steering wheel emblem swap

white whale

Active member
Going to swap out for the MB star. Picked up some tips so gives me a chance to play on the new forum with first post since the change.
Knifed around the outside edge to slice through the grime I expect is there.
The 6 o'clock tab is the slim tab. You need thin but beefy slot head on either side and a slow pry and then go to 12 o'clock position to lever up. I wanted to save badge to reinsert while I wait for part. I will be shaving smooth the ribs inside so the new star will fit flush to the surface. I will just use some gasket glue. For general air bag safety, if
you disconnect battery , air bag is non functional 100%?

ss forum pic.jpg
 

autostaretx

Erratic Member
. I will be shaving smooth the ribs inside so the new star will fit flush to the surface. I will just use some gasket glue.
VERY bad idea .... the air bag cover is really very carefully designed to shatter in a "known" way so that you're not (too) impaled by parts that broke wrong.
By removing the ribbing, you're creating a weak point that may choose to shoot (and flip) the emblem so that it hits your face.
I would tend to think that that ribbing is there to prevent that bit of plastic from shattering.
If they didn't care about "what's behind the emblem" it would have been flat smooth (cheaper for mold design).

In fact, weakening that spot may cause the entire cover to break incorrectly, perhaps changing the entire airbag deployment pattern.
For general air bag safety, if you disconnect battery , air bag is non functional 100%?
... after you've waited two minutes.
Also, do NOT power up with the airbag disconnected, or it will set the SRS light on the dash, which requires a proper scanner to turn back off.

--dick
 
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white whale

Active member
In fact, weakening that spot may cause the entire cover to break incorrectly, perhaps changing the entire airbag deployment pattern.

... after you've waited two minutes.
Also, do NOT power up with the airbag disconnected, or it will set the SRS light on the dash, which requires a proper scanner to turn back off.

--dick

Did not know you can independently disconnect the A B. That must take some doing, not just an easy reach fuse or plug. Are sprinter air bags the same as all others, there is a sensor at the front to detect impact force??

Quite sure the ribbing beneath the emblem is to support the emblem because they rise in a convex shape to match the backside of the emblem so you can't crush the metal with a push. It is extremely thin aluminum.
 

autostaretx

Erratic Member
All of the airbags in the Sprinter (and, i suspect, any car) have a simple two- or three-wire connector fairly close to the bag.
In the Sprinter, the connectors are yellow plastic, and all of the "explosive" components (airbags, seat belt -retracting squibs) have "shorting bars" inside the connector that short-circuit (i.e. "safety") the bag's wires when they're not plugged in.

--dick
 

Axiom

Mike from Florida Van Man
We made a video about this:

Pro tip; trim adhesive expands and is a bad option for this.
And before anyone asks, the battery was disconnected for a few days before we did this.
 

BrennWagon

He’s just this guy, you know?
I did this mod over a year ago but used a different emblem and used the adhesive tape that was already attached without issues.
With regards to removal of the ribbing, to my eye the airbag cover was made by adding ribbing to the regular MB mold as evidenced by the impression of the star in the center, and careful removal shouldn’t cause issue with airbag deployment. Just my 2¢
 

Attachments

white whale

Active member
Star not available, at least not at decent price. Kinda like the colours in this anyway. Cheap china direct via ebay, quality is good - 2 for $10

Haven't gotten the story yet as to the image meanings. Used Gorilla adhesive.

ss forum pic.jpg
 

ECU

2006 T1n 118 Sprinter
I used the sticky one.
Today, I could use more than a bit of color logos.
I have a wheel wrap because the wheel was breaking apart. The whole horn button is losing color, wearing off.
I could do a whole wheel swap, but it is 14 years old after all.
 

autostaretx

Erratic Member
Haven't gotten the story yet as to the image meanings.

View attachment 148096
As is common with German Car crests, that's the name of a town, and has the town's emblem/coat-of-arms.
The actual town emblem is the apple tree on the left.
Mercedes-AMG is MB's "internal tuning unit" ... where they work on engine design and specialty engines.
They use an assembly method called "One Man, One Engine" ... which is kind'a self-explanatory.

I like Vic's interpretation of the crest.

In similar vein, VW uses the Wolfsburg coat-of-arms, and Porsche uses Stuttgart's

--dick
 

tbuyan

'04 3500 140" low roof cargo w/dually delete
Looks like a valve and valve spring to me, with a cam lobe under the spring. Does/did AMG make desmodromic valve gear?
 

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