Alcantara steering wheel - will it wear well? | FerrariChat
Buy

Alcantara steering wheel - will it wear well?

Discussion in '360/430' started by dreamcarswest, Feb 23, 2011.

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

  1. dreamcarswest

    dreamcarswest Karting

    Apr 4, 2007
    162
    #1 dreamcarswest, Feb 23, 2011
    So my '01 360 is in need of a new steering wheel - the old one just doesn't look good any more.

    Has anyone dealt with Vivid Racing before? I googled "ferrari 360 steering wheel" and came up with this:

    http://www.vividracing.com/catalog/motorsports-leather-wrap-carbon-trim-steering-wheel-ferrari-9905-p-115366.html

    Their price is $1,195.

    But ebay shows this at almost twice the price:

    http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=300503404644&crlp=1_263602_304652&ff4=263602_304652&viewitem=&guid=548d1ad912e0a0e1e5a5dc75ff9dfde5&hlp=false&rvr_id=212981624145&ua=M*F%3F&itemid=300503404644

    The ebay listing appears to be by a seller i.d. that belongs to the manufacturer of the wheel.

    Also - is alcantara a good material for a wheel in terms of how it wears - or will it wear out faster than a traditional leather?
     
  2. netman

    netman Formula 3

    Jun 17, 2008
    1,905
    OC SoCal
    #2 netman, Feb 23, 2011
    You do realize that Alcantra is a fancy name for suede made from plastic. With that said, have you considered having your wheel recovered. The cost will be much less and the options much greater
     
  3. dreamcarswest

    dreamcarswest Karting

    Apr 4, 2007
    162
    #3 dreamcarswest, Feb 23, 2011
    Actually I did not realize that! Suede made from plastic - wow, lol.

    Recovering it would be great as well - do you have any recommendations for companies that do a good job?
     
  4. Jason Crandall

    Jason Crandall F1 Veteran

    Mar 25, 2004
    6,375
    ATL/CHS/MIA
    Full Name:
    Jason
    #4 Jason Crandall, Feb 23, 2011
    MaCarbon

    I love mine.
     
  5. F430addict

    F430addict F1 Rookie

    Sep 17, 2010
    4,460
    #5 F430addict, Feb 23, 2011
    MaCarbon has some crazy steering wheels for the 430. Would do mine if budget wasn't the issue. LOL...love em.
     
  6. RossoCorsaItaly

    RossoCorsaItaly F1 Rookie
    Rossa Subscribed

    Jun 9, 2004
    4,676
    LA & OKC
    Full Name:
    Kevin
    #6 RossoCorsaItaly, Feb 24, 2011
    Speaking from years of personal ownership of multiple suede / alcantara interiors - NO it does not wear well. If that's your concern, move on to a different material.

    Good luck,

    Kevin
     
  7. DonJuan348

    DonJuan348 F1 Rookie
    Owner

    Aug 5, 2008
    4,442
    Taxing Jersey
    #7 DonJuan348, Feb 24, 2011
    Lamborghini seems to love the suede and I always wondered did it where well. I have heard it fades easy also
     
  8. RobD

    RobD Formula 3

    Nov 10, 2003
    1,182
    USA
    #8 RobD, Feb 24, 2011
    My '07 GT3's Alcantara steering wheel looked like new when I sold the car. Granted, it wasn't a daily driver, but I did use the car somewhat regularly. Aggressive use, such as tracking, may age it, however. Clean hands probably help keep it looking good.
     
  9. AEman69A

    AEman69A Karting

    Jan 13, 2011
    147
    Central NJ
    Full Name:
    Eddie
    #9 AEman69A, Feb 24, 2011
    A friend has a 997 GT3 with an Alcantara steering wheel. If feels great to the touch but he has complained that the wheel sometimes stains if his hands are not clean as RobD pointed out.

    A new wheel from Ricambi is around $1,100. Or you can just re-upholster your current one as others have suggested.
     
  10. E60 M5

    E60 M5 Moderator
    Moderator Owner

    Jan 2, 2006
    8,152
    Wash DC area
    Full Name:
    Robert
    #10 E60 M5, Feb 24, 2011
    BMW put the Alcantara steering wheel on the M3 sport package and they all seem to hold up well.
     
  11. away

    away Formula Junior

    Aug 5, 2004
    635
    Lansdale, PA
    Full Name:
    Andrew
    #11 away, Feb 24, 2011
    In my experience, I've never seen an alcantara wheel hold up well with age/mileage. I'm sure care, grip, hand cleanliness, moisture, etc all play a role, but there's no comparison between leather and alcantara when it comes to aesthetic durability. That said, I do love the feel and look of it.

    BMW was actually replacing the alcantara steering wheels in the E46 ZHP/ZCP cars with leather wheels at owners request since they were wearing so quickly and garnering complaints.
     
  12. blackbolt22

    blackbolt22 F1 Veteran
    Silver Subscribed

    Sep 25, 2007
    5,792
    Boca Raton, FL
    Full Name:
    Mr. Anderson
    #12 blackbolt22, Feb 24, 2011
    Call John at MA Carbon. He will discuss pros and cons.

    I ordered a CF wheel just today from him. They are very helpful there.
     
  13. 360C

    360C F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa Owner

    Oct 31, 2003
    14,874
    Melbourne Australia
    #13 360C, Feb 25, 2011
    I did 110,000 kms in my E46 M3 CSL BMW and the alacantra wheel was as good as new when I sold it. In dirty and hot environments they can wear very quickly though.
     
  14. X11OUD

    X11OUD Formula Junior

    Mar 22, 2008
    729
    Manchester, England
    Full Name:
    Neil
    #14 X11OUD, Feb 25, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    Black is the worst colour for fading, these are the armrests from my BM daily driver.

    I also have a half leather, half Alcantara steering wheel, the Alcantara is at the top and bottom so not in the usual hand positions and it still gets grubby from natural oils in your hands, I have to clean it once a month with Raceglaze cleaner.
    Image Unavailable, Please Login
     
  15. dreamcarswest

    dreamcarswest Karting

    Apr 4, 2007
    162
    #15 dreamcarswest, Feb 25, 2011
    Thanks so much for all the help guys - I'm gonna call Ricambi. $1,100 doesn't sound too bad, and I'd rather keep the OEM look anyway.
     
  16. VividRacing

    VividRacing F1 Rookie

    Aug 23, 2005
    2,986
    Gilbert, AZ
    #16 VividRacing, Feb 25, 2011
    If you want to go with the carbon wheel let me know, I just put one on my 360 and its 1000% improvement over the stock wheel.
     
  17. VividRacing

    VividRacing F1 Rookie

    Aug 23, 2005
    2,986
    Gilbert, AZ
    #17 VividRacing, Feb 25, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
  18. DonJuan348

    DonJuan348 F1 Rookie
    Owner

    Aug 5, 2008
    4,442
    Taxing Jersey
    #18 DonJuan348, Feb 25, 2011
    Rob,

    How much?
     
  19. VividRacing

    VividRacing F1 Rookie

    Aug 23, 2005
    2,986
    Gilbert, AZ
    #19 VividRacing, Feb 25, 2011
    Call me depends on exactly what you want done.
     
  20. euro_king

    euro_king Formula Junior

    Mar 18, 2009
    758
    San Jose, Jakarta
    Full Name:
    Jastien Weiss
    #20 euro_king, Feb 27, 2011
    Give Ivan at dctms.com a call superb quality and also good price. Got my gt3 done from him.
     
  21. Testacojones

    Testacojones F1 Veteran

    Nov 3, 2003
    5,198
    Florida
    Full Name:
    Luix
    #21 Testacojones, Feb 27, 2011
    An Arabic word that has traveled around and around...
     
  22. johnb@macarbon

    johnb@macarbon Formula Junior

    Feb 24, 2004
    809
    SF Bay Area
    Full Name:
    John Borchelt
    #22 johnb@macarbon, Feb 28, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    We did Alcantara for a while but found it did wear. Personally, I also think it feels abrasive and is not really that comfortable. The main reason to use it was the wide array of colors it came in. One of which was a dark gray that matched the material used by Audi and Porsche. We switched over to suede when we found an Italian company that made a high quality gray suede. Since making the transition and I'd say 50% of the wheels we do have at least one section in suede. A suede wheel feels so nice, I always recommend it.

    For a standard 360, if you are really worried about wear, do the grips in perforated leather with a suede bottom. The top could be suede or leather. Here's one possible configuration:
    http://www.macarbon.com/wheel_config/conf.php?uid=12,M2c0,M0c0,M0c0,M3c0,M0c0,M2c0,M0c0

    If you have a CS, then carbon top, perforated grips with a gray suede bottom is the sweet configuration. The grey suede is a good match for the usual sun faded "purple-ish" alacantara in the car!
    http://www.macarbon.com/wheel_config/conf.php?uid=13,M0c0,M1c0,M0c0,M3c1,M0c0,M0c0,M0c0

    If you have further questions, feel free to give us a call, email or PM. We are the manufacturer and I personally work directly with most of our customers to come up with the ideal wheel for their car and situation.

    Attached is a pic of a wheel we did for an Fchatter. (We have a ton of photos of various wheels we've done but I don't want to hijack your thread.) I just counted 150 back and forth emails on this one wheel.... it pained me more than him I think when he sold the car. Oengus, you know who you are! :) That level of effort (for both of us) is pretty unusual though!
    Image Unavailable, Please Login
     
  23. Jason Crandall

    Jason Crandall F1 Veteran

    Mar 25, 2004
    6,375
    ATL/CHS/MIA
    Full Name:
    Jason
    #23 Jason Crandall, Feb 28, 2011
    ^That's my CS^

    So pretty! Love the wheel.
     
  24. F430S

    F430S Rookie

    Nov 1, 2010
    24
    Southeast
    #24 F430S, Mar 2, 2011
    Mine looks perfect at 11K on E46 M3
     
  25. smj113

    smj113 Karting

    Oct 23, 2007
    190
    Philly Suburbs
    #25 smj113, Mar 3, 2011
    alcantara has been used for years in this type of application. The fact that it is now used as carpeting in some cars should tell you how durable it is. Looks/feels great on a steering wheel and wears like iron.
     

Share This Page