Dash grab handle

[alexalexanders]

the handle on the dash passenger side above airbag is cracked. How does it come off? Mine is cracked at the base and im goin to the pnp this weekend to get a new one.

[Herman Wiegman]

Ummm don't rightfully know,
no obvious, or not so obvious screw covers?
if not, then perhaps a looksie from the back side for retaining bolts is in order.

but I suspect if you hit the back of your garage at 15 mph,
the air bag should deploy and perhaps the handle will come off...
tell us how that goes

[Corsemoto]

Yeah, apparently it's not really a grab handle after all, not designed to support any amount of weight that's for sure. I replaced mine with one from PnP yard and it wasn't too bad. You have to remove some trim and the airbag (to be on the safe side, disconnect battery awhile before attempting to remove airbag, and don't be in front of it when removing...) to gain access.

The non-handle has threaded inserts with nuts on the backside of the dash, you'll probably find that some of the inner dash plastic has broken as well. I epoxied the area, reinforced with fender washers epoxied in place and installed the new used non-handle. I don't let anyone touch that non-handle ornamental trim piece in my van, and tell them that's what the grab handle on the a-pillar is for.

[Hank]

I wanted to chime in and ask a quick question on this. Mine is a late model, 2003 and the handle is a little loose, the vibration noise is bugging me.

I've removed the kickplate and the screws for the vents but I see that the airbag module covers the vents.

Is the airbag module held in with the two bolts that are visible by looking upwards from the bottom. On a small angled bracket.

And obviously, disconnect the battery before doing anything right?


EDIT

For future readers, I found a nice little video on YouTube that discusses this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6XUkgKEiUQ

[ChrisL]

That's a good video, but at least on my 2000 Astro, it wasn't necessary to remove the vents. And do keep your head away from the front or rear of the airbag when handling it.

[95AstroLT]

Hank - good video, thanks for the link. Had JY replacement for our 97 but tore up donor dash because I didn't know what I was doing. Vents on ours had interference with the airbag so clearly it had do come out. Turns out airbag remove/replace was simple and after that replacing the grab bar was a breeze!
Now the replacement part that had been in the garage for over a year is on the car.

[95AstroLT]

That's a good video, but at least on my 2000 Astro, it wasn't necessary to remove the vents. And do keep your head away from the front or rear of the airbag when handling it.

Right! Some had mentioned a method of grab bar replacement via only removing the vents, but sides of ours were tucked behind the airbag. Once the airbag was out I did remove the vents but, as on yours, on our 97 Safari it wasn't necessary.