Superduty steering wheel swap

[Nctruckman]

I ran across this photo in a drag magazine in a 2002 explorer sport. It's running a carbureted small block, so I don't believe the cruise or airbag is hooked up. Looks like it'll physically fit, wondered if anyone knew what it'd take to make the switches and airbag work properly in one of these or a 01-05 trac.

 

[Mbrooks420]

Probably won’t get much traction getting advice on how to modify the airbag system/circuit due to obvious safety issues. I assume it’s also illegal.

 

[Nctruckman]

Probably won’t get much traction getting advice on how to modify the airbag system/circuit due to obvious safety issues. I assume it’s also illegal.

I was more looking into seeing what it'd take to hookup the cruise control. F150 lightnings used a very similar steering wheel as explorers and the same switches. Wondered how different these worked. The air bag wiring wouldn't be touched, I believe that it just plugs in to the other one.

 

[CDW6212R]

That steering wheel is likely the same as most late model trucks, in that it will physically bolts onto the steering shaft. Ford cars and trucks use two different shaft spline shapes.

Swapping anything like that will come down to the wiring behind it, the clock spring, and the airbag system. I don't know what difference there may be for the SRS module needs, the resistance of the airbag circuit etc. But the wiring can be connected if the number of the wheel are less o the same as the clock spring of the column. Also note later cars are using CanBus systems now, they don't use just simple wiring circuits alone, many or most have multiple uses on each wire. You cannot mix those circuits.

FYI, the 2nd Explorers had a high option two spoke steering wheel, and it can be adapted to the early Sport Trac.