Do you need a steering wheel puller in order to remove the turn signal switch out of the steering column

 

Unfortunately, yes. Have seen non puller methods lead to disaster in the past. I go with the puller for a sure thing.

 

Novice question ... What is a steering wheel puller? I just ordered a new turn signal for about $35 and was about the unleash a phillips head on the project ... Am I unprepared?

 

Yes you are!.
You need the following...
Phillips head
Steering wheel puller
Lock plate compressor. Not sure if you need anything else but that is what you should get.
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Remove steering wheel cap
Remove the clip that holds that steering wheel cap
Remove the nut that holds the steering wheel on
Remove steering wheel
Remove dust cap
*use lock plate compressor
Remove the lock plate
Then ta-da! you have access to your turn signal switch and such.

 

And of course there's the 3/8" ratchet, extention for same and a 15 mm socket to drop the steering column bracket so you can feed the old harness back up the column and feed the new harness down.

 

Forgot to mention that before you can drop the steering column, you have to drop the lower dash panel. There are a bunch of things that you have to unplug from the lower dash that have to be plugged back in when you put things back together. I'm not trying to scare you off from doing this job but you should be aware that this isn't a small job so when you do start, do yourself a favor and document each step as you go. Take pictures, write stuff down, lay out the parts in the order you removed them so all you have to do is reverse the order when it comes time to putting it all back together and you should do fine. If you get stuck you can always come back here and ask for more help. Of course, if you can, you should try to get the factory service manual for your year of jeep. It'll help you immensely and google is your friend when it comes to finding information. Good luck

 

Follow the info above! PM me if you have any troubles. Ive done this stupid column tear down many of times. I had to learn the hard way through trial and error lol good luck!

 

I need only to replace the lever itself not the switch inside the steering column (see photo), any way to do that without pulling off the wheel, etc?
Mine is a 92_XJ