side of the rotor hu b also serves as an in tegr al
molded plastic turn signal cancel ca m.
A single connector r eceptacle on the u pper surfa ce
of the rotor has pigt ail wires that conn ect to th e horn
switch a nd the dr iver a irba g on t he steerin g wheel,
while a single con nector receptacle on the lower sur-
face of the case ha s pigtail wir es th at con nect the
clockspr ing to the vehicle wire harness on the steer-
ing column. Wit hin t he plastic case and wound
around t he rot or spool is a long ribbon-like tape that
consists of sever al thin copper wir e leads sandwiched
between two t hin pla st ic mem bran es. The outer en d
of th e tape t erminates at t he conn ector recept acle
that faces the steerin g colum n, while the inner end of
the t ape ter min ates at th e connect or r eceptacle on
the h ub of th e clocksprin g rotor th at faces the steer-
ing whe el.
Service r eplacem ent clocksprings are shipped pr e-
centered and with the mountin g scr ews backed out
from the case far en ough to en gage th e access holes
in the upper su rface of the rotor. The mou nting
scr ews secure the centered clocksprin g rotor to t he
clockspr ing case during shipm ent, but allow fr ee
rotation of th e rotor once th e clockspring is properly
insta lled on the steerin g colum n. (Refer to8-ELEC-
TRICAL/RESTRAINTS/CLOCKSPRING - STAN-
DARD PROCEDURE - CLOCKSPRING
CENTERING).
The clockspring cann ot be repair ed. If the clock-
spring is faulty, dama ged, or if the driver airba g has
been deployed, the clockspr ing must be repla ced.
OPERATION
The clockspring is a mech anical elect rica l cir cuit
component that is used to provide cont inuou s electr i-
cal continu ity between the fixed veh icle wire ha rness
and the elect rical componen ts mounted on or in t he
rotating steering wheel. On th is model the rota tin g
electrical com ponents include t he driver airbag and
the h orn switch. The clockspring case is positioned
and secured to th e mu lti-funct ion swit ch h ousing
near the top of the steering column . Th e connector
recepta cle on the un derside of the fixed clockspring
case connect s t he clocksprin g to the vehicle electrical
system through t wo take outs with con nector s from
the vehicle wire har ness.
The clockspr ing r otor is movable and is keyed by
integra l molded ribs on t he inner circum ference of
the rotor hub t o th e splines on the exter nal circum -
ference of the upper steerin g column sh aft. The two
integra l lobes of the tu rn signa l can cel cam forma tion
on t he lower surface of t he clocksprin g r otor hub con-
tact th e turn signa l cancel act uator of the multi-func-
tion switch to pr ovide a utomatic turn signa l
cancellation. The yellow sleeved pigt ail wire on the
upper surface of the clocksprin g rotor connects t he
clockspr ing to the driver airbag, while two single pig-
tail wir es connect to the feed an d groun d terminals of
the horn switch locat ed within the h ub cavity of the
steer in g wheel.
Like the clockspring in a tim epiece, th e clockspring
tape ha s t ravel limits and can be da maged by bein g
wound too tightly during full stop-to-stop st eerin g
wheel rot ation. To prevent th is from occu rring, the
clockspr ing is centered when it is insta lled on t he
st eering column. Center ing t he clockspring indexes
the clockspr ing t ape to the movable steering compo-
nent s so t hat the tape can oper ate with in its
designed tra vel limits. However, if the clockspring is
removed from t he steerin g column or if t he st eering
sh aft is disconnected from the st eering gear, th e
clockspr ing spool ca n change position relative to the
mova ble st eering componen ts. The clockspr ing must
be re-center ed following completion of this service or
the tape may be damaged.
Service r eplacem ent clocksprings are shipped pr e-
centered and with the mountin g scr ews backed out
from the case far en ough to en gage th e access holes
in the upper su rface of the rotor. The mou nting
scr ews secure the centered clocksprin g rotor to t he
clockspr ing case during shipm ent, but allow fr ee
rotation of th e rotor once th e clockspring is properly
insta lled on the steerin g colu mn. Th e clockspring
mounting screws should not be tightened into th e
clockspr ing ca se until the clockspring h as been
insta lled on t he steer ing colum n. If t he screws are
tightened in to or removed from th e case before t he
clockspr ing is installed on a steerin g colu mn, the
clockspr ing cent erin g procedu re must be performed.
(Refer t o 8 - ELECTRICAL/RESTRAINTS/CLOCK-
SP RING - STANDARD PROCEDURE - CLOCK-
SP RING CENTERING).
STANDARD PROCEDURE - CLOCKSPRING
CENTERING
The clockspring is designed t o wind and unwind
when th e steerin g wheel is rotated, but is only
designed to rotate th e same n umber of t urns (about
six to seven complete rotation s) as the steering wh eel
can be turned fr om st op t o stop. Center ing the clock-
spring indexes th e clockspr ing tape t o other st eering
components so that it can opera te with in its design ed
travel limits. The rotor of a centered clockspr ing ca n
be rotated thr ee to thr ee a nd one-h alf t urns in eith er
direct ion from th e cent ered position, without damag-
ing the clockspring tape.
However, if the clockspring is r emoved for service
or if the st eering column is discon nected from th e
st eering gear, th e clocksprin g tape ca n chan ge posi-
tion relative to t he other steer ing com pon ents. The
clockspr ing must then be re-centered following com-
pletion of su ch service or t he clockspring ta pe may be
da maged. Service replacem ent clocksprin gs ar e
sh ipped pre-centered and with t he mounting screws
backed ou t fr om t he case far en ough to en gage the
VA RESTRAINTS 8O - 13
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