Steering Column Replacement 2007 M35

[atl07960]

I have a little play (up and down) in my steering wheel. I took it to a Infiniti Dealership and they told me I have steering column failure and it needs to replaced at a hefty price of a little over $2k. I went on ebay and found one for $135. The question is how difficult is it to replace myself? I'm pretty handy, as in I change my own brakes and stuff and I recently replaced my bank 1 catalytic converter.

Also, has anyone had to do this? If so, I'd appreciate a step by step, pictures, etc. Any potential pitfalls to avoid will be greatly appreciated also.

[Ilya]

Welcome to the forum.

I would take a look at the factory service manual (FSM) which can be found in the FAQ/HowTo thread in my signature to get you started. I don't recall a guide on how to do this or it would be in that thread.

[airmanhoward]

Dont you have reputable shops (non dealers) near you that can do it alot cheaper. 2k seens too expensive.

[EdBwoy]

It's not a commonly reported failure item around here.

It is a pretty simple process though (also multistep).

• Remove airbag
• Remove steering wheel
• Remove plastic trim under dash/knee bolster area
• IIRC, you remove the plastic shrouding around the top of the column to access some bolts
• Remove coilspring/light + wiper switch assembly (I think these were clipped into the column)
• Remove 14mm nut and bolt at the very bottom in the wheel well that holds the steering rack shaft
• Remember to get the 4 or so wiring harnesses unplugged
• You have 4 or 6 bolts (maybe 14mm) holding the steering colum to the dashboard framework, accessible by socket and also wrench

This is me going off memory here. I didn't think to record the process like I usually do because I never thought anyone would need to do this.
The parts car is gone, but the steering column is still in my garage so I can go look at it again to see if there are any Gotcha!s to expect

If I may ask, did anything happen to your car to cause this play? The fix might be simpler than a whole unit replacement, depending on what else happened to cause the condition.