Red89'-L98

I am in the process of restoring my 1989 corvette and have done almost all interior and engine work and it looks great on the inside and runs great also thanks to the help of everyone on the corvette forum.

I have bought a new steering wheel for my 1989 corvette and I can borrow a friends steering wheel puller and I know it is probably not that hard of a job to do. If anyone can explain to me how to pull it that would be great and how to put it back on to make it lined up right would be great also. Just some more information since mine is a 1989 is does not have any airbag items to worry about.

I have also had an anti-lock lock on since I got the car the previous owner said that he had it checked out and it was a bad sensor but did not know which one it was, which I believe is true since the brakes work fine and I have had no issues with them at all. How would I fix this and are there any steps I can take to diagnose which sensor is bad?

Any help is appreciated.

Thanks, Stephen

EDIT: Do I have to remove the locking plate for any reason when pulling the steering wheel and replacing with a new one of the same exact original style steering wheel? Do I even have to mess with the locking plate at all?

1986coupe

As for the steering wheel I don't remember all of the steps but it is fairly simple. Pop the horn cap off and you will see the nut that has to be removed and where to put the puller. Remember the order that the tele-steering system goes so that when you put it back together it goes in right.

You can check for resistance at each wheel sensor. Disconnect it and use your DVM to check for resistance. If you get no sisgnal then you have found the problem.

Sometimes with the wheels it can also be in the wheel bearing. If you don't find a problem at the sensor then it is possible that there is some play in the wheel.

If you do a search there are a few good sites for diagnosing the problems with the ABS on those. I just can't remember then off hand.

Good luck.

Red89'-L98

So there is only 1 bolt I take off and just hook up the puller to it and tighten it down until it pops off? Then do I have to take anything else apart since I am just replacing the steering wheel itself?

leesvet

regarding the wheel puller...yes.
the puller presses against the steering shaft to lift the wheel up and off.
It grabs the wheel and from there you screw the puller in/on the shaft.

The abs sensors are more challenging. These are sometimes hard to find and you have to find the exact sensor for that wheel. They are not made anymore. You have to figure which you need then search e-bay for the right sensor. Some folks have had luck at porche and mercedes finding the parts for C4 abs since Bosch used the same system on those 2 german cars... I think caddy from the 80s had the same thing.

WVZR-1

Not just a single bolt but not much more than!

Here's a very good "how to" for the early "tilt/travel" column:

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c4-t...a-1989-c4.html

Bolt length etc is included!

Red89'-L98

Thank you for showing me this, I used the sear feature but must not have typed in the right words.

Ok, now here is the question. What all screws do I need to remove? I know for sure the 2 phillips head screws on the star screw need to come off and the star screw. How do I get the star screw off, is it phillips head also?

Are there any more bolts that need to come off or is it just those 3 and the snap ring? Also it says to remove the steering wheel retainer nut and I can not see it or tell what it looks like. Is it the triangle looking thing?

Then when I attach the puller, where exactly does it attach to?

Thanks for all the help, Stephen

WVZR-1

The "nut" is hidden by what you refer to as the "triangle thing". The nut would be the last thing and then you use the puller. Pay attention to how it's indexed when you remove it. You should be fine - just use the images. The horn cap pulls off! Be easy with everything!

Red89'-L98

Haha, makes sense. I am guessing the "triangular thing" comes off after the snap ring right?

Ok, and is it indexed with a line on it, and if so what does it line up with so I know how to index it correctly.

One last thing, where does the puller bolt into, the 2 bolts right above and below the steering wheel retainer nut or does it go into the 3rd bolt hole to the left of the bottom bolt hole also?

Thanks again, Stephen

Red89'-L98

Do I have to remove the locking plate for any reason when pulling the steering wheel and replacing with a new one of the same exact original style steering wheel? Do I even have to mess with the locking plate at all?

~Stephen

WVZR-1

No - you're not going that far. Use the SNAPSHOTS AS A GUIDE!

TTA579

Author of the How-To here. The job will be pretty straight forward. You'll only be going through steps 1-4, and then backwards 4-1. No need to touch the lock plate (and I wouldn't suggest it without a spare lock ring retainer on hand).

If you have any questions, feel free to PM me.

The "triangle thing" is the snap ring. You'll want snap ring pliers.

You can see in the photo, though small, that the tip of the shaft has a notch in it (12 o'clock position). The steering wheel will have a similar mark that you will see after you remove the nut.

Yes, you'll use the holes at 12 and 6.

Red89'-L98

I have already pulled the wheel but the information is very helpful and will hopefully help a lot of other also.

Thanks to everyone for the help, Stephen

leesvet

The drawings in the FSM are well worth the paultry $75 for the books wouldn't ya say?

Red89'-L98

Definitely worth it, I really need to get an FSM soon!

I am trying to find one is good condition or great condition for a good price like you said around $75.

TTA579

I opted for the CD. It's a lot more portable than the 1000+ page manual.

Red89'-L98

How much is the cd and is it as easy to use as the book when it comes to trying to find something?

I might be interested in doing that if it is cheap until when I feel like getting the actual manual.

TTA579

The CD can be had on ebay for a very reasonable price (I've purchased the full manual and supplement for my TTA, I know what they can cost).

My favorite advantage is that I can search the manual for keywords. That makes it easier to search for me. As you saw in my post I can copy images and print any section I need a hard copy of.

Red89'-L98

Thanks, I'll look online and see if I can find any for a good price.