OEM 2000 Lincoln Continental Clock Spring

2000 Lincoln Continental Clock Spring Parts Q&A

• Q: What Precautions Should Be Taken When Servicing the Clock Spring on 2000 Lincoln Continental?

  A: Safety glasses should always be worn when servicing the air bag sliding contact to protect against possible injuries from accidental deployment responses. Touch live air bag modules by directing the air bag outlet and trim cover toward your body and avoid placing them with the trim face downward. Please clean your hands with soap and water to wash off sodium hydroxide residue which might produce skin irritation after deployment. The air bag module connectors should never receive any probing efforts because such actions could trigger unwarranted deployment. The recommended procedure is to replace air bag modules by discarding damaged or discolored trim covers instead of attempting any form of repair through painting. An inspection of sensors and their mounting brackets should occur after vehicle collisions since any detected damage requires new components. Performance of the back up power supply requires disconnecting the battery ground cable and waiting a minimum of one minute through which the technician must disconnect all auxiliary batteries and power supplies when they exist. The removal procedure starts with disconnecting the ground battery cable through module and steering wheel removal yet maintaining vehicle wheels facing forward. Start by taping the air bag sliding contact to safeguard against unwanted rotation before proceeding to remove the lower finish panel of the steering column opening together with its reinforcement and finish panel of the tilt wheel. Start by turning the ignition switch to the run position before pushing the release tab to remove it plus the part number 11582 ignition switch lock cylinder. Then pull the instrument panel center finish panel carefully to reach the automatic temperature control sensor assembly followed by extracting the left-hand lower panel which requires taking out push pins and the light socket. Mount users must first remove the Passive Anti-Theft System (PATS) transmitter together with the key-in-ignition warning indicator switch and upper steering column shroud by unfastening all retaining nuts. You should remove the cellular phone microphone from its spot on the air bag sliding contact when this component is present. First disconnect the two electrical connectors of the air bag sliding contact and then remove the wire harness from its holders before you can separate the retaining clips to extract the sliding contact. Use a new component for repairs when reversing the installation process. Complete the installation by following all reversed removal procedures. The maintenance process requires utilization of the restraint system diagnostic tool for service functions only but removal of this tool before driving the vehicle to prevent safety concerns and safety standard violations during air bag system tests.