hello, i have a mazda steering wheel, original not aftermarket. it is faded badly and in need of repair. have any of you repaired your steering wheel? what do you recommend?

 

By faded, do you mean the wrapped portion? If so then I would probably just rewrap it or maybe talk to an upholstry shop about what kind of dye you could use.

If the center spokes are in poor condition then I'd just paint them with an everyday rattle can style paint.

 

yes indeedy, the wrapped portion. it's closer to gray than black now.

 

You might find this helpful.

https://www.rx7club.com/forum/showth...light=sunfaded

 

nice steering wheel, has it been dyed? there are only two spokes on this one. what's recommended for the gray plastic panels in the back?

 

does anyone else have the problem of their steering wheel never seeming to come clean. i dont know what to use to make it like brand new again. it becomes sticky, and my hands are always pretty clean before i drive.
would the black leather dye work on burgandy pieces. or will the old red color always show through.????

 

Perhaps less masturbation on the highway? (Just kidding, of course~)

Ray

 

Nah, it's a 2-seater.. any of that would end up in the g/f sitting in the passenger seat...

I'd say he's probably eating those taco bell cheese burritos too much.. :P

Jon

 

Yes, that black rubber gets a tacky coating that can be cleaned with Fantastik and a rag. You'll want to really soak the wheel with the fantastik and then rub it with a soft cloth just until it dries. If you rub it any more, the wheel will just pick up lint like mad. You may have to repeat the entire process a couple of times to get it really clean. Afterwards, I use a little Armorall to keep it from getting so tacky. I've repainted the spokes on a few RX7 wheels, using semi-gloss black lacquer, or wrinkle-paint. The wrinkle-paint is super-tough after it cures fully, which can take a month. Both produce a real nice result, with the semi-gloss lacquer getting the nod for OEM appearance.

Leather dye comes in a bunch of different colors. I haven't tried to CHANGE the color by using the leather dye, but I think that it can be done. To change burgundy to black, you would want to dye it navy blue first, then black. Note: I have experience dyeing leather, and I'm comfortable using this stuff. If you are new at it, you should practice on some scrap pieces first, just to get the hang of it.

BTW, RIT dye will also dye plastic!
I haven't used it to dye any large interior parts, though.

edit: the steering wheel in the picture has not been dyed, and is pretty filthy. I'll post a pic of a nicely-restored wheel if I get a chance. Cheers!

 

I had my burgandy leather steering wheel professionally re-wrapped by a company in Rockwall, TX (www.american-stitches.com). It helped that I had a another steering wheel to put on so I could drive my RX-7 while it was being done (it was my daily driver at the time.) I also sent my shift **** along and had it covered in matching leather. They do excellent work.