Steering wheel I for for Father's Day won't fit in my 2000 TJ

ScottyD

ScottyD

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It's a great gift... problem is it doesn't fit. My wife ordered me recovered leather steering wheel with red stitching off eBay. Opened it yesterday. Looks great. However, it's from a later model TJ - mine is a 2000. The airbag is different, and so is the wiring. Trying to figure out how to keep this new steering wheel, but the wiring is fully different and wiring isn't my thing.

Any ideas on how to "make it work"?
wheel.jpg
 
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Swap the wiring and get a late model airbag.

Those wheels come with WJ wiring which won’t work even in late model TJ.
 
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Lou said:
Swap the wiring and get a late model airbag.

Those wheels come with WJ wiring which won’t work even in late model TJ.
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that looks just like the wheel in my '06 - you're saying that even thought the wheel looks exactly the same, it's not wired right? How hard of a swap is it?

The leather on mine is on it's last leg...there are parts of it (the most sun-exposed parts) that stick to my hand if I leave it in the same place long enough, and it makes my hands feeling dirty after driving. So I'd like a replacement.
 
freedom_in_4low said:
that looks just like the wheel in my '06 - you're saying that even thought the wheel looks exactly the same, it's not wired right? How hard of a swap is it?

The leather on mine is on it's last leg...there are parts of it (the most sun-exposed parts) that stick to my hand if I leave it in the same place long enough, and it makes my hands feeling dirty after driving. So I'd like a replacement.
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My buddy just got one from the EBay Poland guy. He got a WJ wheel that has the audio controls on the back. All he had to do was use the wiring harness from the TJ wheel. Super easy to swap it over.

Now for the OP, I am unsure if the early airbag and late air bag use the same connectors to the clock spring. That may be an issue.
 
Lou said:
My buddy just got one from the EBay Poland guy. He got a WJ wheel that has the audio controls on the back. All he had to do was use the wiring harness from the TJ wheel. Super easy to swap it over.

Now for the OP, I am unsure if the early airbag and late air bag use the same connectors to the clock spring. That may be an issue.
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Yep - that's exactly where and who my wife bought it from.

It didn't come with an airbag. The guy from Poland said he would sell me the correct airbag - but I really don't know if that it takes the original yellow connection I have, if the clockspring would need to be changed.

Just checking prices on eBay and Rockauto.... dang... prices have gone up. Clock springs are now over $200, used leather steering wheels are all well in the $100s. And from the eBay pics it looks like the clockspring from the 2004 model TJ is pretty different than my 2000.

It does have the radio controls on the back of the wheel.

We checked to send it back - and it's $100 to ship it to Poland... ugh.
 
Bootheel Boy said:
Rather than send it back and lose a hundred dollars in shipping you might be able to sell it on the forum to a member here. Then order exactly what you need from the guy in Poland.
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That is a good suggestion- Somebody wants that
 
i’d agree that selling it would be better than returning it. this type of situation is why i don’t like doing business with folks outside the good ole USA.
 
Lou said:
My buddy just got one from the EBay Poland guy. He got a WJ wheel that has the audio controls on the back. All he had to do was use the wiring harness from the TJ wheel. Super easy to swap it over.

Now for the OP, I am unsure if the early airbag and late air bag use the same connectors to the clock spring. That may be an issue.
Click to expand...

I bought mine from the same guy in Poland… was your buddy able to make use of the audio controls?
 
ScottyD said:
It's a great gift... problem is it doesn't fit. My wife ordered me recovered leather steering wheel with red stitching off eBay. Opened it yesterday. Looks great. However, it's from a later model TJ - mine is a 2000. The airbag is different, and so is the wiring. Trying to figure out how to keep this new steering wheel, but the wiring is fully different and wiring isn't my thing.

Any ideas on how to "make it work"?
View attachment 338180
Click to expand...

I would do some research on the air bags to make sure it is compatible with the early module and sensors.
 
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