Steering Wheel Mis-aligned

[hochiminh]

Hi,

The previous owner of my 91 318is had to take off the steering wheel to weld a crack in the cross member and when he re-assembled it, the steering wheel is at a quarter turn to the left when the wheels are center. Where along the links do I adjust this? Can this be done using rudimentary DIY home alignment? I'm assuming yes, since it can be fairly accurate. TIA.

[DesktopDave]

Pull the steering wheel.   It's just one big nut.  Now is also a good time to get that upgraded leather MTech II you've always wanted.  If you still have the airbag wheel, you should do a search here.  Here's a quick summary:

Unlock the steering wheel with the key to position 2, don't start the car
Center the front wheels
disconnect the battery (prevents the SRS light from turning on)
lock the wheel with the key
unscrew the allen (hex head) bolts from the back of the steering wheel & pull the airbag
remove the large nut in the center of the steering column
unlock the steering again
pull the wheel & carefully re-center it.
lock the wheel
re-tighten the nut on the wheel.

Reassemble in reverse order.

[monko141]

The screws to get the airbag off are torx not allen.

[YetiX]

One other important thing.

MAKE SURE YOUR TURN SIGNAL INDICATOR IS OFF, i.e. centered.  

If it's up or down (as if you were signaling for a turn) and you pull or re-install the wheel, you'll snap the little tab that makes the turn signals auto cancel. DAMHIK.

Now, I always push it forward, like I'm turning on the high beams, to help get it out of the way.