Nissan Repair: 98 sentra horn / cruise in-op w/ blinking air bag light, nissan sentra gxe, nissan sentra

Question
We have a 98 Nissan Sentra GXE 1.6 & recently replaced the steering rack & starter. When we test drove the car all the sudden the horn does not work the cruise doen't work & the air bag light is blinking.  I have tried to turn the air bag light off by doing the 7 door swith clicks but it is not working.  I have read of the air bag light coming on after unhooking the battery but how does the horn come into the mix.  Any help would be great..
Pete

Answer
Pete,

If the battery was not disconnected when the rack was removed caused the airbag circuit to register an error code.  That would have to be reset by someone with an airbag scanner.  A body shop or a Nissan dealer.  The horn and cruise should work.  If not, check the circuits to make sure the fuses have not blown.  Also, agressive movement of the column, on the outside of the vehicle (under the car) could have dislodged the connection under the dash.  I would pull the knee bolster and inspect the harness connector and wiring.  The column grounds through the rack so make sure it is conencted properly.  Get a volt ohm meter or a test light and start backprobing the system.  Email me back if you need more.  The horn grounds directly through the steering shaft that connects to the rack.