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Hi .. looking for OEM C6 steering wheel that have BT & volume control with it. Which year C6 it's have that and what parts l need to update C5 steering wheel ? What about the airbag ?
Probably will be able to get one far cheaper if you look for someone parting out a Cobalt or some other ****-tier GM car that had the exact same wheel in it. That way you would avoid paying the Corvette tax for the same part.
As far as what you need to get it working on a C5, I'm not sure if that would even be possible. The C5 doesn't have any steering wheel controls for the radio, so you would have to figure out how to run all that yourself, but there are probably aftermarket solutions for everything you need there via Crutchfield or some of the other aftermarket stereo companies.
The big question mark would be the airbag. I'm not sure if the C5's older SRS system can be made to play nice with the newer airbag from the C6 and that generation of GM cars. Maybe it could, maybe it couldn't-- but it would be something to do a LOT of homework on before hooking it up. Taking an airbag to the face (or pretty much anywhere else) because the signaling from the two different cars is different is a good way to end your day (and maybe send you to the hospital).
2005 GM truck single-stage airbag ($50 shipped from ebay) - extract the airbag itself
C6 steering column, extracted the upper steering shaft ($75+ shipped off ebay)
C6 airbag, use only the cover and discard the airbag itself, then stuff in the single-stage airbag.
I tried to get a new C6 airbag for ~ $130-150 shipped from multiple GM parts vendors, but they all cancelled my order attempts so it's likely discontinued...
Alternative #1: there are C6 airbags available new and used on ebay. Cost is ~$220-230.
Alternative #2: Cobalt airbag ($107 shipped from ebay), mine is arriving tomorrow. Tentatively thinking to put on a custom Corvette logo vinyl sticker I designed, though alternatively it looks like RFE Design sells the C6 or custom airbag emblems separately for ~$40.
I have a spare C6 steering column upper shaft for sale for $75 shipped if you or anyone else would be interested.
Figuring out which C6 steering wheel to buy is a little tricky. Here are some tips I have after all my own research:
2012-2013 got a refreshed steering wheel design which I think is an improvement. All of the info below is based on this style wheel.
For the most part it seems like you can get C6 steering wheels either with or without the left-side bluetooth controls.
There are lots of unique part numbers because GM has 4 different stitched thread colors: black, red, yellow, blue. Combined with the option for bluetooth controls that already makes 8 unique P/Ns for 2012-2013 wheels. Add on the option for paddle shifters and now you're up to 16 unique P/Ns...
Around 2012-2013 there was a "Centennial Edition" wheel which is suede/alcantara instead of leather and has red stitching, no bluetooth controls. 22879659 for manual trans, 22886622 has paddle shifters.
I found Rock Auto to be a decent resource for 2012-2013 P/Ns. You can deselect the auto trans option to only see ones without paddle shifters. And unfortunately, although they show a bunch of wheels most of them will be auto-deleted from your shopping cart if you add them because they are actually unavailable. https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/...ing+wheel,1320
The one challenge here is they don't really tell you stitching colors, but they do give stitching color codes. This are how I've seen them:
red = 38S
yellow & black both = 36S, but you can Google search a P/N and most GM parts houses will list the stitching color
blue = 37S
I have a C6 clock spring and wiring harness in-hand and will be playing with those. Link #2 above shows my plans to see about using it to work with a single-stage airbag so that steering wheel controls can be available.
Last edited by MetalMan2; May 31, 2022 at 11:57 AM.
2005 GM truck single-stage airbag ($50 shipped from ebay) - extract the airbag itself
C6 steering column, extracted the upper steering shaft ($75+ shipped off ebay)
C6 airbag, use only the cover and discard the airbag itself, then stuff in the single-stage airbag.
I tried to get a new C6 airbag for ~ $130-150 shipped from multiple GM parts vendors, but they all cancelled my order attempts so it's likely discontinued...
Alternative #1: there are C6 airbags available new and used on ebay. Cost is ~$220-230.
Alternative #2: Cobalt airbag ($107 shipped from ebay), mine is arriving tomorrow. Tentatively thinking to put on a custom Corvette logo vinyl sticker I designed, though alternatively it looks like RFE Design sells the C6 or custom airbag emblems separately for ~$40.
I have a spare C6 steering column upper shaft for sale for $75 shipped if you or anyone else would be interested.
Figuring out which C6 steering wheel to buy is a little tricky. Here are some tips I have after all my own research:
2012-2013 got a refreshed steering wheel design which I think is an improvement. All of the info below is based on this style wheel.
For the most part it seems like you can get C6 steering wheels either with or without the left-side bluetooth controls.
There are lots of unique part numbers because GM has 4 different stitched thread colors: black, red, yellow, blue. Combined with the option for bluetooth controls that already makes 8 unique P/Ns for 2012-2013 wheels. Add on the option for paddle shifters and now you're up to 16 unique P/Ns...
Around 2012-2013 there was a "Centennial Edition" wheel which is suede/alcantara instead of leather and has red stitching, no bluetooth controls. 22879659 for manual trans, 22886622 has paddle shifters.
I found Rock Auto to be a decent resource for 2012-2013 P/Ns. You can deselect the auto trans option to only see ones without paddle shifters. And unfortunately, although they show a bunch of wheels most of them will be auto-deleted from your shopping cart if you add them because they are actually unavailable. https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/...ing+wheel,1320
The one challenge here is they don't really tell you stitching colors, but they do give stitching color codes. This are how I've seen them:
red = 38S
yellow & black both = 36S, but you can Google search a P/N and most GM parts houses will list the stitching color
blue = 37S
I have a C6 clock spring and wiring harness in-hand and will be playing with those. Link #2 above shows my plans to see about using it to work with a single-stage airbag so that steering wheel controls can be available.
Thank you for great info... But I can't believe that the most important thing airbag C6 are discontinue from Gm ...anyway it will be great if you post the pictures for the part's the one you get it.👍
Another thing which year C6 steering column you go with ? if l buy C6 airbag do they work with ? And of course l need to buy the cover for the C6 airbag ..
2005 GM truck single-stage airbag ($50 shipped from ebay) - extract the airbag itself
C6 steering column, extracted the upper steering shaft ($75+ shipped off ebay)
C6 airbag, use only the cover and discard the airbag itself, then stuff in the single-stage airbag.
I tried to get a new C6 airbag for ~ $130-150 shipped from multiple GM parts vendors, but they all cancelled my order attempts so it's likely discontinued...
Alternative #1: there are C6 airbags available new and used on ebay. Cost is ~$220-230.
Alternative #2: Cobalt airbag ($107 shipped from ebay), mine is arriving tomorrow. Tentatively thinking to put on a custom Corvette logo vinyl sticker I designed, though alternatively it looks like RFE Design sells the C6 or custom airbag emblems separately for ~$40.
I'm curious if the steering wheel from Summit is bare or does it include the radio controls and/or blank bezels?
Do you happen to have the GM part number for the 2005 GM truck airbag? I've read that an airbag from a 2007 Express van works as does one from a 2008 Silverado 2500, but nobody ever lists the part number.
Stinks that you have to buy an airbag just to get the appropriate cover and then have to get a new center emblem, too.
Thank you for great info... But I can't believe that the most important thing airbag C6 are discontinue from Gm ...anyway it will be great if you post the pictures for the part's the one you get it.👍
Another thing which year C6 steering column you go with ? if l buy C6 airbag do they work with ? And of course l need to buy the cover for the C6 airbag ..
It's pretty sad GM discontinued the C6 air bag. In general parts discontinuation has been noticeable worsening, and lately I've found lots more C5 parts that have been discontinued as well.
I did lots of research on C6 columns... Here's my attempt to break it down:
2005 column: not really sure about this one at all, but in 2005 they used a 4-spoke steering wheel. I'd avoid 2005 just in case.
EDIT: Multiple 2005 C6 owners have installed 2006+ 3-spoke wheels. So this means the 2005 upper steering shaft should also work on a C5 for the C6 SW conversion.
Upper steering wheel shaft can for sure come from any 2006-2013 column.
2006 column: they switched to 3-spoke steering wheel. However, there were no steering wheel controls so the clock spring won't be of any use if you want SW controls. Also fun fact, the SWPS and its connector looks a lot like the late C5 SWPS.
2007 column: same as 2006 (including SWPS), BUT there may have been SW controls so the clock spring may work for that. If you buy a 2007 column with clock spring, look at the connector coming out of the clock spring: if it is white and has 5+ wires, then it will work with SW controls. If it's black and has less then 5 wires, it won't.
2008 column: seems to be the same as 2007, but I believe SW controls were standard. In 2008 it seems they added a slightly different SWPS, but the connector looks to still be the same as C5.
2009-2013 columns: they changed to a different SWPS, but otherwise seems the same as 2008.
Can't use the C6 airbag itself with a C5 since they are dual stage and C5 uses single stage air bag. Only the air bag cover is usable.
Originally Posted by Samas
I'm curious if the steering wheel from Summit is bare or does it include the radio controls and/or blank bezels?
Do you happen to have the GM part number for the 2005 GM truck airbag? I've read that an airbag from a 2007 Express van works as does one from a 2008 Silverado 2500, but nobody ever lists the part number.
Stinks that you have to buy an airbag just to get the appropriate cover and then have to get a new center emblem, too.
Please post pictures when the parts arrive.
TIA
I'm working toward clearing my work bench right now to take pics of all the parts since the Cobalt airbag just arrived yesterday.
The steering wheel from Summit is complete other than lacking an airbag. This means it has the SW controls/bezels already.
I don't happen to have the GM part number(s) for the proper air bag. My best advice is to look for the correct air bag shape (they all seem to have a distinguishable shape ~2004-2007), and then make sure there's only one air bag connector on the back. Here are a couple alternative ebay listings I was considering that should be the right ones: https://www.ebay.com/itm/264269496801 https://www.ebay.com/itm/265316569421
Agreed, it's undoubtedly wasteful. But you can skip getting the emblem by spending a little extra and getting a proper used C6 airbag.
Last edited by MetalMan2; Jun 2, 2022 at 03:38 PM.
First year C6 used the same column as a C5 so it would bolt on directly, but the air bag is a 2 stage in a C6 and single stage in a C5.
Does the 2005 C6 use the same steering wheel spline size as a C5 or 2006+ C6? The column discussion is mostly related to the spline size since we extract the upper steering shaft from a C6 column in order to install a C6 3-spoke steering wheel into our C5s.
I don't remember because I stopped looking into the conversion a while back. When I figured out the airbag could be hard to work around I started considering a quick release setup and having the steering wheel be removable.
The main thing I remember is that the 2005 C6 steering wheel (4 spoke) should bolt into a C5. This is a thread from a guy who changed to a 2011 wheel and made use of the buttons. I have not gone through it to see how detailed he was on what it takes to make the swap, but for any 3 spoke C6 steering wheel will be similar to this.
Does the 2005 C6 use the same steering wheel spline size as a C5 or 2006+ C6? The column discussion is mostly related to the spline size since we extract the upper steering shaft from a C6 column in order to install a C6 3-spoke steering wheel into our C5s.
Even with the guys C6 they get confused with that all l know now the column upper shifter C6 2006 up are the same .. but the clock spring are different because the options for radio and Bluetooth control ...were are almost there 😄
I don't remember because I stopped looking into the conversion a while back. When I figured out the airbag could be hard to work around I started considering a quick release setup and having the steering wheel be removable.
The main thing I remember is that the 2005 C6 steering wheel (4 spoke) should bolt into a C5. This is a thread from a guy who changed to a 2011 wheel and made use of the buttons. I have not gone through it to see how detailed he was on what it takes to make the swap, but for any 3 spoke C6 steering wheel will be similar to this.
I did some searching around, and it sounds like the '06+ wheel will drop onto an '05 with the right clock spring. So that means the C5 can use a 2005 C6 upper steering shaft. BUT you can't just bolt a 2005 wheel to a C5 without also exchanging the upper steering shaft. Also might need a 2005 clock spring but don't quote me on that.
...anyway it will be great if you post the pictures for the part's the one you get it.
Originally Posted by Samas
Please post pictures when the parts arrive.
Here's all the parts together:
I started working on fitting the single stage airbag into the Cobalt airbag cover. Others have mentioned it being a tight fit and some modifications required, and there's certainly no doubts there:
2 of the Cobalt/C6 mounting bracket holes have to be re-drilled (will take a pic)
Single stage airbag mods:
metal bracket needs to be trimmed (red lines below)
2 tabs (vertical arrows) need to be removed [tentatively]
2 tabs (horizontal arrows) need to be pounded flat [tentatively]
Single stage airbag is bigger than Cobalt/C6: taller, wider, and thicker. The height & width seem like they will work out okay. The thickness is what ultimately concerns me, and we shall see.
Because I bought a whole column, I also have the mating clock spring harness. Should make wiring in the clock spring more reasonable.
You can also see that I have an airbag connector pigtail, which was a nice addition from purchasing the single stage airbag.
I started working on fitting the single stage airbag into the Cobalt airbag cover. Others have mentioned it being a tight fit and some modifications required, and there's certainly no doubts there:
2 of the Cobalt/C6 mounting bracket holes have to be re-drilled (will take a pic)
Single stage airbag mods:
metal bracket needs to be trimmed (red lines below)
2 tabs (vertical arrows) need to be removed [tentatively]
2 tabs (horizontal arrows) need to be pounded flat [tentatively]
Single stage airbag is bigger than Cobalt/C6: taller, wider, and thicker. The height & width seem like they will work out okay. The thickness is what ultimately concerns me, and we shall see.
Because I bought a whole column, I also have the mating clock spring harness. Should make wiring in the clock spring more reasonable.
You can also see that I have an airbag connector pigtail, which was a nice addition from purchasing the single stage airbag.
great. So this airbag need some work to make fit with cobalt cover ? Do you have the part number for clock spring ? And do we need the clock spring harness to buy or no ?
great. So this airbag need some work to make fit with cobalt cover ? Do you have the part number for clock spring ? And do we need the clock spring harness to buy or no ?
The single stage airbag I bought has an embossed P/N 16866042 on the cover, and this brings up some options on ebay.
This clock spring is a 2008+ which has P/N 26129609. You don't need the harness for it, you can just cut off the connector that normally plugs into the harness, and run your wires out. It's just easier for me to run the harness because I bought a whole steering column.
I think clock spring P/N 19153097 can also work.
Yes it definitely needs some work to make fit. BUT tonight I got the single stage airbag situated into the cover! Its thickness made it an especially tight fit but should be okay. Here are some pics:
1) Everything trimmed/modified per my last post, and with 2 new drilled holes in the Cobalt/C6 backing/mounting plate:
2) Nuts added (used the nuts that came with the Cobalt airbag):
the single stage airbag i bought has an embossed p/n 16866042 on the cover, and this brings up some options on ebay.
This clock spring is a 2008+ which has p/n 26129609. You don't need the harness for it, you can just cut off the connector that normally plugs into the harness, and run your wires out. It's just easier for me to run the harness because i bought a whole steering column.
I think clock spring p/n 19153097 can also work.
Yes it definitely needs some work to make fit. But tonight i got the single stage airbag situated into the cover! Its thickness made it an especially tight fit but should be okay. Here are some pics:
1) everything trimmed/modified per my last post, and with 2 new drilled holes in the cobalt/c6 backing/mounting plate:
2) nuts added (used the nuts that came with the cobalt airbag):
Minor update: dropped the airbag shown above on the C6 steering wheel. It doesn't have the best fitment as you can see:
The airbag itself definitely influences where cover ends up. Right now the cover appears to be sitting a bit low - to fix that I think I can extend/slot the back plate holes upward maybe 1/8". Alternatively it may work to adjust the airbag inside the cover, though I don't have high hopes due to the tight fit.
First I need to assess if the igniter can move upwards in the back plate.
The next apparent issue is the gap between airbag cover and SW. I believe this is purely due to the height of the airbag being greater than the Cobalt/C6 airbag, which stretches the airbag cover where it fits into the back plate. This is a bit concerning because I currently don't have any ideas to reduce the gap.
Beyond that I also started looking into the C6 clock spring --> single stage airbag situation. The single stage airbag connector was easily disassembled and I'm hoping the 2-stage airbag connectors can be similarly disassembled, and then the single stage connector can just be swapped onto one set of C6 CS airbag wire pins.
Minor update: dropped the airbag shown above on the C6 steering wheel. It doesn't have the best fitment as you can see:
The airbag itself definitely influences where cover ends up. Right now the cover appears to be sitting a bit low - to fix that I think I can extend/slot the back plate holes upward maybe 1/8". Alternatively it may work to adjust the airbag inside the cover, though I don't have high hopes due to the tight fit.
First I need to assess if the igniter can move upwards in the back plate.
The next apparent issue is the gap between airbag cover and SW. I believe this is purely due to the height of the airbag being greater than the Cobalt/C6 airbag, which stretches the airbag cover where it fits into the back plate. This is a bit concerning because I currently don't have any ideas to reduce the gap.
Beyond that I also started looking into the C6 clock spring --> single stage airbag situation. The single stage airbag connector was easily disassembled and I'm hoping the 2-stage airbag connectors can be similarly disassembled, and then the single stage connector can just be swapped onto one set of C6 CS airbag wire pins.
. I was waiting for the update but that really disappointed for me
You can see very easy the airbag doesn't fit nicely .. ldon't know how the other forums they don't say or show that !! The other thing is even if we buy the OEM C6 airbag cover is still going to be doesn't fit because the single stage airbag bigger !!!!! So the question is ... is there another single stage airbag that will be fit to C6 cover ? When l look in this thread. https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums/c5-general/3069442-working-c6-steering-wheel-and-redone-interior.html. . l see the OEM C6 airbag will fit perfect in steering wheel but ldon't know what kind airbag he use with ? Thank you for your post and please keep updating
l Forget to ask you are the airbag cover fit perfect without the airbag ? Did you try that ?
. I was waiting for the update but that really disappointed for me
You can see very easy the airbag doesn't fit nicely .. ldon't know how the other forums they don't say or show that !! The other thing is even if we buy the OEM C6 airbag cover is still going to be doesn't fit because the single stage airbag bigger !!!!! So the question is ... is there another single stage airbag that will be fit to C6 cover ? When l look in this thread. https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...-interior.html. . l see the OEM C6 airbag will fit perfect in steering wheel but ldon't know what kind airbag he use with ? Thank you for your post and please keep updating
l Forget to ask you are the airbag cover fit perfect without the airbag ? Did you try that ?
It is a bit odd, I'm surely not the first person to do this C6 conversion with this style of single-stage airbag, but apparently I'm the first to report this airbag cover misalignment issue.
In the thread you linked to, the OP didn't hook up an airbag. He kept the C6 airbag but didn't plug it in, so he didn't have fitment issues.
Also in that thread other people discussed alternative airbag options. Of all those mentioned, the GTO airbag may be a possibility but nobody followed through with additional info on that.
Regardless, in these pictures they used what should be the same airbag that I did, but they appear to fit well:
To be honest I didn't try fitting the Cobalt airbag onto the C6 steering wheel before it had the single-stage airbag stuffed into it. So it's possible the fitment was bad to begin with...
.
.
In other news, my most recent attempt (May 23) at getting a brand new C6 airbag [cheap] from GM may be panning out. Yesterday I received a shipping notification from them! 2-3 other order attempts with different GM parts vendors were all cancelled. Going to keep my fingers crossed. And if I get this C6 airbag cover after all, it will be interesting to see if the fitment is better.
It is a bit odd, I'm surely not the first person to do this C6 conversion with this style of single-stage airbag, but apparently I'm the first to report this airbag cover misalignment issue.
In the thread you linked to, the OP didn't hook up an airbag. He kept the C6 airbag but didn't plug it in, so he didn't have fitment issues.
Also in that thread other people discussed alternative airbag options. Of all those mentioned, the GTO airbag may be a possibility but nobody followed through with additional info on that.
Regardless, in these pictures they used what should be the same airbag that I did, but they appear to fit well:
To be honest I didn't try fitting the Cobalt airbag onto the C6 steering wheel before it had the single-stage airbag stuffed into it. So it's possible the fitment was bad to begin with...
.
.
In other news, my most recent attempt (May 23) at getting a brand new C6 airbag [cheap] from GM may be panning out. Yesterday I received a shipping notification from them! 2-3 other order attempts with different GM parts vendors were all cancelled. Going to keep my fingers crossed. And if I get this C6 airbag cover after all, it will be interesting to see if the fitment is better.
There is no difference between cobalt cover and C6 cover only the logo that for sure. ..l think the problem with the airbag ... I think it needs more work to make it perfect. But first try the cobalt cover without the airbag and see how they fit ?
By the way what's the size for the center logo it's 60mm or different ?
There is no difference between cobalt cover and C6 cover only the logo that for sure. ..l think the problem with the airbag ... I think it needs more work to make it perfect. But first try the cobalt cover without the airbag and see how they fit ?
At this point the Cobalt airbag cover has been stretched out a bit with the way it's holding in the single stage airbag. I wouldn't expect the rubber material to fully recover back to original form if I removed the airbag from it. My hope is that the new C6 airbag will arrive and I can check the fitment of that one.
Originally Posted by link9a
By the way what's the size for the center logo it's 60mm or different ?
Haven't measured it yet, sorry. However, I can tell you that the emblem has a convex shape to it.
C6 steering wheel on C5
