Custom steering wheel

[nthor71783]

A year or so ago I found a seller on Ebay selling custom made and wrapped steering wheels for BMW's. In late December I finally decided to purchase one. I picked a leather wrapped euro style wheel with flat bottom and a blue center indicator. Today I received the wheel and I could not be more happy!!! The leather is soft, stiching is perfect, fit and finish is spot on. The prices are more than reasonable and they are willing to negotiate on the prices. Shipping does take a while and I am still waiting on the airbag as they are shipped separately. The wait was well worth it!! Here is a link to their Ebay store.

Mods if the link is not allowed, please remove.

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[Hirsch990]

I have a wheel like that (from a different vendor, but same set up). They are great. A little beefier than the stock wheel and feels much better imho.

[hydrocrust]

Hey, that is really nice. I've found the wheel on my nonM coupe tone a little thin. Will consider this.

[setho1993]

I purchased a re-wrapped euro wheel a year or so ago from an ebay seller. Fit and finish was absolutely stellar, I am still 100% pleased. Also included air bag to boot.

[nthor71783]

I am still waiting on the airbag but wanted to get the wheel installed. I absolutely love this wheel! The feel and visually looks so much better than the original 4-spoke wheel.IMG_20190202_142604.jpg

[Watch Carefully]

I am still waiting on the airbag but wanted to get the wheel installed. I absolutely love this wheel! The feel and visually looks so much better than the original 4-spoke wheel.

Congrats, please let us know how the airbag installation goes.

Question: does the smaller diameter (and thicker?) wheel obscure anything you would normally see with the OEM wheel?
I ask because I once replaced an OEM wheel with a smaller Nardi and found I could no longer see the turn signal indicators at the extremities of the instrument cluster (below). It was only a minor inconvenience, but it highlighted the fact that something more annoying could happen with future modifications.

Cheers,
Brad

[Henway]

If you turn on the ignition without the airbag connected you're going to need the tool which connects inside the hood to turn off the dash warning. I found out the hard way.

[Jakechan]

I installed a smaller wheel and I can't see the turn signal indicators. Not a big issue

I am still waiting on the airbag but wanted to get the wheel installed. I absolutely love this wheel! The feel and visually looks so much better than the original 4-spoke wheel.IMG_20190202_142604.jpg

[Randy Forbes]

Fitted a similar wheel to a 328/LS3 swap car I did a bunch of work on. Definitely changes overall image from frumpy 4-spoke wheel.

[crashgordan]

curious if steering wheel swap like this and RF's are pretty much plug an play, and is there a tutorial here somewhere?

i would love something like the RF photo above in my 2000 m roadster...

and i assume putting in a wheel without an airbag will cause all kinds of issues (and be less safe of course)

[nthor71783]

If you turn on the ignition without the airbag connected you're going to need the tool which connects inside the hood to turn off the dash warning. I found out the hard way.

The light is on but it's not a big deal. I have a Snap-on scanner that can clear the light.

[nthor71783]

Congrats, please let us know how the airbag installation goes.

Question: does the smaller diameter (and thicker?) wheel obscure anything you would normally see with the OEM wheel?
I ask because I once replaced an OEM wheel with a smaller Nardi and found I could no longer see the turn signal indicators at the extremities of the instrument cluster (below). It was only a minor inconvenience, but it highlighted the fact that something more annoying could happen with future modifications.

Cheers,
Brad

The wheel is thicker but very similar in size to the stock 4-spoke wheel. The horizontal spokes do block the view of turn signal and wiper switches. Not really a big deal, I know that they are there.

[nthor71783]

curious if steering wheel swap like this and RF's are pretty much plug an play, and is there a tutorial here somewhere?

i would love something like the RF photo above in my 2000 m roadster...

and i assume putting in a wheel without an airbag will cause all kinds of issues (and be less safe of course)

With your car being a 2000, you have a dual stage airbag system. The style of wheel that RF and myself have are a single stage airbags. Unfortunately, they are not compatible with your car. There are different wheels that would work in your car. Not installing the airbag does cause the airbag light to come on. It will just need cleared once I install it. Replanting the wheel is pretty simple, took about 10 minutes. Here are a set of directions that shows what to do. It does not mention swapping the clock spring over. three small screws and transfer the part

[s8ilver]

curious if steering wheel swap like this and RF's are pretty much plug an play, and is there a tutorial here somewhere?

i would love something like the RF photo above in my 2000 m roadster...

and i assume putting in a wheel without an airbag will cause all kinds of issues (and be less safe of course)

Entirely plug and play. I did a similar wheel on my Z3 Coupe (actually, looks identical to Randy's). It took a whopping 15 minutes, and yes, that's beige stitching to go with the interior.

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[DimrBimmer]

Anyone has alkantara wheel? I am curious how it holds up.

[crashgordan]

Entirely plug and play. I did a similar wheel on my Z3 Coupe (actually, looks identical to Randy's). It took a whopping 15 minutes, and yes, that's beige stitching to go with the interior.

20170118_145706.jpg

this is the wheel i want...
thanks all for your comments!

[fignewton]

re: the alcantara. I’ve now had 3 alcantara wheels. 1 on my Mini Cooper S (John Cooper Works wheel), and 2 on my Audi S4s. I love them and would get one again in a heartbeat. The fabric holds up very well. To clean, I just wiped it down with a damp microfiber every 2 months or so. No issues whatever. Love the texture, and the fact that it is never hot or cold to the touch.

[///Mpmp1025]

Momo also makes a brush specifically made to keep the nap of the Alcantara clean and not matted. The only placed I've seen it sold was on RicmoTech's website, but I didn't really go on the hunt after a quick google search when I first found out they existed.

[sijray21]

How does the airbag compatibility work? I see a lot of euro-spec wheels, but unsure about the connectors and styles.

[hydrocrust]

Hi. Is that a single stage of dual stage airbag? Sent note to vendor, no reply. Thanks.

- - - Updated - - -

Oops, that note was for the OP. I have a 2002 coupe, dual stage.

[nthor71783]

This wheel is a single stage system. All of the connectors are simple plug and play. I had quite a bit of communication with the seller and typically got responses within 12 hours. Guess I could post a pic of the finished product.10 Wheel.jpg6 Inside.jpg

[hydrocrust]

Thanks, I'll try to contact him again. Your wheel looks great!

[nthor71783]

Thank you. I looked on their store and they do have some wheels that would work on the dual stage system. I believe that all of the euro wheels are single stage. If you get one, I am sure that you'll be impressed! For the price you can't beat it. The only bad part is, like I said, shipping takes a while. It took about 3 weeks to get the wheel. The airbag had an issue going through customs and had to be reshipped, took 2 months to receive.

[maxmoto]

nice looking wheel!!!
what's the diameter? same as the original? smaller?

[nthor71783]

It is a touch bigger that the stock wheel. The wheels are probably pretty close in size but this one is much more beefier than stock.