Touge

Anyone have the beige wood steering ?. I noticed on the black/grey one they use a different color stitching on the leather which I liked. Just wondering if the beige model also has different color stitching ?. Thanks.

Rob144

Thread Revival!

I was at the dealer today and looked at the taupe wood steering wheel. The stitching was dark grey or black.

For those of you with the taupe interior and the wood wheel, what color is the stitching? I seem to remember seeing pictures of the taupe wheel, and it had a light (almost orange) stitching.

The wheel looked pretty good, but the dealer wanted $558 for it.

Rob144

bmerton

Yep. Mine's very dark grey or black...

Rob144

For folks who might have bought their wheel online and had it installed by the dealer, how much was the installation, and did you get any grief from the service department (like, won't install, or warrant the install)?

Online sellers offer the wheel for much less than the dealer, but I'd want the dealer to do the installation as if I bought it from them.

I'm still on the fence with the wood wheel. It is tempting for the added grip and style, but I'm concerned about damage during an install, and the need to get the wood knob so it all ties together (and further drains the wallet).

Somebody push me over the fence! Does anyone hate their wheel?

Rob144

lland

I had a dealer quote me $105 to install the steering wheel. I haven't bought one yet but will probably install it myself when I do. A number of folks here have done it and said it isn't all that difficult.

LL

i_mobile

I got both my steering wheel and shifter off ebay and had no problem whatsoever with the dealer installing the steering wheel for me. You can check the pricing I got here in San Diego in my original post about it:

https://acurazine.com/forums/showpos...8&postcount=30

Good luck!

Touge

wow this is a old thread lol

Rob144, I installed it myself, it's really not too hard to do -

Rob144

That looks mighty nice, Touge!

The installation quote I got was $136 from a nearby San Diego Acura dealer. I wouldn't want to try doing this myself, especially dealing with the airbag.

The dealer had a wheel in my color, which looked nice. I was amazed at how lightweight it was.

How hard was the shift knob to do? I tried gently turning mine, and it is on there pretty tight.

Rob144

bmerton

Piece of cake. You'll have to try harder than "gently.' It's a standard thread...lefty loosey.

plastikman

I would not suggest buying your parts fromt he dealer, they are way over priced ! If you go on Ebay there are some really good Acura dealers selling the items we want for less then what the dealerships normally want. For instance curry acura, they list one steering wheel, but if you email them, they will tell you they have the other colors available, pretty simple. Here is the steering wheel they have on ebay right now. Good luck

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...3272895&rd=1,1

synth19

Pretty similar here, my dealer charged me around $120 or so for the install. And Yes, use ebay to find parts (many dealerships have ebay stores) or our sponsors.

Rob144

I've got a wood wheel on order from an ebay seller. In the meantime, I picked up a shift knob and installed it on the drive back from the dealer. I think it looks pretty nice.

I'll keep you posted and take pictures once the wheel arrives and gets installed.

Rob144

Rob144

Had the car in for the "wood" wheel install today. Went to pick it up, but found it misaligned (when the wheel is straight and level, the car veers left). So, back it went. We'll see how they do. The mechanic seemed intent on realigning the wheel rather than a toe adjustment (like the instructions indicate).

The trim pieces don't fit quite as snug as on the original wheel (steering wheel controls).

But, from my brief drive, I like the grippability and tactile feel.

Rob

Rob144

Dealer called. They adjusted the toe rather than remove the wheel and try to align it that way. This makes me feel a little better, as the replacement wheel comes with single-use bolts for the airbag, and I'd hate the thought of constantly unscrewing things and screwing them back in.

Rob144

Well, the car is back, well aligned, and it's time for quick before and after pictures.

I like the result (though I didn't care for the rework on the alignment). The color is a better match than these flash photos.

TampaRLX-SH

Very nice Rob. And thanks for the pics in Taupe (as is mine). I have the shift nob, but have been on the fence about the wheel. Decisions, decisions!

Rob144

Thanks.

I think I'm going to like the wheel. I was on the fence about the knob, because of the chrome base (rather than the brushed metal). But I like the knob now that it's in. The wood really warms up the interior, aesthetically.

If I think really hard about the wheel, my brain kind of hurts. First of all, the wood is not real wood but "plood". Second, I don't think the non-wood surface is leather (but it feels pretty good, actually). When you hold it by itself, it is pretty lightweight and you start to wonder why it retails for so much. And then you see it on sale on ebay, and many dealers will match other dealer's prices (or take their coupons, which is how I got the knob for a tolerable price).

Do an ebay search on "Steering Wheel Acura RL", and you'll find a very reasonbly priced taupe wheel from seller bas0_5 (from whom I got mine). I have no affiliation whatsoever.

The dealer install was $136. So, if the ebay wheel doesn't bid up you can do the wheel, installed, for right around $400, which put me over the edge.

Rob144

TampaRLX-SH

I suffer from "Analysis Paralysis" myself. But go with your gut, or heart and don't look back. It looks great, just enjoy it.

Of course we expect a 5k mile review....on the steering wheel.

sab35263

Do youy guys know what kind of wood is in the RL's dash board? Is it Burlwood?

Chas2

Genuine, curly maple dashboard trim

Rob144

I couldn't wait that long to give a wood wheel review. Just got back from a weeklong trip to Palm Desert, and I heartily recommend the wood-look wheel.

By way of background, my father-in-law let me drive his RX300 which had a wood wheel, and I absolutely hated the wheel. It was too fat, which made holding it uncomfortable, and it just did not feel good. At that point, I pretty much swore off the whole idea of a wood wheel.

Once I got the RL, I read about the wheel as an option, but kept to my guns....until I found the stock wheel to be somewhat slippery and not "grippable". I sprung for the wheel when I caught a good deal on ebay.

Even then, I wasn't sure about the dimpling on the non-wood portion, or the fact that the stitching didn't really go with any other stitching in the car. But after my 300+ mile road trip, I can recommend the wheel. The dimpling ties in with the perforated material on the interior door panel. The different stitching is a non-issue. And the non-wood part is soft and grippy, and the "wood" is the perfect circumference, with finger ribs. You can easily choose between comfort and grip when driving just by moving your hands.

Although the wood is not real, and isn't an exact match for the curly maple, it still looks pretty good. The wheel and the dash trim are seldom in the same light, so the eye sees it as a nice match (even if photos show a slight difference).

It made the car easier and more pleasant to drive. The fact that it looks good doing so is an added bonus.

Rob144

TampaRLX-SH

Damn you Rob! Damn! you!!!

I think you may have just caused my Ebay PayPal account a $300-$400 hit.

By the way, I did get the wood shift knob. And you commented on the chrome finish of the neck of the knob. True, no polished chrome lives in the RLs interior, but you will not notice it. The chrome finish acts like a mirror and it picks up the reflection of the satin finish shifter trim plate below. Hence it LOOKS satin and not polished chrome. I just love the slick feel of the knob. (I think I just set myself up with that statement )

Am I over analyzing again? 24 hours and counting for vacation....

acuralvr1

[QUOTE=TampaRL]Damn you Rob! Damn! you!!!

I just love the slick feel of the knob. (I think I just set myself up with that statement )


Yes, that's what the boys on the lower east side of Manhattan say about you.

Couldn't let you get away with that TampaRL.

Rob144

I'm not responsible! But I think the wheel is mighty fine. :-)

I got the wood knob first. I, too, had the same concern about the chrome base, but you're right -- it looks natural in there. Even the Acura logo goes with the taupe interior.

If you search on "RL Steering Wheel" on ebay, there's a seller with a starting bid of just $234 from whom I got my taupe wheel. No need to totally break the bank. And it beats the dealer asking price of $558 just for the wheel (though another local dealer is asking "only" $400).

Good luck. Keep us posted.

TampaRLX-SH

I'll likley order one after I get back from South America in a couple weeks. Leaving the RL in the garage, freshly waxed and detailed. I was feeling guilty for leaving it alone so long. I will probably transfer the guilt into a wood wheel purchase upon my return. *sigh*

Hey Rob, what is YOUR PayPal #???

halfkrazy

I recently got the dealer installed wood steering wheel and shift knob on my 2005 RL and although the two match each other great, they don't match the existing interior "wood" trim. The new items have a stronger red hue then the simulated wood trim around the rest of the car. The service guy at Bellevue Acura said that there's only one part number for each and that he toured some of the other upgraded cars and they too don't match.

Is this correct? Do they really not have steering wheel and shift knobs that match the interior wood with the rest of the car on the market? Seems like a huge omission if so.

Thanks

Rob144

Maybe I just got lucky, or I'm not too discriminating. The knob and wheel are not perfect matches for the curly maple, to be sure. The knob is probably a closer match than the wheel to the dash (being real wood).

However, in total, they are close enough to look good (to my eye). The steering wheel is so much better that for me it is easy to overlook some mismatch.

To specifically answer, I think your dealer is correct -- the wheel is of one hue. There's less likelihood of variation since the wheel is "plood", so they're all going to be like that.

Rob144

stever500

This is a really tough call for us... The plood wheel would be nice, but I'd like to drive one first and check it out to "feel" the difference. The only time we could do this is with the GM's car as it has the wood wheel. I hope he's at the dealer today when we pay for our new RL. Crossing my fingers there's no surprises when we get there today in terms of changing the terms.

So, to wood, or not to wood. That is the question. Her last car had that real Jaguar wood wheel. I hope the plood wheel doesn't feel second rate. Worse comes to worse we could just resell it I guess if she doesn't like it after installation.

Steve R

jfprl

I have the same frustraction with the color match. From what I can tell, all steering wheels seem to have the same color. What actually varies is the color of the dash trim from car to car. My car's dash is a lighter brown hue which does not match the steering wheel with its red hue. My shift knob matches the wheel. I have seen pictures of folks where the match is pretty decent. So I had to decide that the feel and appearance of the wheel was more important than the match. You would think they could get all the colors to match. At times I am tempted to put back the leather wheel, but the money is spent.

TampaRLX-SH

Obviously the real wood will have variations. Even if there were multiple pieces of real wood in the interior, they all would not match exactly, even if cut from the same tree.

The plood is a photolaminate, so likely they are all identical in pattern and hue. I would expect the shift knobs were an Acura aftermarket product, so even with real wood, they will vary in tone as well as match from RL to RL. There is no way they can match the wood dash which was cut and laminated from different wood stocks sent to the Japan plant where the RL was assembled.

I am sure if we lined up our RLs, we would see many variations in the grain & tone of our wood dash. But the funny thing is, I bet the base RL with plood likely has the best match to the wheel (and shifter knob!)

acuralvr1

First off, I hope people aren't looking @ internet pics and deciding how a color looks. I don't care how expensive your monitor and graphics card is there's no way you can discern the true color of something, let alone the variations in hue and grain. I looked at internet pictures of my TL before I bought and when I saw it in person it looked like a totally different color.

I do think that some folks are a bit more anal about having the "perfect color match". One of the best points made here is that plood- the fake wood- is easier to color match than real wood.

jfprl

I agree with your comment, but within the same picture you can see if something matches or not. Of course you cannot rely on the actual color compared to reality but when comparing two colors within the same picture your should be able to determine a match or a similarity, at least. It is easy to compare the color of a steering wheel against the background of the wood trim. Granted the light can play a hand in the comparison, but if it is off, it will show.

Rob144

One observation I had driving with the wood wheel is that the dash and the wheel are seldom in the same light. Something is always in shadow or light when you're driving around, so to my eye any mismatch is lessened.

If you look at my before and after pics, some strange mismatches show up on the interior panels that don't appear to the naked eye. That could be due to the flash. So, pictures aren't super reliable.

I looked at a wheel at the dealer's parts department before making the decision. Assuming all the wheels are pretty much the same, one could decide whether their curly maple is a good match for the wheel by taking it out to their car, and then look for the best price online.

Rob144

DHess

I purchased the wood-look wheel and shift knob and I like them both. Truthfully, they don't match the car wood trim (colorwise) as the wheel is darker and more red. There is no excuse for this as the wheel is not real wood. This site advised that they would still look good so I went with them and I agree. I like the feel also and it really dresses up the inside of the car.

Storm982

you car look super clean! awesome!!!

xenoxe

I love the way its look, great decision. I'm looking forward to upgrade my RL. Way to go !!!