Heated Steering Wheel not very hot
 

My former 2000 528i had the cold weather pkg, great option, even out here in sunny SoCal. Had to have it on the 5--for me it would have been a deal breaker--but I'm disappointed w/the heat output. The 28 wheel was fantastically toasty but the 5 is weak, dare I say useless? :tantrum:I understand that it may be due to the fatness of the steering wheel itself, but come-on you would think that would have been factored into the design. Anyone have a similar experience/opinion? Thx.

Mine seems to work fine but responses will be subjective. Maybe it is possible to do a voltage test on the lead to the steering wheel heater :dunno:

Sorry, had to laugh. Heated steering wheel in sunny CA...The heated steering wheel on the X is not HOT, but takes the chill out. It's been 10 degrees here and it does the trick.

Yeah it has been fine in the 10 degree days here BRRR.

My x5 wheel is plenty hot, even here in michigan.... 6 whole degrees today:banghead:

No issues with our steering wheel heat. It is not overly hot, but it does work and is the same stength as our previous 545i.

One issue we do have is with the front seat heaters. They heat up initially but then the level of heat fades, even when left on the highest setting. Also, the backrest heat seems very weak, even after adjusting the distribution of heat 100% to the backrest. It is not as much of an issue when selecting all the heat to be distributed to the seat bottom, this works well.

Anyone else experiencing this issue??

My heated steering wheel on my 2008 X5 does not get as hot as I would like it to also. I remember when my X5 was in the shop and I had a loaner 3 series where that 3 series' steering wheel would actually get uncomfortably hot. That's what I want. In fact, now that the weather is getting cooler and I'm using the heat more often, it doesn't seem to get that hot either. I'm taking it into the dealership to check out along with the annoying rattles in the back.

I can not speak from personal opinion but if my wife thinks her heater wheel gets toasty then I would say it might be your car or her delicate hands do not need as much heat

My experience has been that every heated BMW steering wheel is different. Having had three heated wheels (none on an E70), we have had good (X5 E53), great (535i), and not hot enough (X3). We went back to the dealership and tried a couple of other X3 models, and found that they were all the same as our X3, so we didn't pursue a complaint with the dealer service manager.

Try another car, the same year and model, on the dealer's lot. If yours isn't as hot then you have a reason to ask them to check it. If they are the same, then yours would appear to be functioning as designed.