Steering wheel cancer

octanejunkie

octanejunkie

Elite Member
The leather wrap on the steering wheel of my third gen was cracked when I bought the truck, and as you can see from the picture below has gotten progressively worse to the point where it's now just a rotting away, foam included.

bf9051ff95a6fa10ac2245f81b8d2a0e.jpg


What do you guys recommend to remediate this situation?
Wrap?
Cover?
New steering wheel?
Sell the truck?

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Sell the truck and get a Ford, they are better in every way!

But seriously, I would replace the steering wheel. The wraps never look very good IMO and you would need to repair/glue/epoxy the existing wheel before trying a wrap. I think a new wheel would just be a better fix over all.
 
Personally, I hate covers, so I waited it out and got a steering wheel from the junkyard.

I got a rubber coated one from a base model luckily. You can always get a wheel from another Toyota (celicas have really nice wheels) if you can get the air bag to hook up and it you're willing to take the risk
 
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Alternatively

You can find a good shop to do it. It will cost you a few hundred bucks, but honestly, it's worth it.
 
bentos1 said:
Sell the truck and get a Ford, they are better in every way!

But seriously, I would replace the steering wheel. The wraps never look very good IMO and you would need to repair/glue/epoxy the existing wheel before trying a wrap. I think a new wheel would just be a better fix over all.
Click to expand...
OMG, Ford?
*BLOCKED*

haha

How easy is a steering wheel swap?

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bentos1 said:
Sell the truck and get a Ford, they are better in every way!

But seriously, I would replace the steering wheel. The wraps never look very good IMO and you would need to repair/glue/epoxy the existing wheel before trying a wrap. I think a new wheel would just be a better fix over all.
Click to expand...

Trade for an Explorer; instead of the grip falling apart, you can have extremely confusing cruise controls that LITERALLY melt during the summer.
 
Chuckles89 said:
Personally, I hate covers, so I waited it out and got a steering wheel from the junkyard.

I got a runner coated one from a base model luckily. You can always get a wheel from another Toyota (celicas have really nice wheels) if you can get the air bag to hook up and it you're willing to take the risk
Click to expand...
Gotta Google where to get a new wheel, no yards with 4runners around here and I'd rather stay stock

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octanejunkie said:
Do what, wrap it?

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Click to expand...

I have grabbed a couple steering wheels from
The salvage yard... one of which is NOT leather & will never deteriorate.. there is basically 1 big nut that holds the wheel on & with a solid tug/tank it can be taken off... otherwise you can use "special tools" but a brute force tank should do the trick
 
octanejunkie said:
Do what, wrap it?

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Click to expand...

Honestly I'm not sure because I'm speaking from my Porsche experience. I had the steering wheel re-wrapped professionally, and it was like 275 bucks. There's a place locally here in Miami that does a great job and it looks pretty much OEM.

275 bucks isn't cheap, but considering you have your hands on it constantly, I don't think it's a big deal.

I didn't use these guys, because the local dude was good, but this guy is most often mentioned in the Porsche forums.

Dallas Custom Steering Wheel

For what it's worth, they show Lexus and Toyota steering wheels in their steering wheel page, so I'm sure they can do it, I think they are pricier, like 450.

I'm sure there are places locally in California as well. I would ask around classic car shops, places that focus on vintage benzes, porsche, BMW. They will know who to ask.
 
I believe there are a number of threads on this forum and all the others regarding steering wheel swaps.

Craigslist could be a good option, there are people parting out Toyota's all the time. I need to do some research as well because the leather on mine is crumbly and I want something smooth. I read that some people say you need the whole stock for cruise control but I would only be replacing the wheel itself. More reading is needed on my part.

Ebay sells wheels and Im sure you can find many others. CL might be a good bet though.

The threads do talk about which other Toyota and Lexus steering wheels fit our trucks, interesting to see.
 
I love my wheel skins cover. Much much much better than it was without it.

If you want a new I've and you don't have any local yards they [MENTION=78895]DeathCougar[/MENTION]
 
The base/SR5 vinyl wheel is pretty nice and VERY easy to keep clean. My truck was used for 260k miles without 1 cleaning of the steering wheel... and now that I have cleaned it, it still looks good.

There are plenty of threads on replacing the steering wheel, much easier than just about any suspension or engine work other than replacing the air filter...

-Charlie
 
kolelt said:
Why are we talking about fords ?
Click to expand...

I'll explain and everything will make sense.

Fords are awesome just like the Ford Bronco which is similar to the Denver Bronco's who are located in Colorado where marijuana has been legalized.
When you smoke pot you dont really care about anything.

Therefore: Ford = not caring about a busted steering wheel
 
Chuckles89 said:
Personally, I hate covers, so I waited it out and got a steering wheel from the junkyard.

I got a runner coated one from a base model luckily. You can always get a wheel from another Toyota (celicas have really nice wheels) if you can get the air bag to hook up and it you're willing to take the risk
Click to expand...

This!

My base model steering wheel looks brand new. It's all black & probably made out of vinyl or synthetic rubber but it's way better than the leather.
 
bentos1 said:
I'll explain and everything will make sense.

Fords are awesome just like the Ford Bronco which is similar to the Denver Bronco's who are located in Colorado where marijuana has been legalized.
When you smoke pot you dont really care about anything.

Therefore: Ford = not caring about a busted steering wheel
Click to expand...

No credit, you didn't link it up to Kevin Bacon.
 
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