Did you make sure your wheels were pointed straight ahead when you did it?

 

Yes they were pointed straight ahead and I was on an even flat surface

 

Well, it's easy enough to count the number of splines in the steering shaft (hint: just do 90* worth x 4), then divide the total into 360 and you can tell how much arc deviation there is to being off by one spline. If that corresponds the amount of deviation you are seeing, then you found your problem.

 

I will give this a shot tomorrow. Thanks

 

Thanks for the write up! Now, to find a decent price for the part...

 

I have the worst luck. I tried to do this fix recently, until I got to the torx screws. Left one came out, no problem. Then I got to the right side and couldn't seat the bit into the screw. I looked closer and it turns out some idiot (previous mechanic) broke an undersized bit off IN the screw. WTF?? I tried to get it out for over an hour but it's close to flush. I just gave up, looks I'm gonna have to deal with scratched trim.

 

Hold up. It's probably just a security Torx head screw. You need to buy a driver with a tip that has a hole in the middle of it. I'll see if I can find a pic of them.

Here you go:





You can pic them up most anywhere. I think I got a set at Harbor Freight or in the ACE Hardware bargain bin for a couple bucks.

 

Thanks VQ but I had the right bit. It's literally broken off into the screw. Someone tried to use a smaller bit, and naturally it didn't fit correctly and they torqued it at an angle which caused it to break off. I'll try to get a pic later if I can.

 

Hopefully this will help anyone having this problem in the future:

I had this exact same problem where one of my screws came out just fine but the other one stripped completely. It's pretty much impossible to drill it out or cut a slot into it without destroying the plastic shroud. Instead of doing that, the thing that worked for me was a Bolt/Nut Remover Tool, specifically one that is sized for 3/8".

In Canada you can pick these up at Canadian tire, and all you have to do is hook it up to a ratchet or an impact gun and it will allow you to bite down on the bolt and remove it. Once they are out grab some M6 Hex Bolts of the right size and replace both of them to save you some headache in the future.

Best of Luck!

http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/ma...9532p.html#spc

 

Thanks for the help, although I already replaced my trim! I actually did exactly that, I used a reverse-threaded stripped nut removing socket. I had to get a set of them for my shock tower mounts that were stripped, and one day I revisited the steering wheel Torx screw and had the realization I could use the stripped nut remover. It worked! Made me so happy. I painted the trim blue slate to match my car's exterior, I think it looks great.

Only thing is, since I took the airbag out I seem to have a rattle coming from it now.. not sure what it is but eventually I'm gonna have to go back in there because it bothers me a lot.

 

^^^ pics?

 

 

Has anyone found the 48463-JK07C (wheat/beige with both cutouts) at a reasonable price? The dealerships in the Dallas area are quoting me between $175 and $225. And when I search online I’m told the part doesn’t fit my 2010 EX35...but, according to INFINITI it does. I really didn’t want to spend more than $100 for the part since the dealership wants to charge me $185 per hour to install it (I’m not exactly the handy type when it comes to car repair). Thanks.

 

Take a picture with your finger on exactly the piece you're trying to replace and post it here.