I want to swap out my OEM shifter Paddles with larger RED paddles. How to open Colum ???
Help, can't find a diagram on line for a 2017

 

You do not have to take apart the steering column!

Do a search on air bag removal on this forum. Lots of posts, with lots of pictures.

Disconnect battery. You use two thin Phillips screw drivers to push the spring in the two holes on each side of the column. You kind of need three hands. Two to push on the screw drivers and another hand to wiggle out the air bag.

Then you press the tabs on the two air bag connectors and wiggle the connectors gently off. Then remove the connector for the horn wire.

Then there are two screws you can access to remove the switches, and one connector for each. The switches do come apart and you can paint them or swap them.

 

Yo the MAN. Thanks a bunch. I spent over 3 hours looking for diagrams online to dismantle to see if I could be it myself.
Sounds like you've do it a few times....The battery disconnect Nessisary? I don't want to have to restore all to factory defaults.

Fritz in Albany

 

YES, disconnecting the car's battery is ABSOLUTELY necessary whenever you are connecting/disconnecting the airbags.
However, you do NOT have to remove the steering wheel itself, just the airbag.

Here is a DIY thread I started about how I changed my paddles:
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...-and-trim.html

I went the cheap route and just painted mine, but the process is the same for removal and replacement with new paddles.

 

You don’t have to remove the airbag connectors. There’s enough length in the wiring harness & side clearance to get a driver on the screws. Still disconnect the battery though just in case, plus it’ll keep the horn from blaring when you’re working the airbag assy in & out.

 

Certainly could be, but I think it's a Bad Idea, IMHO.

The airbag connectors aren't strong enough to just let the airbag dangle from them, and juggling an airbag in one hand whilst wrenching immediately behind it and also trying to disconnect the little wiring connectors right behind it inside the wheel seems like an accident waiting to happen.

To each their own.

 

Who said anything about letting the weight if the airbag hang from the harness? It’s not as complicated as you’re making it out to be. I changed mine out in less than ten minutes.

I take it you don’t wrench for a living.

 

Now now, no need for that. Try to remain calm.

If you read carefully, what I said was it wasn't a good idea to let it dangle OR the alternative was that you could juggle it in one hand while wrenching with the other. I didn't recommend either plan. Good for you if you got away with it, but it still doesn't make it a best practice.

 

I didn’t “get away” with anything. I’m only replying to help people out who want to do this, so I’ll go into a little more detail. On a scale of 1-10 this is a 1.

Tilt your steering wheel up. After you release the airbag from the wheel, the two harnesses are long enough to allow you to pivot the airbag assembly from side to side to but still short enough, along with the angle of the steering wheel, to keep it laying in the wheel. There’s no juggling & holding of the airbag assembly, no extreme strain on the harnesses or connectors, & you can easily get a torx driver onto the paddle mount screws. Remove the screws, pull the paddles out of the back side of the wheel, & remove the paddle connectors. After you change the paddles, center the airbag & give it a whack on each side with your palm & you’re done. Make sure the airbag is latched on each side and reconnect your battery.

It absolutely is the best practice to not remove the airbag connectors and there’s no reason to. The harnesses are still short enough to make getting the somewhat fragile plugs off kind of a pain in the ***, whereas someone who isn’t proficient with automotive connectors, especially these, will end up breaking the plug lock off or damaging the pins plugging them back in. Then you’re totally screwed. Don’t induce problems by taking **** apart you don’t have to.