Ford Focus steering column removal involves three main components: The column itself, the steering wheel, and the driver’s side airbag in the steering wheel. Stay until the end and discover here how disassemble the steering column of the Ford Focus.
As on many Ford vehicles, the steering wheel is slightly easier to remove than on other makes, making removal of the column easier as well.
How to disassemble the Ford Focus steering column?
As we told you at the beginning of this post, to remove the steering column from the Focus it is necessary to go through the airbag, the steering wheel and the column itself.
1- Remove the airbag
Always disconnect the negative cable from the car battery before any major repair or maintenance. For the airbags, also pull out the PCM fuse from the interior fuse box.
Airbag mounting holes are on opposite sides of the steering column; turn the handwheel to one side to remove one bolt, and then turn it in the opposite direction to remove the other bolt.
Carefully slide the airbag out of the steering wheel until the clips release, then disconnect the power strips. Place the airbag face up where it can’t be hit by something.
2- Flywheel removal
Make sure the steering wheel is centered, meaning the front wheels are also pointing forwards. If the car has cruise control, unplug the electrical connector for that system.
Disconnect the retaining bolt in the center of the flywheel, which may require a cutter bar and socket wrench. Mark the position of the wheel on the steering axle with masking tape so you know how to reinstall it.
As you remove the steering wheel from the top of the column, push the wiring connector through the hole to hold the wiring in position on the steering column.
3- Remove the steering column
To remove the dash panel below the steering column, remove the four screws and unhook the retaining clip. Unplug the multiplug from this trim panel, then unplug the hood release cable from the back of the panel and the electrical connector from the diagnostic plug (if equipped on your model).
Lower the column lock lever and remove the upper column cover by releasing the retaining clips; a fine-tipped screwdriver will do for this. The same screwdriver can be used to unhook the radio control switch, and the wiring connector needs to be unplugged as well.
Remove the bottom cover by removing its three screws and disconnect all the other connectors: the connectors for the steering column switches, the anti-theft system transceiver, the rotation sensor, and the main wiring harness. Disconnect the airbag slider by releasing the two retaining tabs with a small screwdriver.
Remove the sleeve set screw that attaches the bottom of the column to the steering rack (you’ll need an extension socket to do this), then remove the three column lock nuts and one Torx screw . Lift the column up to disengage it from the steering rack.
