Steering Wheel Upgrade

Marco.B.

Marco.B.

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2022
Points
13
Hey guys,

I'm not really loving the feel of the OEM steering wheel in my 2001 Z3.

Wanted to get some thoughts and was wondering if anyone has upgrade or maybe bought a sleeve to go on top of the OEM steering wheel.

Any thoughts or recommendations would be greatly appreciated!
 
andyglym

andyglym

Shiny Dust Caps Make Your Zed Go Faster.
Supporter
British Zeds
Joined
Feb 20, 2015
Points
231
Location
Moresby, West Cumbria, England
Model of Z
2.8 Roadster
Marco.B. said:
Hey guys,

I'm not really loving the feel of the OEM steering wheel in my 2001 Z3.

Wanted to get some thoughts and was wondering if anyone has upgrade or maybe bought a sleeve to go on top of the OEM steering wheel.

Any thoughts or recommendations would be greatly appreciated!
Click to expand...
Royal Steering Wheels seems to be the choice of many.
 
t-tony

t-tony

Zorg Expert (II)
Supporter
British Zeds
#ZedShed
Joined
Dec 31, 2013
Points
226
Location
Torksey Lock,Lincoln, England
Model of Z
E89 Z4 23i Auto
Some are fitting E85 Z4 steering wheels too.

Tony.
 
Marco.B.

Marco.B.

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2022
Points
13
Wow they look really nice! But they're out of the UK and I'm in Canada...

Anyone try any of those steering wheel leather wraps?
 
Last edited:
petecossie

petecossie

Zorg Guru (IV)
British Zeds
M Power
Joined
Dec 7, 2011
Points
158
Location
Teesside
Model of Z
Z3 M Coupe
Remember having a steering wheel wrap on cars back in 80's on my old Austin and Rover cars, must admit not a great fan of them, although they will be cheap enough as a temporary measure until you can source a Canadian or US equivalent of Royal Wheels. I'm sure there will a company somewhere on your side of the pond that will do this sort of work.
Definitely worth paying that bit extra to get a steering wheel recovered.
 
Stevo7682

Stevo7682

Zorg Expert (I)
Supporter
The M44 Massive
Scottish Zeds
Joined
Apr 1, 2016
Points
208
Location
Maybole , South Ayrshire
Model of Z
Z3 Individual Dakar / Orinoco Individual
I agree with @petecossie steering wheel covers tend to look a bit cheap so in my view would only be a temporary measure.
I can't imagine in a country the size of Canada that there is no one who does the same kind of work that Royal does.

Stephen.
 
Althulas

Althulas

Zorg Guru (V)
Supporter
British Zeds
Joined
Jun 14, 2014
Points
198
Location
Banburyshire
Model of Z
M Roadster
t-tony

t-tony

Zorg Expert (II)
Supporter
British Zeds
#ZedShed
Joined
Dec 31, 2013
Points
226
Location
Torksey Lock,Lincoln, England
Model of Z
E89 Z4 23i Auto
A recent member did his own with a kit he bought, from eBay I believe, and stitched it himself and made a lovely job too but I can't find the thread he posted on. Maybe it was removed when he left the site?

Tony.
 
Paul Rice

Paul Rice

Zorg Guru (V)
Supporter
British Zeds
The M44 Massive
Joined
Sep 7, 2013
Points
198
Location
Doncaster
Model of Z
Z4 2.5
Royal do an exchange system, why not inquire if postage to Canada a possibility?
 
Mike Fishwick

Mike Fishwick

Zorg Guru (II)
French Zeds
Joined
Sep 23, 2021
Points
109
Location
Daglan, France
Model of Z
2.8 Roadster
The OE wheels are too large, and have a thin, oddly-shaped rim, with nasty bits of hard plastic which dig into one's thumbs. After a 400 mile day my fingers were really uncomfortable.

My solution was to fit a RAID wheel, which is available in three diameters, and a variety of colours. After about 18 years I still enjoy the feel of the wheel, even whan the car is stationary. I chose the middle sized wheel, in all black, but other finishes would no doubt compliment some of the more decorous trim options.

I bought mine from Chrom-Design of Germany, for half the price asked by UK importers - I think about 350 Euros.

Some people get excited that it does not have a BMW logo in the centre, but I prefer to look ahead rather than bask in the aura of BMW!


(h) RAID Wheel - General View.JPG
 
Last edited:
bertiejaffa

bertiejaffa

Zorg Guru (III)
Supporter
British Zeds
Joined
Mar 15, 2014
Points
135
Location
Manchester
Model of Z
Z3M
I am sure there must be steering wheel companies in the US. Or as mentioned contact Jack at Royals and see how much to ship to Canada - failing that then I am sure someone here could do the shipping for you if he wont. I have a few old steering wheels in the garage too that could be used if required.

Royals do trim them down too - such as squaring off the bottom edge etc.

My solution was to fit the Z4 wheel to my Z3 but that requires a custom plate to be made up and then the back of the wheel to be machined down.
 
Marco.B.

Marco.B.

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2022
Points
13
Thanks for all the info guys. I think fitting the Z4 wheel is to much work. I'll likely reach out to royal wheels and see what happens.
 
t-tony

t-tony

Zorg Expert (II)
Supporter
British Zeds
#ZedShed
Joined
Dec 31, 2013
Points
226
Location
Torksey Lock,Lincoln, England
Model of Z
E89 Z4 23i Auto
Hard to believe that there isn’t someone doing what Royals do in the whole of North America?

Tony.
 
Marco.B.

Marco.B.

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2022
Points
13
I'm sure there is, just havent been able to find a reliable source... At least not for the Z3
 
petecossie

petecossie

Zorg Guru (IV)
British Zeds
M Power
Joined
Dec 7, 2011
Points
158
Location
Teesside
Model of Z
Z3 M Coupe
Mike Fishwick said:
The OE wheels are too large, and have a thin, oddly-shaped rim, with nasty bits of hard plastic which dig into one's thumbs. After a 400 mile day my fingers were really uncomfortable.

My solution was to fit a RAID wheel, which is available in three diameters, and a variety of colours. After about 18 years I still enjoy the feel of the wheel, even whan the car is stationary. I chose the middle sized wheel, in all black, but other finishes would no doubt compliment some of the more decorous trim options.

I bought mine from Chrom-Design of Germany, for half the price asked by UK importers - I think about 350 Euros.

Some people get excited that it does not have a BMW logo in the centre, but I prefer to look ahead rather than bask in the aura of BMW!


View attachment 219747
Click to expand...
Mike,
Not sure if Raid wheels are manufacturered still, only ones I can see available are second hand on eBay and meant for Porsche (although they could be adapted I suppose), however they are not cheap, ranging from £595 to £799.
Some years ago (2012) some lads on Z3 MCoupe Forum got some Raid 340mm steering wheels from a company called www.carnewal.be in a group buy, but looking on their site (basically Porsche accessories) they do not list them.
Chrome Design I couldn't find in the search I did.
So Raid might be a dead-end these days unless you can find some more up to date info in case anyone is interested.
I think these days with their varied options Royal Steering Wheels is the way to go in UK at least.
 
petecossie

petecossie

Zorg Guru (IV)
British Zeds
M Power
Joined
Dec 7, 2011
Points
158
Location
Teesside
Model of Z
Z3 M Coupe
Marco.B. said:
I'm sure there is, just havent been able to find a reliable source... At least not for the Z3
Click to expand...
I sure if there is some company that refurbishes steering wheels over there they will be able to do something similar to Royal Wheels as they do various car makes other than BMW.
Good luck with your search. :thumbsup:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top