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Steering Wheel Install Guide

Toyota Hilux N70 and LandCruiser 70 Series. Allow about an hour.

Airbag safety. Disconnect the negative battery terminal and wait at least 90 seconds before touching the airbag. 10 minutes is safer.

Never turn the steering, or the clockspring, while the wheel is off. The clockspring tears if it is wound past about 2.5 turns from centre.

Which install are you doing?

Factory buttons

My vehicle already has wheel buttons

Your factory clockspring stays. The wheel plugs straight in, no wiring. Skip parts 3 and 5.

Wiring kit

My vehicle has no wheel buttons

Fit the RCA clockspring and wiring kit. Needs a head unit with steering wheel control input on a 28-pin socket. Do every part.

What's in the box

Complete RCA steering wheel: buttons, horn and trims fitted, with airbag cover
Wiring kit only: RCA clockspring, short white adapter lead, yellow, red, black and white wires with pins fitted, white 28-pin plug

Tools

T30 Torx bit: airbag screws
19 mm socket: steering wheel centre nut
8 mm socket: airbag detonator nuts
Torque wrench
Small flat screwdriver: airbag connector lock
Phillips screwdriver: column shrouds (wiring kit only)
Paint pen or marker

Install

1

Remove the factory wheel

1
Note your radio presets. Key to LOCK, disconnect the negative battery terminal, then wait at least 90 seconds.
2
Front wheels straight ahead, steering centred, indicator stalk in neutral.
3
Loosen the two T30 Torx screws behind the wheel until each one catches in its case. They are captive, so don't force them out.
4
Ease the airbag forward without pulling on its wires. Lift the yellow connector's lock with a small flat screwdriver and unplug it, then unplug the horn lead.
5
Set the airbag face up on a clean bench, where it can't be knocked or sat on.
6
Unplug the factory button connector, if fitted. Paint-mark the wheel against the steering shaft.
7
Undo the 19 mm centre nut but leave it on a few threads. Rock the wheel side to side until it breaks free; the nut stops it hitting you when it lets go. Remove the nut and the wheel.
2

Swap the airbag detonator

1
With the factory airbag face up, undo the 8 mm nuts on its back plate that hold the detonator to the factory cover.
2
Lift the detonator out by its housing. Never by its wires, never test it with a multimeter, and keep its face pointed away from you.
3
Seat it in the RCA wheel's airbag cover the same way round, and refit the nuts.
4
Keep the cover face up on the bench until part 6.
3

Fit the RCA clockspring

Wiring kit only
1
Remove the column shrouds (Phillips screws).
2
Unplug the old clockspring's connectors, release its 3 clips and slide it off.
3
Vehicles with stability control (VSC): move the steering angle sensor from the old clockspring to the RCA one.
4
Fit the RCA clockspring and refit the shrouds. It arrives centred with a lock pin or tab: leave that in until the wheel is ready to go on.
5
Lock pin lost, or clockspring turned? Re-centre it: rotate it anticlockwise by hand until it feels firm, then clockwise about 2.5 turns until the centre marks line up.
4

Fit the RCA wheel

1
RCA clockspring only: pull its lock pin or tab out.
2
Feed the wheel's button lead through the hub. Slide the wheel onto the spline on your paint marks, spokes level.
3
Fit the 19 mm nut and tighten to the factory torque (Hilux N70: 50 N·m).
4
Click the wheel's button lead into the clockspring.
5

Wire in the kit

Wiring kit only
1
Plug the short white adapter lead between the RCA clockspring and the vehicle's column plug. Each end only fits one way.
2
Run the yellow, red, black and white wires behind the dash to the head unit.
3
Take the white 28-pin plug. From the wire side, push yellow into cavity 21, red into 22 and black into 23 until each pin clicks. Tug each wire gently to check it's locked.
4
Plug the 28-pin plug into the 28-pin socket on the back of the head unit.
5
Connect white to the park-light power wire behind the radio. This lights the buttons when the park lights are on.
114 1528 21 22 23

Plug viewed from the wire side. Count from the small numbers moulded on the plug next to the end cavities.

21 Yellow: seek and volume buttons
22 Red: mode, voice and phone buttons
23 Black: button ground
White: not in the plug. Park-light power behind the radio.
6

Fit the airbag and test

1
Plug the yellow airbag connector into the clockspring until it clicks and the lock is down, then the horn lead.
2
Seat the airbag cover and tighten both T30 screws to 8.8 N·m.
3
Reconnect the battery. Ignition ON: the airbag light should come on briefly, then go out. If it stays on, stop and see troubleshooting below.
4
Test the horn, every button and cruise control, if fitted.
5
Wiring kit: set up the buttons in the head unit's steering wheel control menu, one button at a time.

Troubleshooting

Airbag light stays on

The yellow airbag plug isn't fully seated, or the clockspring is off centre.

Battery off, wait 90 seconds, reseat the plug until it clicks. If that doesn't clear it, re-centre the clockspring (part 3, step 5).

No buttons work

Factory buttons: check the wheel's button lead is clicked into the clockspring.

Wiring kit: check the adapter lead is plugged in both ends, the 28-pin plug is seated, and yellow, red and black are in 21, 22 and 23.

Only some buttons work

Seek and volume use yellow (21). Mode, voice and phone use red (22). Check the pin for the dead group is clicked in and hasn't pushed back out.

Buttons do the wrong thing

Run the head unit's steering wheel control learn menu again, one button at a time.

Buttons don't light up

White isn't on park-light power. Connect it to the park-light power wire behind the radio and test with the park lights on.

Horn doesn't work

The horn lead wasn't reconnected. Battery off, wait 90 seconds, remove the airbag cover and plug the horn lead in.

Technical reference

Wire pinout
Kit wire
Signal
28-pin cavity
Yellow
SW1: seek, volume
21
Red
SW2: mode, voice, phone
22
Black
SWG: switch ground
23
White
Button backlight +12 V
Not in plug

Head units without a 28-pin socket: yellow to KEY 1, red to KEY 2, black to KEY or SWC ground.

Button voltages for testing

Ignition on. Measure yellow or red against black.

Volts
Yellow (21)
Red (22)
2.97–3.56
Nothing pressed
Nothing pressed
0.27–0.35
Seek up
Mode
0.86–1.03
Seek down
Phone on-hook
1.51–1.79
Volume +
Phone off-hook
2.22–2.66
Volume −
Voice

Need a hand?

Message us with your vehicle, build date and a photo of the back of your head unit.

info@ruggedcustomsautomotive.com
0493 191 958