The Wood Steering Wheel Guide

If you are thinking about replacing or upgrading your car’s steering wheel, then here are a few points to consider before handing over your hard earned money.

Some cheaper aftermarket steering wheels are only made to fit a particular car, and can come with the bosss kit attached, and so will have a limited range of applications. Most aftermarket wood and leather steering wheels will be sold as a separate item to the boss kit. When deciding on a replacement steering wheel for your car it is essential to check some important things to ensure safety, legality, and not to invalidate your insurance.

•    The steering wheel must have a boss kit available that will fit the spline on the steering column of your car – fitting an incorrect boss may endanger your life, and those of other road users and pedestrians.

•    The steering wheel boss kit must have the correct fitting to mate with the turn signal canceling mechanism, and also the horn plate (a round flat disc that is part of the horn’s power circuit).

•    If the cars original steering wheel comes with an airbag, then according to law you must have a steering wheel that accommodates an airbag. You cannot simply replace an airbag-fitted wheel with a nice shiny spoked wood steering wheel with a metallic horn button in the centre.

•    There are laws regarding the minimum diameter of a cars steering wheel, and you should be aware of your local laws to avoid grief from an inspector or police officer!

•    Finally you need to consider your own driving comfort, such as position of the wheel (which can be changed depending on the dish of the wheel), and thickness of the rim.

Time for an upgrade?