Steering wheel leather fade fix

mrduder · 10-14-2016, 10:41 AM

So I posted a while back about how my steering whee had started to fade after like 4 months of owning this car. Dealership wouldn't replace it. Frustrating. So anyways, I found a solution. Anyone else that has this issue it's an easy fix. Bought a kit from http://www.leatherworldtech.com/Delu...Kit-p/dlrk.htm and the color code is 917 for BMW. The first pic is of the wheel before and second is after. The kit came with everything I needed. Instructions aren't amazing. But it's easy enough. Started with the cleaner. Then there's a black scrubber and I gently used that to prep the leather for the dye. Then dip the sponge in the dye and blot it on the wheel evenly. Let dry for 24 hours and repeated this 3 times. Gave it one last scrub with the black wool scrubber thing. Really gently to smooth it all out. Then applied the protection cream. Looks great to me. Can't tell at all now. Super happy with the results.

te37 · 10-14-2016, 10:44 AM

Sad that BMW couldn't do anything about this.

mrduder · 10-14-2016, 10:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by te37

Sad that BMW couldn't do anything about this.

They wouldn't take responsibility because they said it could have been an outside influence like a cleaner or something that ruined it. Which it wasn't..... if it was an outside source like that, it would have ruined the entire wheel. Not just the top. oh well. It was like $50 for the kit and it worked perfectly. So I'm happy. Seeing that part of the wheel drove me CRAZY! glad it's fixed.

hamanncheese · 10-14-2016, 10:47 PM

Looks great! Does the repaired area feel any different? Oh and hello from Irvine. Is your car lowered by any chance?

Brasko · 10-14-2016, 11:08 PM

Looks amazing! Thanks for sharing. I'm sure a lot of us will need to do this at sometime.

mrduder · 10-14-2016, 11:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hamanncheese

Looks great! Does the repaired area feel any different? Oh and hello from Irvine. Is your car lowered by any chance?

Feels just like the rest of the wheel. The 917 is a matte finish. When first applied it feels and looks different. I was a little stressed and worried. You also kind of blot the dye with the sponge so the texture did feel a bit different. First coat was the worst. Each one after got better and more even. Then after the last coat it looked a little more matte than the rest and did feel a little rough still so I decided to give it a super gentle, light rub with the wool pad. I noticed each time I did that before applying the next coat of dye that it shined it up a bit and smoothed it out. But the first few times I did it you could then see the part up top peaking through. So I tried it after the third round and thought it if did it again I'd just dye it again. The instructions say it'll take 3-4 times. So I did it thinking I'd have to do it again, but it looked and felt perfect. So happy with the results. It looks and feels brand new. Oh, I also did the entire top section from seam to seam. Not just the spot that was faded. I think that was key to it looking as good as it does.

Also, no, I'm not lowered. Why do you ask???

dr.mba · 10-15-2016, 12:37 AM

Amazing!! Never knew this thing exists! Thanks for sharing

M

mrduder · 10-15-2016, 11:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dr.mba

Amazing!! Never knew this thing exists! Thanks for sharing

M

Yeah I know a few other people have posted the same issue so hopefully someone else will find this useful

Sassicaia · 10-15-2016, 10:29 PM

Looks great. I'm amazed the top of the wheel is so warn. Not sure my hands have ever even touch the top of the wheel once.

mrduder · 10-15-2016, 10:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sassicaia

Looks great. I'm amazed the top of the wheel is so warn. Not sure my hands have ever even touch the top of the wheel once.

Yeah my hands probably touch that spot .00001% of the time I drive. It got like that about 4 months into owning the car. It was clearly something wrong with the leather. Took it to McKenna BMW and they said it was most likely from the dealer prep. If it was from the dealer prep, how would I be responsible? I had A LOT of issue with the car when I first got it. TONS of cosmetic issues. So this should have been covered. Probably could have been if I made a big enough deal over. Not worth it. So dumb..... but whatever, not a big deal. Was able to fix it easily. All I care about is that I don't have to look at that any longer. Drove me insane!

kitesurfer · 10-16-2016, 08:00 AM

Nice find, I need to do this to the door handle area on my wifes f10. Your steering wheel looks kinda lumpy on the top portion....you been squeezing it like a stress relief ball? lol

mrduder · 10-16-2016, 08:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kitesurfer

Nice find, I need to do this to the door handled area on my wifes f10. Your steering wheel looks kinda lumpy on the top portion....you been squeezing it like a stress ball?lol

Hahaha I think it's the angle of the picture. Around the back of the wheel there's little ridges. I think that's what you're seeing. It's where those ridges meet the top of the wheel

chmsalman · 05-19-2019, 01:30 AM

I had the same issue on an F10. I bought a similar kit from Leatherique and actually never ended up using it. Mine looked exactly like yours.

All you really need is the Leatherique Rejuvenator and Cleaner. I went through the trouble of taking the wheel off, wrapping parts I didn't have to dye, and just started with the rejuvenator before proceeding to sanding and dying.

Lo and behold, the rejuvenator was good enough. Just massage it onto the wheel with your hands, exerting a good amount of pressure with your thumbs. 10 minutes later, I wiped it off with the cleaner and the wheel looked brand new.

Never ended up using the dye kit at all. For the amount of product I used, it might have been $10...CAD.

Now I swear by Leatherique, and use loads of that stuff all over my car. I've never been happier with a product in my life, and I must say I'm usually difficult to please.

sjdennis · 05-20-2019, 03:24 PM

This post is over 2 years old now. It looks beautiful. I'm curious to know if the OP can comment on how it has held up over time.

Thanks,
Dennis

mrduder · 05-20-2019, 04:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sjdennis

This post is over 2 years old now. It looks beautiful. I'm curious to know if the OP can comment on how it has held up over time.

Thanks,
Dennis

It held up great. Had the car for 3 years and it never did that again after fixing it

FSHNGRY · 05-28-2019, 11:09 PM

OP and everyone else concerned,

I had this same issue with my original steering wheel. I have copied the link to the thread below. Ironically enough, someone has commented and brought it back to life and I literally just updated with my experience. Glad to help anyway I can! Feel free to ask

https://f80.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1276409

KnockTsuKow · 06-23-2019, 01:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrduder

It held up great. Had the car for 3 years and it never did that again after fixing it

Man can you do this for me since I am in Irvine and I;ll pay you bro!

Great article and I had a spot faded like that

marmit2017 · 03-21-2020, 04:46 PM

Im having the same issue now on my f10. Bought the dye and just waiting for it to come in. I've tried leatherique as a member on here said it worked for them, however it didn't work for me. I plan on taking off the steering wheel to remove all of the trim pieces to dye the entire wheel. Do you think the small 4 oz bottle will be enough for the whole wheel?

stylelullaby · 07-03-2020, 08:49 PM

I just bought a lightly used 430i convertible and noticed some fading on the top of the steering wheel. Interested in trying the leather repair kit that OP used to touch up and essentially dye this area. After selecting the color code 917, it's asking me to select the gloss/color adjusting kit options. The gloss drop down menu has the following options: satin low-gloss, semi-gloss, and high-gloss. For the original matte finish, would it just be satin low-gloss? Wanted to ask before purchasing. Also guessing I won't need the color adjusting kit? Finally, would the 4oz touch-up size suffice? I'm a bit concerned about possibly needing to dye the whole wheel if the color comes out inconsistent at the top lol

Thanks in advance for the help!

pinco000 · 04-23-2023, 07:58 AM

Hi guys I know this thread is VERY old but VERY usefull. I have done basically the same dying process to my faded steering wheel however the surface came out a bit "rough" after 3 layers of dye.
Any suggestions how to smoothen it out not causing any damage?
Thank you

10-14-2016, 10:41 AM	#1
mrduder Captain 472 Rep 787 Posts Drives: 2015 M4 Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Irvine, CA iTrader: (0)	Steering wheel leather fade fix So I posted a while back about how my steering whee had started to fade after like 4 months of owning this car. Dealership wouldn't replace it. Frustrating. So anyways, I found a solution. Anyone else that has this issue it's an easy fix. Bought a kit from http://www.leatherworldtech.com/Delu...Kit-p/dlrk.htm and the color code is 917 for BMW. The first pic is of the wheel before and second is after. The kit came with everything I needed. Instructions aren't amazing. But it's easy enough. Started with the cleaner. Then there's a black scrubber and I gently used that to prep the leather for the dye. Then dip the sponge in the dye and blot it on the wheel evenly. Let dry for 24 hours and repeated this 3 times. Gave it one last scrub with the black wool scrubber thing. Really gently to smooth it all out. Then applied the protection cream. Looks great to me. Can't tell at all now. Super happy with the results. Attached Images
	Appreciate 6 IrvineTim180.50 BitchinManWheels343.50 aboulfad1592.50 SEXY-BEAST209.50 damageprone580.50 ritzzzzzwik232.00 Tweet Quote

10-14-2016, 10:44 AM	#2
te37 Major 545 Rep 1,132 Posts Drives: F80 SS/SO 6MT Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: ATL iTrader: (3)	Sad that BMW couldn't do anything about this.
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10-14-2016, 10:47 PM	#4
hamanncheese Private First Class 33 Rep 192 Posts Drives: F80 M3, F15 X5 Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Mission Viejo, CA iTrader: (2)	Looks great! Does the repaired area feel any different? Oh and hello from Irvine. Is your car lowered by any chance? __________________ 2016 M3 Mineral White \| 19" Black 437M \| DCT \| Cloth \| Vorsteiner tips \| Osram CBI \| Llumar CTX 30 \| Emmanuele Design springs \| Macht Schnell 15/12mm spacers 2017 x5 xDrive40e Carbon Black \| M-Sport \| 20” Silver 469m \| Osram CBB \|
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10-14-2016, 11:08 PM	#5
Brasko #LSBM3 1420 Rep 1,973 Posts Drives: 2016 BMW M3 Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Oregon / Florida iTrader: (4) Garage List 1984 BMW R65 [0.00] 2020 Ford F-150 XLT ... [0.00] 2003 Mitsubishi Evo ... [0.00] 2016 M3 Competition ... [10.00]	Looks amazing! Thanks for sharing. I'm sure a lot of us will need to do this at sometime. __________________ /// M3
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10-15-2016, 12:37 AM	#7
dr.mba Captain 275 Rep 722 Posts Drives: 2017 F. Grey M3 ZCP Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Canada iTrader: (0)	Amazing!! Never knew this thing exists! Thanks for sharing M
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10-15-2016, 10:29 PM	#9
Sassicaia Brigadier General 4453 Rep 3,308 Posts Drives: SMB F80 6MT Join Date: Apr 2015 Location: Vancouver, Canada iTrader: (0)	Looks great. I'm amazed the top of the wheel is so warn. Not sure my hands have ever even touch the top of the wheel once.
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10-16-2016, 08:00 AM	#11
kitesurfer Banned 543 Rep 1,338 Posts Drives: Round n' Round Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Paradise iTrader: (10) Garage List Aprilia Tuono 1100 RF [0.00]	Nice find, I need to do this to the door handle area on my wifes f10. Your steering wheel looks kinda lumpy on the top portion....you been squeezing it like a stress relief ball? lol
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05-19-2019, 01:30 AM	#13
chmsalman First Lieutenant 46 Rep 357 Posts Drives: 2014 F10 535i x-drive Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Regina, CA iTrader: (0)	Leatherique I had the same issue on an F10. I bought a similar kit from Leatherique and actually never ended up using it. Mine looked exactly like yours. All you really need is the Leatherique Rejuvenator and Cleaner. I went through the trouble of taking the wheel off, wrapping parts I didn't have to dye, and just started with the rejuvenator before proceeding to sanding and dying. Lo and behold, the rejuvenator was good enough. Just massage it onto the wheel with your hands, exerting a good amount of pressure with your thumbs. 10 minutes later, I wiped it off with the cleaner and the wheel looked brand new. Never ended up using the dye kit at all. For the amount of product I used, it might have been $10...CAD. Now I swear by Leatherique, and use loads of that stuff all over my car. I've never been happier with a product in my life, and I must say I'm usually difficult to please.
	Appreciate 0 Quote

05-20-2019, 03:24 PM	#14
sjdennis New Member 6 Rep 29 Posts Drives: '11 335is E93, '01 M Roadster Join Date: May 2008 Location: California iTrader: (0)	This post is over 2 years old now. It looks beautiful. I'm curious to know if the OP can comment on how it has held up over time. Thanks, Dennis
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05-28-2019, 11:09 PM	#16
FSHNGRY Colonel 2337 Rep 2,029 Posts Drives: INDIVIDUAL F90 M5C LCI Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Fort Lauderdale iTrader: (1) Garage List 2021 BMW F90 M5 LCI [0.00]	OP and everyone else concerned, I had this same issue with my original steering wheel. I have copied the link to the thread below. Ironically enough, someone has commented and brought it back to life and I literally just updated with my experience. Glad to help anyway I can! Feel free to ask https://f80.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1276409 __________________ CURRENT: '21 M5\| FSHNGRY \| TARTUFO \| CCB \| MPE \| KW \| IND \| EVENTURI \| EISENMANN \| DINAN \| LOADED \| GONE: '15 F82 M4 \| YMB \| IND \| MPERF \| KW \| BM3 \| LOADED GONE: '11 E92 335IS \| BLKSPHR \| OYSTER \| LOADED GONE: '05 E46 ZHP \| LOADED \| DINAN STG3 PKG \| IG: @FSHNGRY
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03-21-2020, 04:46 PM	#18
marmit2017 Captain 106 Rep 808 Posts Drives: 11 535i 13 328i xDrive Join Date: Mar 2017 Location: TN iTrader: (0)	Im having the same issue now on my f10. Bought the dye and just waiting for it to come in. I've tried leatherique as a member on here said it worked for them, however it didn't work for me. I plan on taking off the steering wheel to remove all of the trim pieces to dye the entire wheel. Do you think the small 4 oz bottle will be enough for the whole wheel?
	Appreciate 0 Quote

07-03-2020, 08:49 PM	#19
stylelullaby Registered 0 Rep 1 Posts Drives: BMW 430i convertible Join Date: Jul 2020 Location: Palm Springs, CA iTrader: (0)	question about leatherworldtech repair kit for BMW steering wheel? I just bought a lightly used 430i convertible and noticed some fading on the top of the steering wheel. Interested in trying the leather repair kit that OP used to touch up and essentially dye this area. After selecting the color code 917, it's asking me to select the gloss/color adjusting kit options. The gloss drop down menu has the following options: satin low-gloss, semi-gloss, and high-gloss. For the original matte finish, would it just be satin low-gloss? Wanted to ask before purchasing. Also guessing I won't need the color adjusting kit? Finally, would the 4oz touch-up size suffice? I'm a bit concerned about possibly needing to dye the whole wheel if the color comes out inconsistent at the top lol Thanks in advance for the help!
	Appreciate 0 Quote

04-23-2023, 07:58 AM	#20
pinco000 Major 165 Rep 1,059 Posts Drives: F48 Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: London iTrader: (0)	Hi guys I know this thread is VERY old but VERY usefull. I have done basically the same dying process to my faded steering wheel however the surface came out a bit "rough" after 3 layers of dye. Any suggestions how to smoothen it out not causing any damage? Thank you
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