
4) Unplug the cruise control wire.
5) Use the 17mm socket w/ breaker bar, lose the nut at center, then use the wrench to remove it.
6) The wheel should be very tight fitted on the steering wheel column, don't use a hammer to try to lose it, use a steering wheel puller or just muscle, wiggle it, do whatever you can to pull the steering wheel off.
7) Take out the steering column cover off by unscrewing 3 (or 4 maybe) screws underneath the column, there should be one right next to the ignition, and probably 2 next to the lever adjust. Undo the screws and use a wrapped small flathead screw driver to pry between the upper and lower part of the cover, and they should come out in two pieces.
8) Now you should be able to see the clockspring, at the 1 o'clock and 7:30 position you should be able to find two screws, undo them, then the clockspring should be free to come off.
9) Unplug those 2 plugs behind the clockspring, cut the wires, since the new clockspring won't fit the old plugs (unless you drives a 2003 8G, then don't cut the yellow plug - the airbag plug - and it's wires, you can reuse them)
10) Time for soldering~ with the reference of the old 8G, solder the wire together
Picture of the 2003 Galant plugs on the clockspring
http://i646.photobucket.com/albums/u...C/P1000144.jpg
Picture of the 2003 Eclipse plugs (same direction)
http://i646.photobucket.com/albums/u...C/P1000145.jpg
As you can see, on the Galant plug, it only has wires on slot 1,2,3, and 6, while the Eclipse has all 6 slots filled. Hanging on the galant it should now have four wires that has the same color as the 2003 Galant plug(Black/Silver, Red, Orange, and Gray), one or two could be different, but they should be the same in general. Solder them onto the 2003 Eclipse plug, in the pattern as if you are soldering them on the 2003 Galant plug. Then of course, if you are not driving a 2003 Galant, also solder the wires on the yellow plug (yellow and yellow/black), match the color accordingly.
Now, you should have all the wires on the yellow plug and 4 wires on the other plug connected, there should be 2 more wires hanging on the Eclipse plug, specifically those 2 on slot 4 and 5, they should be green/orange and green/black, they are the new wires for steering wheel control, connect (solder) them to your interface.
I may explain a bit about the interface, though with all the resources you can possibly find with the Axxess ASWC-1, it is well explained...
http://i646.photobucket.com/albums/u...C/P1000147.jpg
http://i646.photobucket.com/albums/u...C/P1000148.jpg
In the box you will find all these cables, don't get scared with the one that has like 10 wires on, we just need 4 of them:
- The one with a plug on, kinda looks like a 2.5mm earphone plug, this one goes to the back of the headunit.
- Black, the ground, connect this to a bare metal, just like what you will do with a new headunit. *Sidenote: Do not ground this with any other devices' grounding point, it will makes the interface act weird.
- Red, power, connect it with the headunit's power wire
- orange/green, connect this with the orange/green on the Eclipse plug
Tada, you are done with the interface~
Now we only have the green/black wire left not finished on the Eclipse, get a new wire and extend it to a grounding point (ground it), this one you can share with the headunit.
By now there should be no more wire left, only plugs, so start putting things back together
11) Put the clockspring onto the steering column, don't forget the screws on 1 o'clock and 7:30 position.
12) Put the column cover back on and of course don't forget the screws.
13) Put the 3G steering wheel on, put the 'Y' shape harness on, meaning plug into the clockspring (underneath the center nut position), the cruise control, and the radio control on both sides.
14) Screw in and tighten the center nut
15) Connect the airbag and horn plug onto the airbag
16) Put the airbag back on to the right position, and tighten the T27/T30 torx screw until the airbag won't fall off, and real tight.
Now step away from the driver's seat, reconnect the negative terminal on the battery, and start the car from the passenger seat (just in case if there's anything wrong and the airbag deployed by accident, you don't want it to hit on your face). Make sure the SRS light on the cluster disappears after the car has started for about 10 seconds, and nothing weird happen.
If you can get to this point, try the buttons, see if it is doing anything to the headunit, if it is, congratulation! you are 95% finished, go on a drive and double check if the controls are working in any angle that the steering wheel is turning, if that also works fine, you are done!
The only thing left is whether if you want to reprogram the buttons into different functions, and of course, your headunit has to support them in the first place, but yea, the most basic stuff like volume and skipping should work now.
