S60 steering wheel installation in an S70

[cmblackburn]

Figured I would share this for the sake of informing the masses that it can be done- a P2 wheel can be put on a P80. This opens us P80 guys up to a lot more steering wheel options that are more easily attainable- the newest P80 at this point is 13 years old.
Personally, I installed an S60 wheel because:
1) It was free (helped do an R interior swap at Carlisle)
2) thick, padded rim (helps a lot with my arthritis)
3) 13 year old airbag vs. 20 year old airbag

I'm not 100% sure I like it, but it definitely makes the car nicer to drive than the falling apart '00 XC SE wood wheel it replaced.
So this is a 3-spoke "sport" wheel off of a 2005 S60 2.5T AWD. It is installed in my 1998 S70 T5.
I disassembled the wheel before drilling the hole- 4 torx screws to remove the airbag cage.
The wheel will bolt right onto the car, and the airbag will connect just fine to the existing clockspring, but you will need to drill a hole and install the spring pad for your horn to work. You will connect the spring contact to the red wire inside the steering wheel.
I measured around 3/4 inches from the end of the circumference of the splined portion of the wheel to the middle (start point of a drill bit) of the factory steering wheel. I drilled a pilot hole and worked my way up to 3/8", through the solid portion of the metal on the S60 wheel.

I then modified the counterweight bracket to accommodate the spring contact being in the way. (Would have used a metal file if I had one)


To install the horn contact, I wrapped just a few pieces of electrical tape around the body of the contact and installed it in the hole I drilled. I then followed it up with epoxy once I was sure it was properly positioned. Since the S60 wheel has the ridge for the splines, it sits higher than the P80 wheel on the steering shaft and therefore you must make the top part of the plastic be level with the top of the metal.

Now to power the horn- you will connect the spring contact's black wire to the red wire inside the steering wheel. I snipped off the terminal from my old steering wheel since I did not have any terminal ends handy and soldered the wire to it, but I recommend you get a terminal end.


Reassemble the steering wheel and install it on the car, connecting your clockspring to the green connector on the airbag, and...



It does not look entirely at home in a P80 interior, but definitely feels nice to drive with.
An 01-3 S60 airbag with the older style Volvo logo can be used to keep the familiarity of the previous steering wheel, and button delete panels exist to get rid of the non-functional buttons. I do have plans to wire them up...someday...but that'll be another story
Hope you guys find this useful.

[bmdubya1198]

Nicely done! I've seen a couple of P80s with these, but I figured there was some kind of modification required.

Nice boost gauge! Haha

[AKJeeper]

Cool! Thanks for the info. There's a S80 in the junkyard near me, and I was thinking of trying to swap the steering wheel/airbag from it on to my V70.

[misha]

...the newest P80 at this point is 13 years old...

It would be really nice!

[CIK7]

Figured I would share this for the sake of informing the masses that it can be done- a P2 wheel can be put on a P80. This opens us P80 guys up to a lot more steering wheel options that are more easily attainable- the newest P80 at this point is 13 years old.
Personally, I installed an S60 wheel because:
1) It was free (helped do an R interior swap at Carlisle)
2) thick, padded rim (helps a lot with my arthritis)
3) 13 year old airbag vs. 20 year old airbag

I'm not 100% sure I like it, but it definitely makes the car nicer to drive than the falling apart '00 XC SE wood wheel it replaced.
So this is a 3-spoke "sport" wheel off of a 2005 S60 2.5T AWD. It is installed in my 1998 S70 T5.
I disassembled the wheel before drilling the hole- 4 torx screws to remove the airbag cage.
The wheel will bolt right onto the car, and the airbag will connect just fine to the existing clockspring, but you will need to drill a hole and install the spring pad for your horn to work. You will connect the spring contact to the red wire inside the steering wheel.
I measured around 3/4 inches from the end of the circumference of the splined portion of the wheel to the middle (start point of a drill bit) of the factory steering wheel. I drilled a pilot hole and worked my way up to 3/8", through the solid portion of the metal on the S60 wheel.

I then modified the counterweight bracket to accommodate the spring contact being in the way. (Would have used a metal file if I had one)


To install the horn contact, I wrapped just a few pieces of electrical tape around the body of the contact and installed it in the hole I drilled. I then followed it up with epoxy once I was sure it was properly positioned. Since the S60 wheel has the ridge for the splines, it sits higher than the P80 wheel on the steering shaft and therefore you must make the top part of the plastic be level with the top of the metal.

Now to power the horn- you will connect the spring contact's black wire to the red wire inside the steering wheel. I snipped off the terminal from my old steering wheel since I did not have any terminal ends handy and soldered the wire to it, but I recommend you get a terminal end.


Reassemble the steering wheel and install it on the car, connecting your clockspring to the green connector on the airbag, and...



It does not look entirely at home in a P80 interior, but definitely feels nice to drive with.
An 01-3 S60 airbag with the older style Volvo logo can be used to keep the familiarity of the previous steering wheel, and button delete panels exist to get rid of the non-functional buttons. I do have plans to wire them up...someday...but that'll be another story
Hope you guys find this useful.

This means the spline count (the teeth mount) on 98 SV70 is same as 05 s60. Do you know if spline count is same as 95 960? I like that steering wheel a lot.

[bmdubya1198]

This means the spline count (the teeth mount) on 98 SV70 is same as 05 s60. Do you know if spline count is same as 95 960? I like that steering wheel a lot.

Yup, the 960 uses the same splines as the P80 and P2. A 960/S90/V90 steering wheel is a direct swap into your V70 if that's what you're asking. You'll just need the airbag too.