South Florida has been rough on my steering wheel, the cars an 04, since its in the sun almost all the time the wheel is starting to peel and shed into my hand ( i drive with the palm of my hand a lot on turns) anyway has this happened to anyone? should I look for a replacement wheel or look for a place to refinish it with leather?
Thanks for any help
Mike

 

You will be better off getting a new wheel..I found an 06 wheel with the orange stitching for 75 bucks..all u gotta do is swap your airbag..

 

Mine is getting somewhat funky as well. I see the top of the wheel getting small cracks in the leather. Is there anything to treat it with? Lexol doesn't work.

 

I went to an interior specialist that works on alot of high end cars. The repair consists of cleaning the wheel thoroughly, sanding it, and redying it on the car, while covering the dash, seats, etc. $75 for the 2 hour job. He said I won't know the difference from the original wheel.

 

I think this is common on the G. I believe the leather is not the best quality in these cars. I have an 03 and my steering wheel leather started peeling after 2 years, even while using the OEM sunshade. My steering wheel was warranteed by the dealer, but then again I knew the service rep. The new steering wheel I got was a different type of leather. It felt slicker in my hands as if it had some coating on it. The original wheel was very soft and plush almost as if it was very porous.

 

Believe it or not, after a little research, I tried using black shoe polish on the area of my steering wheel that was beginning to crack. To my amazment, the leather has improved as much as 80% with almost no sign of cracking unless eye balling it a few inches away. Grant it, my wheel was in the very early stages of cracking and no leather was coming off. The wheel also has a nice look to it. And of course for those who ask.....NO it does not come off in your hands. You put it on the wheel, let it sit for 10 minutes or so, and then use the same brush for shining shoes, and a soft cloth after. It's a shocker how well it works. Just make sure it's the old fashion hard polish/paste, not any liquid.

 

yeah my leather is pretty worn out and i have an 05 with only like 50k miles...but instead of a replacement wheel, what about a different one? anyone know if an OEM M3 steering wheel can be fitted in our cars?? that would be sick, its nice and definitely thicker than our stock wheel which to me is a bit thin

 

It will be problematic considering you will be dealing with the airbag.

 

I would love to get my steering wheel replaced with an OEM wheel. I'm trying to think of an excuse to tell my service manager that might fly through the warranty process. I have the extended warranty. Something with the malfunctioning of the buttons might work. I have a good relationship with my service manager and he has already helped me replace my rearview mirror with an upgraded one to avoid all the rattles. I'll have to give it a try. I tend to agree that the materials used on the steering wheel as well as the interior plastics are real s..t. Infiniti/Nissan has for the longest time cut back on the quality of their interior hardware.

 

my steering wheel is bad on my 03 too ! im going to try the shoe polish method !

 

I have the same issue as you. I don't think my wheel is leather though. I think it's some type of vinyl. It started to shed into my hand as well so I just wrapped some black electrical tape around the part where I hold it most (the steering wheel is black). It's a cheap fix for now but I'm on the lookout for a new wheel. But I don't wanna fvck with my air bag lol.

 

If it's the original wheel it's leather. It's sh...y leather, but it's all we get in our cars. I have a feeling that the replacement wheels are better. I haven't heard much from any owners of later model Gs that have these issues. It might be a problem with the earlier models.

 

i just got a sort of fake suede steering wheel cover from autozone. my G is an 04 and ever since i put the autozone steering wheel cover my Oem wheel looks brand new

 

05 here, all the leather in my car is in tip top shape. Only complaint is leather steering wheel gets a bit slippery when its extremely hot and humid like today.

 

I think that 03-04 are the problem years. My girlfriends's 06 G35 sedan also sits in the Florida sun and looks like brand new while mine is drying up and losing it's smooth texture.