Service Procedure

1. Place the gearshift lever in the "Park" position and apply the parking brake.





2. Remove the instrument panel side trim cover located on the side of the instrument panel to expose knee bolster attachment screw (Figure 1).

3. Remove the two knee bolster retaining screws. One screw is located in the door jam, the other screw is located on the bottom of the instrument panel knee bolster.

4. Pull the knee bolster towards driver seat to detach it from the instrument panel.

5. Disconnect the trunk release switch before removing the knee bolster completely.





6. Remove the three Energy Absorbing (EA) bracket mounting bolts and remove the EA bracket (Figure 2).





7. Remove the silencer panel by pulling down at the two push-in fasteners (Figure 3).





8. Verify that the gearshift cable base is fully seated into the steering column mounting bracket and that the cable retaining pin is aligned to the bracket hole (Figure 4).

9. Some early built 2006 model year vehicles do not have a hole in the gear shift bracket to install the tie strap. If the vehicle does not have the required hole in the gear shift bracket, use the following procedure to modify the shift cable bracket:

a. Place a fender cover or large shop towel on the floor below the gear shift bracket to catch any metal chips created during the drilling process.





b. Using a 5/16 in. (8 mm) drill bit, drill a hole in the bracket as shown in Figure 5.

CAUTION:
Do not remove the bracket from the vehicle during the drilling process.

c. Using a small round file or deburring tool, deburr the hole drilled into the bracket.

d. Carefully remove the fender cover or large shop towel from the vehicle.





10. Install a plastic tie strap around the cable base and steering column mounting bracket as shown in Figure 6.

11. After installing the plastic tie strap, cut off the excess end of the tie strap.

12. Install the silencer panel into position and install the two push-in fasteners (Figure 3).

13. Install the Energy Absorbing (EA) bracket and three mounting bolts. Tighten the bolts to 62 in. lbs (7 N.m) (Figure 2).

14. Connect the trunk release switch and snap the knee bolster into position.

15. Install the two knee bolster retaining screws. One screw is located in the door jam, the other screw is located on the bottom of the instrument panel knee bolster.

16. Install the instrument panel side trim cover at side of the instrument panel (Figure 1).