Alternatively you can consider an emulator, which works beautifully, costs less than a used column and is a 5 minutes fit.
I had the lock repaired, only to get stuck again and repaired once more by the same garage.
I decided to plug the emulator and move on, thus sparing the old lock. Steering wheel of course doesn't lock but I don't care about the function and I can always switch back to standard but I don't think I'll ever want to...

Thanks for the advice. Does the emulator remain fitted?

Can see used part from £90 - £250 on Ebay in UK.
The emulator price is in that range.

Yes, the emulator remains plugged in lieu of the steering lock ECU.

The emulator cost me 40 € + 30 € Shipping and dues.

My car is working as intended now after fitting an *emulator. Have read all the advice here and other places, plus watched many videos. Happy with this solution *because* mine failed int he open position. There is no electrical connection to my steering lock so pretty confident it cannot lock. For certain it was not locking when electrically connected and drive by an ECU.

The only proper fix is fitting a new part with a guarantee. Anything else is compromise at best and bodge at worst. My own car is worth less that a new column / locking unit so chose the "least worst" option. Any second hand unit might be only days away from failing itself so not worth the time and money in my book.

* emulator Like ^^. about €40 + €30 shipping. Slightly nervous that delivery took 9 days after DHL.de reported the item was collected. Maybe the UK customs system was the bigger factor here.

Great news! Glad everything is in order. I'm still running mine on the same emulator with no intention of switching back to the original configuration.

vs322 wrote:

Yes, the emulator remains plugged in lieu of the steering lock ECU.

The emulator cost me 40 € + 30 € Shipping and dues.

robanzac wrote:

This is interesting and something that I have only learned of today.
I haven't a problem yet, but it may well happen.
Can you point to the emulator to buy ?

Thanks - I will order one.
I take it that you need to make sure that the lock is in the "unlocked position" at the time that the loom is disconnected from it.
So , for an installation to a working mechanism, the ignition key needs to be inserted to do this job.
Then you can connect the emulator Rob

You are correct, sir. You just unplug the steering lock ECU with the key in ignition.
If you don't really care for a locking steering wheel as a security feature (I don't) just go ahead and install the emulator anyway. This way you preserve a working lock and spare yourself any possible inconvenience or headache down the road.

Hi to everyone!

One question vs322, the emulator works on 2007 RR, the one with the key on the dashboard not the console? Do you know?

Thanks!!

Jojo.

I'm almost certain it does. You can confirm with goldcar to be sure.