OEM M-Tec Steering Wheel Install

After reading the people's positive comments about how the M-Tec or M3 steering wheel feels, I decided to get one for me.

There is a seller on ebay from Sweden which sells brand new and original M-Tec and M3 steering wheels. I bought mine from him for £124. I chose the M-Tec wheel, not the M3 because simply, I don't have an M3 (yet).

Shipping was super fast and wheel came well packaged.

The deal included ONLY the wheel. The multifunction buttons, round airbag and trim were not included in the auction. I would use my existing multifunction buttons and airbag, but the trim had to be ordered. I found out that M-Tec trims on eBay are $HITy quality so I order a genuine one from the dealership. Cost: £68.

Installation is not easy and should only be performed if you are comfortable with tools, electronics and don't mind messing with the airbag system!

1. Disconnect the battery by lifting the battery cover in the trunk and disconnecting the negative pole. Wait for 10 minutes (I've read that the airbag system remains active for 10 minutes after battery power is cut).

2. Sit on your seat and get ready. Behind the steering wheel, there are 2 small holes which are covered with a rubber seal with a blade thin opening. Insert a flat screw driver through the opening. Now I can't get more specific on this, but you have to find and push towards you a spring that holds the airbag in place. Took me a while until I got the right side off. The left side was more difficult so I turned the wheel in order for the opening to come on the right side (with the engine off). Once I found the left airbag holder spring and pressed it, the whole airbag unit just popped! I carefully removed after disconnecting the two plugs, paying special attention not to break any plastic plugs it and placed it next to me.

3. Next I removed the 2 Torx screws (5mm) which hold the lower trim in place.

4. Another 4 Torx screws holding the multifunction buttons had to be removed as well (2 on each side). Removed the multifunction buttons, disconnected them from the wiring harness as well and placed them somewhere safe from scratching.

5. You can clearly see now the steering wheel centre bolt (17mm). My ratchet with extension was perfect for the situation. It required quite a lot of strength to remove the centre bolt. I did not lock the steering column because the excessive force required to remove the bolt could break the locking mechanism.

6. The steering column shaft and the steering wheel have an alignment mark which ensures that the new wheel will be placed exactly in the same position as the old one. You don't want to have your steering wheel 90 degrees angled in order to move straight.

7. Take great caution when removing the steering wheel because there is a ribbon cable that connects the wheel instruments with the rest of the car. The ribbon is held in place with a plastic cover and that cover is loose when the steering wheel is removed!!!!!

8. Once the original steering wheel is removed, I inserted the new one in place and reversed the procedure. I double and triple checked everything to make sure they were properly installed aligned before popping the airbag bag in place.

9. Reconnected the battery and thank God, no SRS errors. Horn worked as well as multifunction buttons.

It's definitely a recommended mod to do since it's something you will use for the rest of the car's lifetime. Very pleased with the looks and feeling!