[Bleser]

Hello!

I was a bit lazier on this subject than I expected I would have been, but I finally replaced my Sport Line steering wheel.

Instead of going with the F30 M-Sport wheel which requires a new airbag (and has the hard plastic at the 6 o'clock position that I just don't like), I followed some nice threads on these forums to get other ideas. Members reported that the F20 M-Sport wheel retains the F30 Sport Line airbag yet has the same thickness as the F30 M-Sport wheel, which is what I really wanted. On top of that, an eBay vendor, darko_online, will custom make you one with a variety of materials and stiching color options, all for less than $400 shipped to the USA! I went with nappa leather on the top and bottom and perforated leather at 3 & 9 o'clock. I almost went with alcantara but was concerned about long-term wear, and I like the all-leather look. I kept the red stiching theme of the Sport Line interior, and prefer that to plain black of the standard F20 wheel.

Here are some comparison photos and installed product. Also a reference photo of the connections before unplugging the airbag.

Cheers!

[dkbldvl006]

Very interested in this. I take it the quality matched your expectations?

Also - it looks you have the heated steering wheel option. Is that still functional after this update?

[Bleser]

Originally Posted by dkbldvl006

Very interested in this. I take it the quality matched your expectations?

Also - it looks you have the heated steering wheel option. Is that still functional after this update?

Yes, the quality is fantastic. Of course it will take a few years of wear and care to see how it stands up to time, but initial inspection was excellent and other members have reported the same.

The ONLY downside to this swap was losing the heated function. BMW does not make the F20 M-Sport wheel heated (verified on realoem.com), so I accepted losing this. It will be a personal choice if that is OK for you. Where I live, I only used it on certain days about three months out of the year, so it was a small feature to lose.

I should also add that they leather-wrapped the plastic below the silver "V", which is a nice touch.

[bateau]

Interesting. There's another seller from Lithuania, Ledermanz, who does BMW wheels. His work showed up in a few threads.

Do you get complete wheel with controls and paddles (looks like) or did you transfer those from a donor?

[Bleser]

Originally Posted by bateau

Interesting. There's another seller from Lithuania, Ledermanz, who does BMW wheels. His work showed up in a few threads.

Do you get complete wheel with controls and paddles (looks like) or did you transfer those from a donor?

Complete wheel, with paddles and controls. I had to specify paddle shifters to be included but it was no additional cost.

Just be sure to note how cables ate routed on your old wheel for best fitment.

[otay]

Very nice, thanks for posting. Did you do the swap yourself? Also, I see the picture of the wheel connections with no airbag, but don't see a "reference photo of the connections before unplugging the airbag". ??

[Bleser]

Originally Posted by otay

Very nice, thanks for posting. Did you do the swap yourself? Also, I see the picture of the wheel connections with no airbag, but don't see a "reference photo of the connections before unplugging the airbag". ??

Whoops - forgot it - thanks for noticing. I updated the OP and added it. It just shows how the cables are routed from the factory.

Yep, I swapped it myself. Hardest part is unlatching and yanking out the airbag, but plenty of guides on this forum to assist. Make sure to disconnect the battery before attempting otherwise you get a fault code if you unplug the airbag while there is still power to it.

[aigochamaloh]

Wow this looks great! Cuts down the cost since you can reuse the Airbag.

[zamboni]

Bleser do you have the link for eBay?

[Bleser]

Originally Posted by zamboni

Bleser do you have the link for eBay?

http://www.ebay.com/usr/darko_online?ul_noapp=true

This is his store; there is an F20 M-Sport wheel in there with the 'default' configuration. Message him for customization options.

[AGONXF30]

I love the new wheel. Too bad it is not heated. I rather not loose that option, but man the new one looks a lot better in my opinion.

[Bleser]

Originally Posted by AGONXF30

I love the new wheel. Too bad it is not heated. I rather not loose that option, but man the new one looks a lot better in my opinion.

Thanks! And yes, that was the sole downside. However, the percentage of time I used that feature was quite low, and every time I drive I gain all the positives of the new wheel, which made it worth it.

[otay]

So I bookmarked this thread last year. Since I recently purchased my car off lease, it was time to correct one of the biggest shortcomings of the Sport Line model: the crappy steering wheel.

First off want to thank Bleser for originally posting this!

I worked with the same ebay seller for the same steering wheel. He didn't have a listing for this type of wheel, but responded to my message quickly. This seller offers customization (different leather config, different thread color, etc), but I'm not too particular, and decided to do the same config as Bleser. Perforated on the sides, and smooth nappa on the top. Did want the red thread, b/c I have Coral Red interior.

I PM-ed Bleser recently to make sure the leather was holding up and he still liked it. That was an affirmative.

As far as the swap goes, the removal of the air bag on my existing wheel was a bit of a pain in the ass. The method that most experts probably use is to insert a torx driver in small slots in the back of the wheel and just move it a bit to the side to undo both clips. But all I ended up doing was to enlarge the hole. Then I found a video that showed another method: remove the shroud around the column, then you can actually see the clips and get to them easier. The shroud just snaps apart, with some effort.

The result? I love it! Seriously, the first few times I drove it, it felt like a new car. It's thicker (as you can see from the pics), and the smooth leather on top is just grippy enough, but not too grippy. I'm not even sure what the hell the material is on my original wheel...feels like rubber or plastic. This new wheel feels great, and really improves the main interface to the car.

I do like the looks of the M Sport wheel a bit better, but at a bit over $400 for this F20 reconditioned wheel that uses the same airbag, I am very pleased with the result.

[Bleser]

otay - glad you like it and it worked out! I'm coming up on about a year since I've installed mine and it is holding up really, really well. I have to clean the leather at the 9 & 3 positions to keep the sheen down but that is pretty standard with any leather wheel.

As you said, it is a huge upgrade to a major part of the car that I touch every time I drive.

BTW, I can't see your photos that you posted?

[otay]

Originally Posted by Bleser

otay - glad you like it and it worked out! I'm coming up on about a year since I've installed mine and it is holding up really, really well. I have to clean the leather at the 9 & 3 positions to keep the sheen down but that is pretty standard with any leather wheel.

As you said, it is a huge upgrade to a major part of the car that I touch every time I drive.

BTW, I can't see your photos that you posted?

Photobucket....arrggh.

Here's a couple attached.

[Bleser]

Nice! Looks familiar

[falkdal]

Hi all,

I've been keen to do this mod as well. I have a '12 F30 Sport line with the coral red trim, and although I prefer the M sport wheel look, I'm worried about airbag compatibility, and like the idea of maintaining the stock look with the red stitching. A few questions for Bleser and otay:

- You are both in the US, but the F20 wheel is a EU spec wheel right? Did you have to recode the car to get the paddles and steering wheel functions to work?

- My friend (who owns a BMW shop) said if I leave the heating function unplugged it will throw faults. Has that been true/is it a concern or affect the car's in any way other than during service there'll be heating related codes I can safely ignore?

Thanks!

[otay]

Originally Posted by falkdal

Hi all,

I've been keen to do this mod as well. I have a '12 F30 Sport line with the coral red trim, and although I prefer the M sport wheel look, I'm worried about airbag compatibility, and like the idea of maintaining the stock look with the red stitching. A few questions for Bleser and otay:

- You are both in the US, but the F20 wheel is a EU spec wheel right? Did you have to recode the car to get the paddles and steering wheel functions to work?

- My friend (who owns a BMW shop) said if I leave the heating function unplugged it will throw faults. Has that been true/is it a concern or affect the car's in any way other than during service there'll be heating related codes I can safely ignore?

Thanks!

- Did not have to do any coding. It was plug & play for everything, including using existing airbag from stock wheel, plus paddles, audio, etc.

- Can't help on this one. Don't have a heated wheel.

[Bleser]

Originally Posted by falkdal

A few questions for Bleser and otay:

- You are both in the US, but the F20 wheel is a EU spec wheel right? Did you have to recode the car to get the paddles and steering wheel functions to work?

- My friend (who owns a BMW shop) said if I leave the heating function unplugged it will throw faults. Has that been true/is it a concern or affect the car's in any way other than during service there'll be heating related codes I can safely ignore?

Thanks!

• Correct, but everything (less the heated wheel switched) plugged in perfectly and zero coding was needed.
• Not true. I have the heated wheel option (and obviously this wheel is not heated) and there hasn't been a single error code or warning light thrown, even after being taken to the dealer for a software upgrade a year or so back. The one caveat: I've never pushed the heated wheel button since doing the swap - so maybe if you try to activate it, it will complain - but I've never tried as there is no point.

Cheers!