How To: Fix discolored steering wheel pad

[DMage]

I picked up a nice piece of vinyl from JoAnn Fabrics (not sure how nationwide they are) but I am sure any arts & crafts store would sell the same stuff. The sell two types, one with a thick rubber backing and one with a fabric backing. Your going to need the fabric backing one as it can be removed so the vinyl is as thin as possible. In total of the roll I think the lady at the store cut 10 inches of a 1 yard roll, so I had a lot of excess in case I screwed up, and it only cost $1.17. Your also going to need some sort of spray adhesive, make sure you get one that lists permanent hold as needing 1 minute or more to dry before adhering. Cost at WalMart was $2.28

Take the vinyl and peel off the fabric. This is going to leave a bit of fuzz. Try to remove as much as you can. Spray a coat of glue on the entire front surface of the pad. Let it sit for a minute, then place the vinyl over it. Stretch it as much as you can onto and around the rim of the pad. I cannot stress how much this stuff can be stretched, so keep pulling it until the entire front has the OEM look. I then flipped it over and sprayed lightly around the back rim, waited, and then finished stretching the vinyl around. I then took another tip from the thread listed above from Patrick C, and used a stapler to finish securing the vinyl in place. Trimmed it with scissors and let it sit overnight.

Honestly, I didn't think it would come out this good, but it looks great. In the car you could not be able to tell it's not a replaced NOS part. See pics of the pre pad and the finished pad below:

[GS450-Junkie]

So how does it look installed ? Does it stick out since the rest of the wheel is probably faded and cracked ? Can you post a picture ?

[DMage]

This is something I did 5 years ago. It looked good and blended perfectly, but I eventually replaced it with an OEM piece because the glue couldn't hold up to the 140 degree inside temps after sitting in the Florida sun.

My piece was faded as I believe the previous owner drove with his hand there. Steering wheel was not faded.

[Evildeli]

I tired this, and although the adhesive I used wasn't great, the material makes the rest of the wheel look almost new.

[r00b]

I did this with some vinyl from JoAnn Fabrics that was an amazing match, it looks good except for an air bubble in the middle that kept forming. Now I can't find that same matching vinyl to do it again.

[Ryan King]

I did this with some vinyl from JoAnn Fabrics that was an amazing match, it looks good except for an air bubble in the middle that kept forming. Now I can't find that same matching vinyl to do it again.

Ruben, I still have some extra if you need some.

[kajcienski]

I picked up a nice piece of vinyl from JoAnn Fabrics (not sure how nationwide they are) but I am sure any arts & crafts store would sell the same stuff. The sell two types, one with a thick rubber backing and one with a fabric backing. Your going to need the fabric backing one as it can be removed so the vinyl is as thin as possible. In total of the roll I think the lady at the store cut 10 inches of a 1 yard roll, so I had a lot of excess in case I screwed up, and it only cost $1.17. Your also going to need some sort of spray adhesive, make sure you get one that lists permanent hold as needing 1 minute or more to dry before adhering. Cost at WalMart was $2.28

Take the vinyl and peel off the fabric. This is going to leave a bit of fuzz. Try to remove as much as you can. Spray a coat of glue on the entire front surface of the pad. Let it sit for a minute, then place the vinyl over it. Stretch it as much as you can onto and around the rim of the pad. I cannot stress how much this stuff can be stretched, so keep pulling it until the entire front has the OEM look. I then flipped it over and sprayed lightly around the back rim, waited, and then finished stretching the vinyl around. I then took another tip from the thread listed above from Patrick C, and used a stapler to finish securing the vinyl in place. Trimmed it with scissors and let it sit overnight.

Honestly, I didn't think it would come out this good, but it looks great. In the car you could not be able to tell it's not a replaced NOS part. See pics of the pre pad and the finished pad below:

I live in NYC and just picked up PERFECT matching vinyl - huge selection here. It stretches well and is perfect for recovering the center pad. I can probably send some fabric to anyone who wants it at cost. I actually embedded an emblem into the center pad and working on offering it to the community. Really looks fantastic - At least I think so Will post that when I take some pictures.

[thirdmanj]

Looks fantastic man! I think I'll try this myself! Many thanks for the tip.

[jawn101]

Looks really good Matt. You've got this vinyl thing down pat for sure.

[kajcienski]

Looks really good Matt. You've got this vinyl thing down pat for sure.

Hi Jon - This is actually Derek's thread with pictures. The one I recovered looks the same though with matching vinyl to the original look - except I inlaid DMC in SS letters. I'll take some pictures and post some what I did. I originally wanted to re-create the steering wheel and emblem look of Pilot 20 but came up with the stainless inlay instead. Really improves the look of the original center pad, which in my opinion brought down the finished look of the interior. I had heard they wanted an emblem on the center pad anyway but never happened. I often try to come up with "perhaps if they had more time" ideas. Fun stuff!