Article doesn't mention the frontal airbag. It says the modder had to write custom firmware to get the Model 3 steering wheel to "work" in the Model S Plaid. Hope the airbag deploys if/when needed.
In most vehicles, airbag wiring is quite separate from other controls and just requires power to trigger. No CAN buses or higher levels of abstraction are involved.
In this case, I expect the air bag module plugs straight in to the existing connector, even if the other controls on the wheel don't. It may even be the same airbag model between the yoke and the wheel.
There are regulations which state how airbags must function. There isn’t much leeway to interpretation. This is generally why you can swap steering wheels in any car so long as the wiring matches up.
The leeway exists in the airbag controller, that can decide when to deploy, how it deploys (3 stage vs 50 stage) and what and how much data to store in nvram.
It’s all open on DOTs website if you are so inclined to look
Source: wanted to swap in new seats to my car from a different model. Found the side airbags were plug and play when you fabricate your own connector
If this is your concern, I have some bad news. The aftermarket vehicle modding community exists, is hugely popular, and does far crazier stuff than this. If this simple mod frightens you, you should be terrified of those folks.
It seems wrong to say that progressive steering requires complex gearing or steer-by-wire. A few years ago, I saw a functional system on IAA. They had an electric motor in the steering wheel, attaching the wheel to the steering axle by means or a worm gear. So if the motor failed, the wheel would just directly drive the axle through the worm gear as it's not backdriveable.
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[ 3.4 ms ] story [ 27.8 ms ] threadIn this case, I expect the air bag module plugs straight in to the existing connector, even if the other controls on the wheel don't. It may even be the same airbag model between the yoke and the wheel.
The leeway exists in the airbag controller, that can decide when to deploy, how it deploys (3 stage vs 50 stage) and what and how much data to store in nvram.
It’s all open on DOTs website if you are so inclined to look
Source: wanted to swap in new seats to my car from a different model. Found the side airbags were plug and play when you fabricate your own connector