DISCLAIMER:

If you hurt yourself attempting this stunt, tough sh!t. Nobody made you do it, least of all me. Be a man (woman?) and take responsibilty for yourself, don't go running off to your lawyer screaming lawsuit, there, ya pansy. In fact, it annoys the hell out of me that the world is such that I even need to think about putting this disclaimer here. If you recognize personal responsibility, and don't contribute to the perversion of our court system by the money-grubbing scum that screw everything up for everybody else, then read on; otherwise get the hell off my website!

WHY WOULD I WANT TO DO THIS?

Mainly because the 81-85 combination switches make a lot more sense than the 79-80. All light functions (turn signal, park and headlights, high beam, and flash to pass) are combined on one stalk, with the wiper functions on the other. The 79-80 setup was just plain stupid, with the park and headlights over on the right stalk, and the wiper/washers on the turn signal stalk for some reason. You also get the flash-to-pass on the later controls, and a better location for the hazard indicator switch. Originally, I attempted to simply replace the switches, and not the entire column, but there were a couple problems. The later column is a slightly larger diameter where the combo switches mount, and it has an indexing hole to keep them from moving. The hole is no problem, I have a drill, but having to shim the column tube to keep the switches tight felt to kludgy to me (I drove with it like this for a month with no probs, but...). Also while I had everything apart, I noticed that the bushing at the top of my column had disintegrated, allowing the steering wheel to wallow around - not good. When I got to looking at the later columns, I noticed that some had needle bearings instead of the plastic bushing -this is good!

HMMM, WELL, OK, I WANNA DO IT. WHAT DO I HAVE TO ROB?

You're going to want to grab the column, switches, plastic housing, and about a foot of the column harness from the donor vehicle. Word of advice here - look at the end of the column where it connects to the steering box. 79-80 column tube flares out to slide over a projection from the steering box. Some of the later columns are the same diameter all the way down, and slide *into* a projection on the steering box. The changeover was mid-81, according to Mazdatrix. If you get one of the later units, you will have to separate the two sections of the column tube at the collapse joint and put the early end on the later tube. It can be done, but it's a bitch (voice of experience speaks!). Do yourself a favor and find the earlier 81 column!

You will need the key for the replacement column, or a new ignition lock and key set - they are different from 79-80 to 81-85. Grab all the locks from the donor vehicle if you have the key so you don't end up with two keys for your vehicle. Or not, as you will. As a point of interest, the 84-5 column is the same as the later 81-83, but the plastic housing is different.

For instructions on removing the column tube, see below.

RIGHT, GOT THE STUFF! UM, NOW WHAT?

Take the old column out, put the new one in, and build an adapter harness for the combo switches. Easy, huh?

OK, a little more detail. To remove the column, first pull the steering wheel. Remove the horn button by simply peeling off the rubber cover. The horn contact plate should not have to be removed to access the wheel securing nut. Make an aligning mark on the wheel and steering shaft so it can all go back together straight, and break the nut loose. Loosen the nut almost all the way off, but don't remove it. Most of the steering wheels that I have dealt with on RX-7s have come off with just a yank or two; the nut stays on to keep from smacking yourself in the nose when the wheel comes loose (been there, done that - fortunately, nobody was watching). I have had to use a puller on one. Once the wheel is loose you can remove the nut and the wheel. Remove the plastic housing around the combo switch, remove the air duct under the column, and unplug the column connectors. Turn the ignition to "on" to unlock the column. Remove the four 14 mm bolts securing the column bracket to the column tube, then remove the two 17 mm nuts holding the bracket to the dash. Remove the bracket, noting it's orientation. You should be able to slide the tube straight up and off of the shaft (huh-huh, huh-huh, he said 'shaft'). There will be some resistance from the firewall seal, especially when the flared end hits it; a little silicone lube will help here. You'll also need to wiggle the column around a little to get the column lock collar down the second section of tube.

Slide the later tube back on in the same way, after removing the bracket and unlocking the column lock. Once the column tube is back where it's supposed to be (check that it slipped over the steering box properly), bolt the bracket back on - it only fits properly one way, then bolt the whole thing to the dash support. You may want to wait 'til the electrical work is done and the switch housing is back on before replacing the steering wheel. So much for the mechanical part, now we need to match up the electrical connectors. You can also see why we needed a foot of the donor harness - the later connectors plug in at the switches, while the 79-80 connects under the dash.

There's two ways to go about this: 1) cut the connectors off of your 79-80 harness, and solder on the length of 81-85 harness cut out of the donor car, or 2) make an adapter harness using the length of harness cut out of the donor, and a set or plugs cut from a spare 79-80 combo switch and ignition switch. Which method used depends on how concerned you are about being able to return to original. I hate to make permanent changes from stock if I can avoid it, so I made the adapter.

If you want to do the cut and solder job, you can still use my diagram for reference, but be aware that some of the wire colors change from one side of the plug to the other. When soldering directly on to the existing wires, not that many of the colors are the same, but not all, so pay attention!

If you want to make an adapter, just follow the diagram below. Trim everything up so that the length of the completed harness is close to the length of the pigtail on the original combo switch, so that you don't have excess wire hanging all over. Be neat! Helps if you need to troubleshoot. Match wires as shown in the diagram, solder and tape, or use crimp connectors if you can't solder (crimp tight and check each connection). Before you tape wrap the harness, plug it in for a smoke test. No smoke? OK, check that the park- and headlights, horn and hazard lights first, then turn the key on. Make sure all the usual key on stuff happens. Check your turn signals, wipers, and washers. Now try to start it. Everything OK? Then wrap the harness up in tape neatly, and finish putting everything together. If not, double check the nonfunctional connections, and make sure all the wires go where they should.

Don't forget to make sure the steering wheel is aligned via the marks made earlier, and the securing nut is good and tight. Enjoy!