blown cruise ON/OFF lights on 96 steering wheel

[Arnold D.]

The steering wheel lights on my 96 for the cruise
control on/off buttons are out. Anyone know how to replace these?

 

[aldive]

I am not positive, but I think the lights are LEDs built into the switches; they may not be replaceable w/o replacing the entire switch.

Good luck.....please post how you end up fixing it.

 

[01EB5.0]

Ford claims the bulbs are not replacable, but if you e-mail Torrie@fordpartsnetwork.com he may be able to hook you up with the bulbs. Good luck!

 

[Cdexplorer]

I've got the same problem on my 96. I figured they weren't replaceable...kinda a pain

 

[SWLathrop]

You can get new left and right buttons for about 20-30 bucks at Ford or get a set from a junker. Pop the air bag off, then the 2 screws that hold each side buttons on. pop the plastic cover off of the buttons, unplug the wire going to the buttons. installation is the reverse.

 

[01EB5.0]

Before spending money on new switches I would e-mail torrie he was able to get me new bulbs for my dash and I think they are the same ones for the cruise

 

[SWLathrop]

The dash lights are a 194 bulb. The bulbs for the cruise are soldered in. There is only one light per side. They are also little dinky things with either blue or green cover depending on the year. Then there is a piece of clear plastic that the light sets into to diffuse the light output to the button letters. I got a set from the junk yard for my 97 for $5 that had the larger lettering.

 

[01EB5.0]

swlathrop,
the bulbs on the cruise don't just twist out like on the dash? On mine it looked like it would, but i just had them fixed under warentee

 

[SWLathrop]

It's been about 6 months since I replaced mine, but I don't believe they are a replaceable bulb. They are smaller than a T1 3/4 LED. They're actually about the size of a CONCORD grape seed. They have either a blue or green rubberized coating on the tip for color. I went with the green to match my door buttons. I'll see if I can find the old ones in my garage's misc. parts area (which seems to be everywhere lately).

 

[Stephen S]

I went through this with Ford too. The 3 Ford dealers I went to did not have nor could they get the bulbs for the cruise control switches. I haven't tried Torrie at FPN yet though. (On a 95) They are replaceable...they are not soldered to the circuitboard, and they are not LEDs. The bulbs are tiny little *******s set in a blue plastic shell that "twist snaps" into the circuitboard and makes contact that way. Right now I don't have any in mine and I'd like to get the lights working again. If anyone has found a place where you can buy them new, please post it!!

Oh, and on a 95, you do not have to take the whole steering wheel apart to get to them. The part of the switch where the words are is a rubber cover that can be removed without taking the airbag and stuff off the wheel. Now getting them back on is quite a laborious task and requires a lot of patience...but can be done.