# DIY - Full MFSW with Paddle Shift Retrofit



## npace (Sep 3, 2012)

Disclaimer: I am not responsible if you hurt yourself, your car, or have any other issues attempting to do this. This is simply a thorough documentation of what I did to make my car that much more awesome. Follow in my footsteps at your own peril. In other words, if the airbag blows up in your face, its your fault. 

With that said, here is what you will need in parts:

1. Audi A3 8P 2009+ Facelift (may work on other models, not sure though)
2. Multi-function steering wheel with paddle shifters
3. Airbag harness OEM part number 8P0971589Q
4. New airbag if you are switching wheel types (ie 4 spoke to 3 spoke) I stuck with a 4 spoke model that I got off of ebay.de that came from a Q5 8R model. 

Tools:
1. Ratchet wrench with the following drivers:
a. 10mm socket
b. 12mm triple square
2. Small flathead screwdriver
3. T30 torx driver
4. VCDS with cable and compatible computer

First things first, you want to make sure your steering control module will work with what you're trying to do. If it isn't compatible, then there's really no point. Hook up your VCDS and go to the steering control module, #16. See what it says. 

Almost all of these cars (8P 2009+ facelift) came with 8P0 953 549 K. That's the OEM part number. If you have that, continue on. If not, there's probably a lot more work involved, including some soldering. There are other part numbers that may work, but you'll have to do your research here. If that's the case, the rest of this DIY won't help. Sorry.

If you're still reading this, continue on. Don't worry, pics are coming. Now, go ahead and get your steering wheel and wiring harness. I wanted to keep the 4 spoke wheel and re-use my airbag, so I went with OEM part number 8R0419091DWUN. If you bought a new wheel with airbag attached, no need for the wiring harness. Skip the next paragraph.

If you need the harness, go with OEM part number 8P0971589Q. There are other ones that may work, but this is listed as being on the A3 when paired with MFSW. 

This is what it looks like:


















In the image above, the black clip on the left is why you need this. The buttons on the MFSW need a way to connect to everything else, and the harness ends there. VAG designed these to plug into the airbag harness, which is the interface with the Steering Control module. 

Now the fun starts. Disconnect your battery terminals and get in the car. Hit the brakes a few times and then wait a good 10-15 minutes.

Now go back to the car, and hit the brakes a few more times. Insert your key into the ignition switch to release the steering lock. Now turn the wheel 90 degrees (in any direction). If you look at the bottom of the wheel, there is a small indentation with a plastic cover thing in the steering wheel. Remove that with your hands... it's simple and self explanatory. 










Now you will have exposed the T30 Torx screw. Get your driver and turn it loose. You will see the airbag separate from the wheel a bit when you do this. 

Now repeat on the opposite side. The airbag should look something like this:












Now, straighten the steering wheel, and ever so gently, pull the airbag away from the wheel. Like so:











You will see the harness plugged into the steering control module. Using your flathead screwdriver, gently press down and pull toward you on the top of the orange portion shown in the above pic. It will be flush with the rest of the harness, but will stick out like above when released. Holding the airbag, unplug the harness. 

The airbag should now be released and in your hands. Gently, set it aside, face (4 rings) down. 
Now its time to remove the old harness. A word of caution, the manufacturer has set a specific order to this. It may not matter, but I prefer not to take chances, as there is no need. If you are replacing the entire wheel, to include airbag and all, and its already installed on the wheel, skip the next part. 










Note the numbers behind the wiring harness. To the upper left of the green connection, there is a "1" and to the upper right of the orange connection, there is a "2". Disconnect them in this order. You will need a small flathead to first pry the yellow portion up, and then pry the actual connection loose. Then, there are two grounding pins, a larger copper colored one, and a smaller grey one, both are in a yellow sleeve. The green wire in the pic above stays in place, so leave it alone. You can see the ones you need to remove in the far upper left of the pic. Gently remove these, and then there will be a plastic clip holding the harness in place. Remove that, and you can now do with the old harness as you wish. 

Replace the old harness with the new one in the reverse order. Note that you will connect #2 first, then #1. 

Now turn your attention back to the old steering wheel, still on your car. 











Use your 12mm triple square, like so, and remove the bolt holding the wheel in place. According to Dr. Bentley, these can only be re-used 5 times, so you may want to mark the bolt. 










Now the steering wheel should come right off. Set it aside, but be careful, you aren't done with it yet. The steering control module will probably slide to the right slightly, but don't worry. When you put the new wheel back on, it has to line up correctly to fit.

Next, align the new wheel as you place it on the splined portion of the column. There is a mark at the top center of the inside of the wheel and on the column, so line those up and make sure the control module fits inside, like so:











Now, re-insert the bolt, tighten, and torque to 20 ft.-lbs. You're almost done. 
Grab the old steering wheel, and remove the plastic ring that sits between the wheel and the airbag. Skip this if you're using a wheel with airbag pre-installed. Be careful, because these are known to crack, and if that happens, you're screwed. This is the ring, by itself:










Re-insert the ring onto the new wheel. Now, plug the airbag with new harness into the connection for multi-function, and the steering control module. Place the airbag in place. All that's left is to turn the wheel 90 degrees, and tighten the torx bolts. This will bring the airbag back into place, and when you're done, it will look like so:










Now straighten the wheel out, and, this is important, remove the keys from the ignition. Clean up all your tools and junk out of the car. Now reconnect the battery. Get back in the car, and turn the ignition to on. If the airbag doesn't blow up in your face, you've done well. You will have a ton of error lights. I prefer not to clear things with VCDS unless I have to, so a quick drive around the block should clear your ESC and TPMS lights, as well as the steering light, although you're not quite done. 

Park in a safe place, and plug your VCDS cable into your car and computer. Open the VCDS program, and go to module 16, steering. My original coding looked like this:

0010042 -- the first two numbers should stay the same. The "1" is for automatic. A manual has a "0" there. Leave that alone. The next number tells the computer the steering wheel type. Full MFSW is a "4". The next number tells the computer if you have tiptronic or not. Add "1" to whatever is there. In my case, 0+1=1, so I put in a "1". The next number tells the computer what your steering control module is, and the next tells it if you have a rear wiper or not. You can probably leave these alone. 

My new coding is: 0014142. Click "Do it!" and you should get a message that says "Coding accepted". Once this happens, cycle the ignition back off, start her up, and go for a test drive. You're done, and everything should work well. In my case, the telephone and voice recognition can't be used, but this is a function of whether the car stereo has that capability or not. Other than that, I have paddle shift (my primary reason for doing this mod), the radio controls work, and the lights on the buttons work. 

In all, it took me about an hour and 20 min to do this, and that included stopping to take pics and move stuff around. It isn't that bad if you pay attention and be careful. I hope this helps somebody. It took me a lot of research to get this right. If you have questions, post them here, and I will answer to the best of my ability. :vampire:


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## Ponto (Jan 11, 2012)

Nice write up!


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## drew138 (Dec 3, 2006)

SO you added paddle shifting to a car without? Nice. I will add this to the DIY.

Also, I have a Sline MFSW that I'd consider selling. Will probably part out my FBSW at some point as well and could be convinced to sell that as well. PM if interested.


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## VW KEVIN G (Oct 26, 2000)

I need a four spoke leather wrapped wheel if you are selling the old one.


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## npace (Sep 3, 2012)

drew138 said:


> SO you added paddle shifting to a car without? Nice. I will add this to the DIY.
> 
> Also, I have a Sline MFSW that I'd consider selling. Will probably part out my FBSW at some point as well and could be convinced to sell that as well. PM if interested.


Yep. Paddle shift and radio controls work fine. In fact, all the buttons work, but because my radio is a concert II, when I try to use the other buttons I just get a "function not available" message on the cluster.


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## VW KEVIN G (Oct 26, 2000)

MFSW=multi function steering wheel?
FBSW=??


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## Ponto (Jan 11, 2012)

VW KEVIN G said:


> MFSW=multi function steering wheel?
> FBSW=??


FBSW = Flat Bottom Steering Wheel.


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## krazyboi (May 19, 2004)

nice write up


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## skotti (Sep 27, 2005)

Does anyone know how to remove the 4 spoke steering wheel? I cannot locate the T30 torx cover or cover. I turned the wheel 90 degrees, but I cannot find any kind of torx screw or small plastic cover.
TIA :beer:


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## npace (Sep 3, 2012)

I did this on a 4 spoke wheel, but my car is a facelift model. Not sure if there was a change from earlier models. Does someone with a pre-facelift know if it's different?


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## krazyboi (May 19, 2004)

npace said:


> I did this on a 4 spoke wheel, but my car is a facelift model. Not sure if there was a change from earlier models. Does someone with a pre-facelift know if it's different?


I have pre-facelift and swear it's in the same location. Don't have my car though to confirm right now.


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## skotti (Sep 27, 2005)

There are absolutely no covers/screws visible on the back of a 4 spoke steering wheel.

EDIT: N/M, found them!


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## A3-Owner (Aug 10, 2015)

*Thanks NPace!!*

I ordered the steering wheel from Warsaw Poland and the harness with your directions it got done. The right paddle shifter had a loose wire pin that caused the shifter to not work at the start but pushing it back in got it going. I missed paddle shifter a lot and it is great to have them again. It makes the Stage 3 A3 experience even that more fun.

Thanks for posting this :beer: eace:


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## npace (Sep 3, 2012)

Glad it worked out for you! :thumbup:


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## melstrom (Nov 1, 2007)

Didn't realize this got bumped -- I was swapping harnesses couple days ago using this as a reference as well

:beer: npace


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## godspeeddubs (Mar 15, 2011)

*paddle shift.*

when using the paddles does the dsg have to be in the side slot? or does it matter. thanks for an awesome thread i look forward to doing this to mine.


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## npace (Sep 3, 2012)

For the paddles, they will work in D, S, or M mode (at least on mine they will) - but how they work there varies. In D and S mode, you can shift using the paddles but the car reverts to computer dictated shifting a few seconds after you shift. In M mode, you're in full control. Refer to your owner's manual for selecting D, M, and S mode if you don't know how.


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## krazyboi (May 19, 2004)

Mine works like yours as well ^^


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## Pjj1970 (Feb 21, 2018)

Nice write up. 
Any idea if 8P0419091BB1k will work with an Audi A3 , 8PA from 2009

/Pj


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## Pjj1970 (Feb 21, 2018)

*Fitted a paddle shifter MFSW on my audi A3 2009 1.4 tfsi with cruise control.*

I spent quite some time studying this part webpage : 

http://www.oemepc.com/audi/part_sin.../419/subcategory/419000/part_id/896660/lang/u

Here I found that the steering wheel I needed was a : 

8P0419091ES 

Actually what ended up arriving when ordering on ebay was : 
8P0419091ESKT

Also I finally figured out how to decifer the 3 letter option codes http://vag-codes.info/
(I found a word document if anyone should be interested drop me a PM).

The airbag wirering harness can be found here :

http://www.oemepc.com/audi/part_sin...hg_ug/880/subcategory/880000/part_id/0/lang/u

I ended up ordering this one : 

8P0971589Q

Setting up the codes in VCDS was a easy as described above. I was able to find the software for my cable version 12.12 and it worked like a charm. Instant gratification 

Removing the airbag and steering wheel was pretty easy with the help of the writeup here... 

Good luck to everyone out there attempting the upgrade.


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## vtraudt (Mar 1, 2010)

Can someone provide some more details on determining the correct equipment options for the softcoding?
A bit more details maybe on the various options (what airbag setup is in the car, what belt option)?


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## npace (Sep 3, 2012)

vtraudt said:


> Can someone post the entire softcoding page with options?
> And a bit more details how to determine which options to select (IIRC seeing board computer options, wheel options, radio options, etc).


I'm sorry, I would but my car is in pieces everywhere and I can't reconnect the battery and do a screenshot. If it's a coding problem, there's a VAG-COM section of the forum that will be able to help. They'll want a full scan of the car available, but those guys are usually pretty responsive.


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## vtraudt (Mar 1, 2010)

Can someone with a paddle steering wheel (and DSG, FWD, normal radio, no board computer) post their softcode settings in the steering wheel (and radio or other modules that are influenced by the steering wheel)?
And how to determine what hardware is installed?

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.au..._0f9376e553d5760bb54fd5ee1d6d15f57d7127ef.jpg

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.au..._da7806d63ed6662d9eedf159b38d2d39fadf098c.png

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.au..._f2c5614209fc1d10765dcf90f39a7a17f3130139.png


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