How to Replace Airbag 1997-2004 Ford F-150
Created on: 2017-04-07
How to replace a faulty airbag on 98 Ford F150 pickup truck.
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step 1 :Disconnecting the Battery
- Disconnect the negative battery cable with an 8mm wrench
- Move the terminal way from the battery
- Let the car sit for 30 minutes
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step 2 :Removing the Steering Column Cover
- After letting the car sit for 30 minutes, turn the key to RUN position
- Press the detent ball in the cylinder by inserting a pick into the bottom of the column
- Remove the three Phillips head screws from the holes in the column
- Tilt the steering column down
- Pop out the panel and remove it from the column
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step 3 :Removing the Air Bag
- Turn the wheel to the 3 o'clock position
- Pop off the rear cover with a pick
- Remove the 8mm bolt behind the cover
- Turn the wheel to the 9 o'clock position
- Pop off the rear cover with a pick
- Remove the 8mm bolt behind the cover
- Pull the air bag forward
- Pry up the connector and disconnect the connector
- Remove the air bag
- Carry the airbag with the cover facing away from you
- Place the air bag face up in a sturdy spot
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step 4 :Installing the Air Bag
- Connect the electrical connector to the air bag
- Place the air bag into the steering wheel
- Tighten the 8mm screws to the wheel
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step 5 :Installing the Steering Column Cover
- Reinstall the two halves of the steering column cover
- Tighten the three Phillips head screws to the cover
- Reinstall the ignition cylinder
- Turn it back and remove the key
- Screw in the tilt column switch
- Reinstall the rear cover
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step 6 :Reconnecting the Battery
- Put the key in the RUN position
- Connect the negative terminal
- Tighten the 8mm bolt to the terminal
Tools needed
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Socket Extensions
Phillips Head Screwdriver
8mm Socket
Ratchet
Pick
Hi, I'm Mike from 1AAuto. We've been selling auto parts for over 30 years! We're dedicated to delivering quality auto parts, expert customer service, and fast and free shipping, all backed by our 100% satisfaction guarantee. So visit us at 1AAuto.com, your trusted source for quality auto parts.
In this video, we're going to be working with our 1998 Ford F-150. We're going to show you how to remove and replace your vehicle's airbag on the steering wheel for the driver's side. If you like this video, please click subscribe. We have a ton more information on this and many other vehicles. And if you ever need parts for your truck, you can follow the link down in the description, over to 1AAuto.com.
Here are the items you'll need for this repair: 8-11mm sockets, wrenches, ratchet, socket extension, hooked and straight picks, Phillips screwdriver
Disconnect your negative battery terminal. Ours has an aftermarket clamp, so we're doing this with an 11mm wrench. Yours may be different. Remove the terminal, and put it out of the way where there's no risk of it bouncing, or it ending up back, connected to power.
Whenever you're working on the airbag or SRS system, it's very important to let this sit for about 30 minutes after disconnecting it to allow all the power inside of the airbag modules to drain, eliminating any risk of deployment while we work on the vehicle.
Remove your ignition lock cylinder by turning the key to the Run position, and using a pick, or another small straight tool, to push the detent ball, and remove the cylinder from the column.
Remove the three Phillips head screws from the holes of the column using a Phillips head screwdriver. If you have a tilt steering column, tilt it all the way down and pop out this panel with your hands, and then slide the panel out from behind the column. Tilt your column back up, unscrew the tilt column lever, if your vehicle has a tilt column. Then separate the steering column cover and remove it.
Now we've turned our steering wheel to the three o'clock position. You'll want to use a pick to pop that cover off the back of the steering wheel. Now there's an 8mm bolt behind that cover that you'll need to remove with an 8mm socket and ratchet. Now our steering wheel is unlocked, because we have the ignition cylinder out of it, so you'll want to turn your wheel now to the nine o'clock position, where you'll find the same cover and another 8mm bolt you'll need to remove. Be careful, because sometimes when you do this those bolts will fall out of the steering wheel. You want to make sure you keep an eye on those.
Carefully pull the airbag forward. Using a pick or a small flat blade screwdriver, pry up on the connector and remove it. We then have one more here, and remove the airbag from the vehicle.
Always carry your airbag with the black trim that says Forward facing away from you, and store it with that same trim facing up, under something sturdy like a heavy bench or a toolbox that's secured to the ground, until you're ready to reinstall.
Reconnect the electrical connectors to your horn and airbag, and place the airbag back into the steering wheel. Rotate it to the three and nine o'clock positions, and reinstall the 8mm screw as well as the plastic cap.
Reinstall the two halves of the steering column cover. Reinstall the three Phillips head screws. Reinstall your ignition cylinder. Turn it back, and remove the key. Reinstall the tilt column switch by screwing it back into its opening. Reinstall the rear cover. Snap it into place.
After working on any part of airbag or SRS system, I always put the key to the Run position, which is the last key click before you would start cranking the motor over. This way, when we reconnect the battery, if there were to be some kind of fault or issue in our airbag parts or our repair, the bag would deploy while we're safely under the hood of the truck, as opposed to getting in front of the airbag with the power connected and turning the key at that point.
Reconnect the negative battery terminal. We have an aftermarket clamp on ours, so ours gets tightened with an 11mm wrench. Yours may be different.
Thanks for watching. Visit us at 1AAuto.com for quality auto parts, fast and free shipping, and the best customer service in the industry.
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