rlerman

Is the wood steering wheel worth the upgrade? I can get it for about $550, dealer installed. When I test drove an RL demo, it had the wood wheel and I liked it a lot, gave the car that extra sense of luxury and refinement. The car I ultimately bought didn't have the wood wheel, but does have the wood shift knob.

Is this a worthwhile upgrade?

Thanks

lumpulus

Not for me...I like the softer feel of the leather, and the wood can be slippery in spirited driving.

dmassott

i work at a dealer and have driven a lot of rl's with the wooden wheel and i would say get it. it looks nice and it has an awesome feel to it.

Ballinger

What's involved with the installation? I know it uses the airbag from the "original" wheel. Is this something a dealer should be installing or it is plug-n-play?

Ballinger

Hey, I found NeurosisBob's Steering Wheel Install Pictorial right after I posted that. GREAT step-by-step!

rlerman

I'm fairly handy, but I don't think it looks like a DIY project. I would rather not mess with the airbag and from searching the boards, it seem as if some have had issues with the wheel being mounted properly. If you f it up, the car's going to have be towed somewhere, not worth the hassle and I'll gladly pay the $120 in labor for it.

plastikman

You can buy the steering wheel on Ebay for just under $400 and I would call around the dealers, I'm sure you can have it installed for less then $120, the guys here want $70

JohnnyRambo23

The woodgrain steering wheel definitely completes the look of the interior. Mine does get fairly slippery on occasion but nothing i would ever complain about. Its well worth it.

dwboston

I've had the wood wheel on both of the RL's I've owned and I like it. I find myself holding the perforated leather parts of the wood wheel so I don't find it slippery at all. The "wood" part can get very, very hot when it's in direct sunlight. It really classes up the interior of the car, especially when paired with the wood shift knob. I recommend buying it from an Acura dealer on eBay and having it installed by a local dealer. That's what I did.

AsianTL

I am with 100%. It is worth the upgrade.

AsianTL

Here is another link of wood steering wheel pic.

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3245

AsianTL

May be you have sweaty hands. J/K.

I find no problem here, just hold on the leather parts (softer feel of the leather)

larrynimmo

i like the smell of money....i will keep the five pictures of ben franklin in my pocket.

the leather wheel works for me.

neuronbob

I have ten thumbs and was able to install it. It's not that difficult at all. I was relaxed enough that I took the pictures in the thread above.

It's mostly a matter of whether you want to spend $$. I spent $408 shipped for my steering wheel.

Chas2

neurosisbob?

db22

Only Acura would build a luxury for 50K and forget to put the wood steering wheel in it. In 05 the car came with no options, then they added the avalability of the wood wheel and shift knob (which should have been standard equipment). Now the 09 comes with both as standard. Acura finally worked out that you will not compete in the luxury car market without a wood steering wheel. I too agree that the wheel is worth getting. I upgraded and prefer the look and the feel.

robarsan

I agree the wood steering wheel balances out the interior. But its not worth it for me to make the change. The original leather wheel works fine.
I did get the wood shift knob though. To each his own.

vluu

Here's another DYI job. Get it....you won't be dissappointed. 1.5 years later....still love the look and feel of it.

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...steering+wheel

acuralvr1

Love mine. Does add some luxury to the interior and I don't find it slippery at all.

taitando

My '05 came with the wood steering wheel and shift knob, but really, I don't see what the big deal is. I suppose it adds a little more to the air of luxury, but for $400 out of pocket, I'd skip it. It definitely doesn't add anything to resell value if you ever decide to get rid of the RL.

db22

I agree that 400 to $600 is a lot of money but if you didn't have to buy the first one, which is also 400 -$600 then it's probably a wash. There should be a core return on the original wheel. Actually, with a car that has only sold in limited numbers, what were they thinking when they have to manufacture 2 distinct steering wheels? It would have saved Acura and many clients, me included, the hundreds necessary for an upgrade that should have been standard equipment.

AsianTL

My MB 2008 R350 did not come with wooden steering wheel even mine is over 50K.
It is an option item and you would pay a lot more in options(5k-8k) which should be standard as Acura.

wilgur

I have it fitted to my '05 RL together with the wood gear knob - love it! as you say it gives it some class and finishing off the interior rather than the bland stock sterring wheel.

TSX69

I am not a big fan of wood in a car, real or fake. This was one of the things that pushed me towards Acura over Lexus ... granted, on a Lexus the wood steering wheel was an option but I could never find one w/out it & to order one would take 6 months etc etc.

I have heard complaints that those things get hot/cold ...

PortlandRL

Sorry for the bump.

I've been thinking about the wood & leather wheel for the RL but not six months ago, I replaced the leather steering wheel in our Santa Fe (the factory one was peeling and losing its color). Getting the airbag out was the scariest part. The hardest part was getting the new wheel properly centered. It was either way off or just right. Took three or four tries.

All in all replacing the wheel in the Santa Fe took about 2 hours (including transferring the cruise control buttons).

Just

ARX-01b

iTrader: (1)

Wait a year or two and the price will come down as dealers will have excess inventory and want to get rid of them. I just bought a new wood wheel for our MDX for $169 on ebay.

acuralvr1

Love the wood wheel on my RL. Loved it so much got one for the MDX that we also own.

I think it adds a bit of luxury.

It's not slippery and since it's a combo of wood and leather- you could just hang onto the leather.

I bought the wood wheels from www.curryacura.com for a discount and my dealer did the install. $400 or so for the wheel and $100 for the install or so.

sri_gondi

I've had the wood wheel on my RL's and I like it.I bought in ebay and got it installed by my dealer for 100 $ as far i recall. Completely worth the money I paid. I had the shift knob also replaced with the wooden one and the car looks so gorgeous. The only thing i noticed is the prolonged cold feel u get in the winter....apart from it there is nothing to complain......

I have the old leather steering for sale for very very nominal price( throw away+shipping)...let me know if anyone interested....

RL06tech

The "plood" steering wheel goes well with the dash. I've the dough is not a problem, why not?

Ballinger

Now....does the wooden shifter surround and cup holder lid from the '09 fit in the older RLs? Have you guys seen this? The whole plane from the center column, back to the armrest, is "wood". Hmm, so is the "lighter" hatch, and it may be different. Might not work.

Ballinger

So, we've seen in another thread that the wooden center column pieces from the '09 can be retrofitted onto Gen 2 RL's, and that's pretty cool.

I installed my wooden steering wheel (and shift knob) over the weekend and, other than having to turn the wheel funny to go straight , it's a great, worthwhile upgrade! My old wheel was polished smooth and looked well-worn. The new wheel is contoured, comfortable and makes an otherwise perfect interior look new. Nice stuff.

synth19

The only mods on my RL are the wood wheel and knob, gives the interior a touch of class IMHO.

Jamesgt727

I had the steering wheel and the knob installe prior to taking delivery. It is a must.....texture closely matches the perforated lather seating surfaces. Good luck

TLover8888

wood wheel is an absolute must! unless you put oil/vaseline/ky-jelly on it, it is not gonna be slippery. definitely "balances" out the interior

rlerman

Well, it's about $500-$600 installed, and I'm not doing it myself. Some on here that have done it themselves and then remarked that their steering wheel was no longer centered. No thanks. Although it looks and feels great and does finish off the interior, can't force myself to do it. If it came with new buttons, that might tilt me, but it doesn't

Oddly, prices for the wheel haven't dropped at all. On e-bay, best price is around $400 plus shipping, then add another $120 or so for install. Guess I'm just a cheap SOB. Dealers in my area want over $600 plus tax to install it, seems ridiculous.

Ballinger

Just a note: I was joking about the crooked wheel. It was an easy job (unlike some other work I've done on the car). The price of the wheel IS ridiculous, that's for sure, but it looks and feels very good.

gogogoldrl

I found a wood wheel on ebay price was not to bad after seeing these prices. Then I found a Honda tech on craigs list who installed it at a great price in his garage. Worked out great no alignment was needed after seeing how fast he installed the wheel I was sorry I didn't install it myself. The wheel looks very good nice addition to the car.

synth19

It's worth it IMO. Only two mods I've done to the RL is the wood steering wheel and wood shiftknob.