Steering column & turn signal help

[Oaktown 986]

If you do a step by step guide, I'll buy you a beer next time you're in San Francisco. What a pain. I also have a strange clicking noise (probably parts rattling around) while making right turns coming from the steering column.

[Boxtaboy]

Originally Posted by Oaktown 986

If you do a step by step guide, I'll buy you a beer next time you're in San Francisco. What a pain. I also have a strange clicking noise (probably parts rattling around) while making right turns coming from the steering column.

Here's the DIY how to. I'll take that beer.

http://www.whiteson.org/boxster/mods/obc/obc.stalk.pdf

http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?act=Print&client=printer&f=2&t=13025

[yimmy149]

No, you don't need security bits. Maybe you'll do fine with a torx driver, I just couldn't get mine to budge, and was worried about damaging the screw since I was working at a slight angle due to the length of the driver.

The holes in the back of the steering wheel are narrow and almost 2" deep. The torx socket sets I looked at seemed too wide to fit in the hole.

I followed the procedures in the Bentley manual. I'm still waiting on a couple VW wires to do the OBC hack, so I haven't re-assembled yet, but so far so good. The main things that might not be completely obvious: Disconnect the battery a wait a few minutes so you don't trip any airbag wiring faults. Store the airbag padded side up. Center the wheels and mark the steering wheel & column with white out or a center punch so you put it on straight.

-james

[Boxtaboy]

Originally Posted by yimmy149

No, you don't need security bits. Maybe you'll do fine with a torx driver, I just couldn't get mine to budge, and was worried about damaging the screw since I was working at a slight angle due to the length of the driver.

The holes in the back of the steering wheel are narrow and almost 2" deep. The torx socket sets I looked at seemed too wide to fit in the hole.

I followed the procedures in the Bentley manual. I'm still waiting on a couple VW wires to do the OBC hack, so I haven't re-assembled yet, but so far so good. The main things that might not be completely obvious: Disconnect the battery a wait a few minutes so you don't trip any airbag wiring faults. Store the airbag padded side up. Center the wheels and mark the steering wheel & column with white out or a center punch so you put it on straight.

-james

Good tips. Thx.

[yimmy149]

I was staring at the parts while eating my cheerios this morning and realized I didn't fully understand what Lil Bastard was saying. The larger tab that broke off my contact spring is what cancels the turn signals - I didn't grasp that as somewhere else I had read there was an eccentric on the steering column that did it.

I've verified that my old stalks cancel just fine, and even the little nub is in good condition. I guess I can sell those used.

Still waiting on the VW dealer for the OBC hack wiring.

-james

[yimmy149]

Finally got the VW wires and built the OBC harness - only to find out it doesn't fit. Turns out I built the pre-2001 harness, the molex pins are different for the 2001-up gauge cluster. Unfortunately the guide I was using didn't mention that.

I went ahead and put the car back together. I'm pretty sure the reason my cancel broke was due to the depth of the control stalks being set incorrectly. I measured before removal and it was a bit over 60mm, which would have forced the tab on the contact spring up against the stationary part of the column. The most difficult part of reassembly was properly routing all the cables back into the clip/organizer. I'd recommend snapping a digital photo before removing the wires, would have made life easier.

If anyone is interested in my pre-2001 OBC harness, let me know. I'd be happy to sell it for the cost wires & plug. I don't like butt connectors, so I used solder and self sealing heat-shrink tubing instead. I used a label maker to number the wires, and a few zip ties to hold it together. I can post a picture if you'd like.

-james