Steering Wheel suggestions.

[panchosouth]

Talking to Ivan at DCTMotorsports about a custom build steering wheel, so I'm looking for some suggestions; here is what I'm thinking....

Thicker wheel (how thick?) (I tend to jam the palm of my left hand into the rim of the steering wheel, and after extended driving it gets to be sore, so I want a little more cushion plus I like the feel of a thicker wheel.

Thumb rests (?)

Paddle shifters (not short little stubby things, I wan't a pretty decent size)

Carbon fiber....Not sure on this one.

Flat bottomed-wheel.

Red stiching

Due to the looming engine issue, my plans on the interior for bench removal has been postponed so as far as the color goes….Black/Carbon Fiber with red inserts was the initial plan but now…..

I’m not sure where I got the following photos from, but the idea is pretty close…

[panchosouth]

Stuff that I've looked at .....

[Ricky Bobby]

Frank are you keeping your current airbag/wheel and getting yours recovered? Or are you buying a new steering wheel/airbag combo fresh from Ivan @ DCT?

I just ordered this wheel (waiting on arrival now) from Sebastian Jamroz, he's a proprietor of a steering wheel recovery place in Gorlitz, Germany, and his work is about half the price of what Ivan @ DCT or Don @ Dallas Custom Steering Wheels quoted me:

BMW E39 NFL X5 E46 Lederlenkrad DAUMENAUFLAGE incl. Tuning Teile Sport Lenkrad | eBay


This is his auction i used (you can browse his other auctions for styles), I got the following, in case you can't read German:

-Added thumbrests (original E46 wheel has none)
-Added thickness to whole wheel (you can see it in pictures)
-Black Stitching
-Solid leather top and bottom, black, perforated leather on sides of wheel

Normally these overseas guys charge a core which is refundable on return of your wheel, but since we are overseas you either have to find a seller who is willing to sell you a wheel with no core (basically you just pay the core cost), or if you don't mind shipping yours overseas, they can recover and send back. I opted for the first option, as I didn't want to park the X for a month.

My final price was 110 euro for the auction on ebay, plus 40 euro core charge, plus 34 euro shipping to USA = 184 Euro or $250!

Dallas Custom Steering wheels wanted 500 bucks for the same work, plus 18 shipping. Ivan @ DCT quoted me similar pricing.

Sebastian speaks clear and understandable English in his emails and is quick to respond on ebay if you inquire with him, and the best part is that I ordered on a Wednesday and he said it would only take 2 days to prepare and ship, and he sent me 2 pictures of the finished wheel before it shipped, even though i told him i wanted the same look in the auction. Great customer service, and I will be posting pics and impressions when my wheel arrives...


All of the pics are of E46 wheels (one is epdarks old 4.6's wheel), for the facelift sport wheel I'm not sure how much thicker you want it, I'm sure a slight increase in thickness would be nice. The pre-facelift sport/E46 wheel is horridly slim, which is why I needed increased thickness and the thumbrests, it feels so small in my hands and I have smaller hands to begin with.


Some sellers aren't keen on doing flat bottoms, as far as the paddle shifters go isn't that something you have to retrofit (I know relentlessone did on his 4.8), not sure if the steering wheel wrapping servicers do that. As far as carbon fiber and red stitching, should look nice as long as it's tasteful.

Not sure what DCT is quoting you, but this wheel looks amazing, it's the E83 M-sport wheel (same airbag as your 4.8is)

CARBON Leder Lenkrad BMW E53 E83 X5 X3 ORIGINAL M-POWER | eBay

700 euro plus shipping = close to $1k Canadian dollars, but the E83 M-sport wheel itself is at least 500 bucks that I've seen.


If you're recovering your own wheel and re-using your airbag I'd definitely recommend someone closer, however if you are looking to buy an additional wheel like I did (as long as the extra core charge isn't outrageous), there are a ton of guys in Germany/Poland that look to do great work on ebay.de.


Just search the terms "e53 lenkrad" or "e53 sport lenkrad" and see the results.

For example, this is a fully re-wrapped facelift sport wheel:

BMW E53 x5 Lenkrad mit LEDER beziehen NEU BEZIEHEN Nappa + gelochtes Leder + M | eBay

Most of the sellers can customize to your liking, let me know what you do!

[panchosouth]

RB

Will let you know how I'm moving ahead when I hear about the UD!

Haven't heard back from Ivan yet, but the shifter/flat bottom/inserts is the issue for me...

I was speaking with someone who sells a wiring harness that allows you to engage the paddle shifters without using the shifter....Have you heard of same?

F

[panchosouth]

Jay

Kit I was talking about:

BMW PaddleShift Retrofit

[Ricky Bobby]

Hey Frank:

Hope the UDonkey is ok, I'm following your thread with the sludge buildup and it's sad to hear.

As far as the kit goes, I haven't looked into them much as I have the trusty 5-speed manual, but I know one of our members has retrofitted paddles on his 4.8is, why not PM him and see what he had to do (what kit he has as well)

http://www.xoutpost.com/classifieds/...s-blue-nj.html


Did any of my links work out as far as the sellers overseas goes, and are you sending your steering wheel out or buying an additional recovered one?

[admranger]

The stitching on my 2005 4.4i sport is coming loose where my left thumb normally sits.

Any updates on the quality of the steering wheel from the German source, Ricky Bobby (or anyone else)?

I found this site: X5 Steering wheel, but I can't figure out how to contact them as it appears they don't ship to the USA as best I can tell using Google Translate, etc.

[Ricky Bobby]

Absolutely no complaints or regrets, wheel has held up great since I got it over 2 years ago. For the price paid ($240 or so delivered), not a damn complaint.

My seller on Ebay Germany is still around, I linked him again on the other thread "Steering wheel upgrades" that Olek started, as I think Olek was going to try and get a wheel from him too. Guy's name is Sebastian that I bought mine from, but DONT just bid on the auction and expect him to accept it. 99% of those refurbished wheels auction have a core return built into the price.

You need to email him and let him know you are willing to pay an additional 2 charges 1) Extra $40 Euro or so -not sure what hes currently charging- to keep your own wheel since you are in the USA and can't send a core back
2) Extra charge in Euro to ship new wheel to the USA

I think he charged me 40 Euro to keep my wheel and 35 euro to ship back when I purchased, and I did complete the transaction through Ebay but he instructed me to buy the auction and then he would revise the total once we agreed on everything.

Hope that helps

[admranger]

Originally Posted by Ricky Bobby

Absolutely no complaints or regrets, wheel has held up great since I got it over 2 years ago. For the price paid ($240 or so delivered), not a damn complaint.

My seller on Ebay Germany is still around, I linked him again on the other thread "Steering wheel upgrades" that Olek started, as I think Olek was going to try and get a wheel from him too. Guy's name is Sebastian that I bought mine from, but DONT just bid on the auction and expect him to accept it. 99% of those refurbished wheels auction have a core return built into the price.

You need to email him and let him know you are willing to pay an additional 2 charges 1) Extra $40 Euro or so -not sure what hes currently charging- to keep your own wheel since you are in the USA and can't send a core back
2) Extra charge in Euro to ship new wheel to the USA

I think he charged me 40 Euro to keep my wheel and 35 euro to ship back when I purchased, and I did complete the transaction through Ebay but he instructed me to buy the auction and then he would revise the total once we agreed on everything.

Hope that helps

Thanks! I have emailed him.