Plan on having a professional do that if you mange to get one..... you do NOT want to be messing around with that wheel with the airbag in there.

 

Definitely will have someone who knows what they're doing with the airbag and all . The bigger challenge may be finding someone who can tell me if it can be done.

 

That is a surprise, I was not expecting. I thought that there was just a "blank" on the right side of the wheel, and that blank panel could easily be replaced with a radio button panel. I guess not.

Does anyone know yet if the air bag remains the same? Steering wheels are relatively cheap. Air bags are not. So, if it is simply a matter of buying a whole new steering wheel, one with the radio buttons, and reusing the old air bag, then that is at least "do-able" (cost wise).

 

You may want to make a test before you invest in the actual controls. You should be able to connect a few resistors to the radio to see if it responds.

 

I have a couple of pages from the 08 workshop manual (in .pdf, but I don't know how to post them here). You definitely need to replace the steering wheel base. It appears the existing air bag module and cover will work fine, so the expense would be the wheel itself. The controls pull out of the side housing, where there is the electrical connector. The workshop manual does not tell you if the NAV system from gas to hybrid version is the same, so the research continues....

 

Not to rain on anybody's parade or anything, but several states actually have laws against reusing air bags, even if they've never been deployed. I know Minnesota is one, but when the legislation was moving through the Legislature several other states were mentioned. I suppose this is a case of if no one knows, who's it hurting?, but I think that getting yourself killed in an accident because your airbag didn't go off just because you wanted steering wheel mounted audio controls is pretty darn stupid. Sorry, but that's how I feel and I used to have steering wheel mounted controls and I really miss them. If you were to go to a mechanic to do this, they might refuse.

 

Just go the easy way and install a "Clapper" to the radio.
"Clap-On. Clap-Off. The Clapper."

( Oh, that would require both hands off the wheel at the same time... nevermind... )

-John

 

I would have to agree & I miss the steering controls also (it irritates me to no end that my sons 03 Acura 3.2 TL & my wifes 04 X-Type Jag both have the controls & I don't)


~John

 

I think those laws are intended to stop the re-sale of used airbags by junk yards, not the continuing use of the same airbags in the same vehicles.

 

Walt-
it depends on the language. The law here is interpreted to say no reusing period.