I wanted to update everyone on my 4-spoke steering wheel install.
I was at the Pick-N-Pull a few weeks back and removed a steering wheel from a 1995 325ci cabrio. I noticed that the slip-ring was the same as my M3 wheel (part #32341162804). There was a copper stud sticking out of a white plastic sleeve ( CARBON PIN part #32311158475) attached to the STEERING COLUMN SWITCH BRACKET (part #32311159147). This is the part needed to make the connection to activate the horn. I knew right away that this was the part that I needed.
The steering column switch bracket in our cars have the circular slot for the carbon pin. Obviously, it is not used on our cars...but it's there. So, installing the new carbon pin is a snap...just slide it in place and you're done.
The trick is what to do for wiring. Easy enough tho. There are two (2) horn wires in my car. I disconnected the stock slip ring from the steering wheel and STEERING COLUMN SWITCH BRACKET. (The airbag connection and horn plugs are found together disconnect both) I pilfered the male end of a slip ring for the extra wires/plugs. Splicing the power from the carbon pin (which only has one wire) to the horn and running the ground wire to a ground is all it took. Horn now works.
Here is the slip ring from my car. The brown wire is power, the blue wire is the ground. I removed the grey pin from the clock spring and snipped the two wires as close to the grey pin as possible. Snapped the male end into the female end under my steering column.
Here is the carbon pin. I clipped the wire on the connection that this fits into (the female end) which had about 5" of wire, then connected this to the brown wire from the clock spring. (once again, the blue wire just gets grounded...I ran mine under the dash to the 13mm bolt that holds the dash on.)
Looks great...works great.
right on