I'm planning on keeping my Spyder for a long time, and while I'm sure I'm going to initially love the standard Alcantara steering wheel I'm worried about how it will hold up over time. I'm considering switching to leather, but Is this a valid concern? Anyone with prior experience with an Alcantara steering wheel have any feedback?

 

I have Alcantara wheel and shifter on my 5 year old 2015 911 GTS and it still looks good--buuuut you have to maintain it frequently. I use Sonax Alcantara cleaner 1-2 times a month. Honestly looks like the day I picked up the car in 2015. It is a PIA but worth it for me.

I have it on my 2018 GT3 and incoming GT4. That's how much I like the feel of it

 

My post would be exactly like @neurotic has already said, Alcantara has been my choice for years, maintenance is key though! +1 for Sonax as well!

Additionally it doesn't gouge or scratch like leather.

 

I went with Leather--but with leather, the stitch is NOT deviated on the wheel and the shift boot.

 

wear gloves

 

This was going to be one of the things I was going to do since I ordered mine with the Alcantara wheel as I wanted the deviated stitching, 12 o'clock strip, and to have it match the rest of the interior.

 

I have been thinking of something for road trips where I want to protect the Alcantara when conditions might not allow for truly clean hands all of the time and gloves might be impractical...

Maybe something like this, easy to put or take off.

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/Black-Blue-S...f7684f&vxp=mtr

 

I prefer the alcantara wheel as well.
Now I chose the heated multifunction steering wheel this time. It looks like it remains alcantara on the configurator. Can anyone confirm that? I don’t want leather.

 

Yes, this was my choice as well, it will be Alcantara unless you select the GT Sport Steering Wheel option, this gets you leather on it and the shift **** and boot.

 

I've had both and can't stand the fuzzy, slippery feeling of alcantara. Never can seem to get a real grip on it without gloves. Leather feels much thicker, grippier and smells so nice too. I still can't see why alcantara has reached a level in high end cars. It's just suede.

 

I have Alcantara on the steering wheel and shifter of my 997.2 GT3, but plan to order my 718 GTS 4.0 with leather. The Alcantara affords a better grip than leather with sweaty bare hands, but otherwise no difference. When my hands sweat, I am on track and wearing gloves so the Alcantara offers no advantage for me. And maintaining leather is so much easier.

 

This is one of those topics that is very subjective and is repeated with every new model released. For the general enthusiast it’s all personal preference. I get some don’t like alcantara... but to say it’s worse than leather is all based on opinion. It is used for race cars for a reason. Do you ever see a modern race car using leather? Alcantara is functionally lighter and provides more grip. Me personally, I like it because it’s cooler to touch when weather is hot and warmer when weather is cold. I have had both and much prefer alcantara.

 

Alcantara is used in race cars both because it's lighter, but also because it's flame resistant. However, longevity isn't a concern in race cars--Alcantara touch surfaces typically get replaced after a season.

My first 718 had Alcantara; my current 718 has leather. I prefer the leather because I drive the car frequently, I'm not going to wear gloves just to daily drive my car, and the upkeep to maintain Alcantara is significantly higher than leather. When I really need the grip (at the track) I wear Nomex racing gloves that provide all the grip I want with a leather steering wheel. Alcantara that's used heavily will lose its nap and look ugly.

 

Actually it is not, Alcantara is a brand name for a specific synthetic fabric, not leather at all.

 

Ah thanks for the clarification. Synthetic suede then. Another reason to go with leather. Haha.