omniphil

My steering wheel is in good shape but its way too slippery. (I had a 2023 loaner and was reminded how nice the new factory leather is, very grippy)
I have tried all the degreasers, cleaners and I even picked up a colourlock restore kit.
I am left with a very clean but slippery steering wheel...

Is there anything that will get the wheel back to a matte grippy texture?
It's really a nuisance driving in the cold weather with such a smooth slippery steering wheel.

Zeus993

Purchase a new steering wheel? I just did that for my 2011 Spyder.

BMinSFL

Did you try the Magic Eraser method I brought up in the other thread? That's the easiest / best method to get the matte texture back.

A melamine sponge is a light abrasive so it will take off the top layer and expose a new, matte layer of topcoat. Go easy and with water and stop if you see too much dye coming off. I've done it in two prior wheels with good results. I can try it out on my old wheel and try to capture the difference in a photo.

Also, if you look at post #16 in the thread below, you can try to airbrush 3-4 coats of matte clear topcoat from Seat Doctors and then use the melamine sponge to finish it off and get that fresh oem matte texture.

https://www.macanforum.com/threads/armrest-with-crest-a-project.188750/#post-2744174

Otherwise, get a new wheel, they are not crazy expensive and a nice upgrade if you go with the GT wheel. Installation is very easy.

omniphil

Ok, thanks, I will give the magic eraser a try

Ironman88

As a last ditch effort, you may consider the following approach to cleaning the embedded dirt and oils out of the leather:

1) Get a bucket of very hot water and a clean rougher nap microfiber cloth
2) Get the microfiber cloth saturated with the very hot water and wring it out so that it is not dripping
3) Place the microfiber cloth on a section of the leather and hold it on there for a minute or so
4) Continue to do this around the full circumference of the steering wheel

Then using the following product, undiluted on the microfiber cloth:


5) With the Nonsense AP cleaner on the microfiber, scrub the leather. Rinse the microfiber, wring it out, and again use the Nonsense cleaner

By doing this, you'll open up the pores of the leather so that the Nonsense cleaner can penetrate and breakdown the dirt / grease / oils embedded in the leather.

6) Final cleaning step would be to wipe down the leather with clear / clean hot water on the microfiber cloth

7) When the leather has dried, treat it with the Colourlock leather conditioner


Chemical Guys Nonsense - available on Amazon. Great stuff.

omniphil

Sounds like a plan, will report back with results...

The only part I wonder about is the leather conditioner. If I get it super clean and grippy the conditioner might add back some of that gloss/slippery...

Ironman88

In my experience, the Colourlock "Leather Protector" will help slow down the buildup of dirt / oils getting back into the leather. (Make sure that you would be using the "Leather Protector" and not the "Leather Shield".) The Leather Shield is used on high-wear areas in the interior such as driver seat outer bolsters. Leather Shield may leave more of a glossy finish.

I guess you could opt to omit that step if you wanted to. For my steering wheels, I've not felt that it's created a problem. If you do use it, I would use just a very small amount of it and allow it to penetrate into the leather.

Good luck with the process...

BMinSFL

Be sure to go easy and soak the eraser in water first so that its damp. A few light passes should do the trick. Since this is a more aggressive approach, use this method only if other methods, such as using a leather scrub pad, have not worked. Its usually an annual process at the most since its aggressive but still worth a shot before going for a new wheel.

Ironman88

I've had really good success using Magic Eraser on the side sill scuff plates (vinyl / plastic) in removing stubborn scuffs from shoes that various AP cleaners would not remove.

That said, I don't see how a topically applied product like Magic Eraser would remove embedded dirt / oils within the leather of a steering wheel.

BMinSFL

We probably aren't referring to the same product. A Magic Eraser I am talking about is a melamine sponge that is an abrasive, flexible, sponge-like material. When using one, you are not applying anything but abrading and removing a top layer of the leather. If you use it with water and only with light passes, its a very slight top layer of the embedded dirt and oils, revealing a fresh layer underneath.

Its probably best to coat the leather afterwards with a more permanent product like a matte leather topcoat but in my experience using this as a last ditch effort, the results are very impressive and a typical leather conditioner can be used afterwards. I had a link in my above post where I used it to finish off a freshly redyed and top-coated leather armrest. If comparing to an exterior paint correction, I used the magic eraser as a final wet sand or even polish to achieve the factory matte finish I was looking for that still holds up after applying a typical conditioner

scola8

I wanted to check in on this thread and see if the magic eraser method worked to get the shiny steering wheel back to a more matte finish? I have same issue and its very annoying LOL. Thanks.

omniphil

I've tried everything at this point, nothing has brought it back to a nice matte finish unfortunately.... I'd pay to have it wrapped if I thought it would look ok, but I suspect a leather wrap is just going to look tacky...

john981

I would get a new steering wheel. Just bring it to your indy and they will swap it in less than 10 minutes. For my old 981 I bought on ebay a brand new take off 991 steering wheel for 200 bucks and my indy swapped it for 50 bucks. It took him really less than 10 minutes (maybe 5 minutes). He did it while he was talking on the phone but he knew exactly what he was doing. It doesn't sound that you are still under warranty but if you are, than I would go to the dealership and have them do that.

Mainiac

You can also have it professionally rewrapped. Just got quotes from Dallas Custom Steering Wheels and Craft Customs to redo my GT4 steering wheel. Prices are around $550 to remove my Alcantara and replace with leather.

Penstamin

and this is a quote I got from my local custom upholstery place in Scottsdale, Arizona to refinish my leather wheel:

“We can clean, recondition and dye the entire steering wheel to conceal any wear marks. The cost for that is $225.