Long Term Durability of Alcantara

[P22Tyler]

Apologies if this is posted elsewhere, I didn't find it when I searched.

I am interested in replacing my steering wheel with the OEM Alcantara one, it looks really nice. I've never had an Alcantara steering wheel though and I was wondering if anyone that does have one (or has had one) could chime in on how it holds up. Maybe mention how much/how often you drive your car just to give an idea of how much use the steering wheel gets.

Any comments on your general likes/dislikes of the steering wheel overall, or anything else you can think of would also be appreciated.

 

[nhcowboy28]

Had my steering wheel/shift cover/arm rest on for a year. No issues.

I do wash my hands before driving to prevent junking it up.

I clean it monthly with alcantera cleaner.

daily drive 12k a year

no wear / durability issues at all except for the arm rest. You can tell where my arm lays on it. But nothing the looks horrible.

 

[P22Tyler]

Thanks, that's good info. How does it feel to you? Was it worth it to you to do the upgrade?

 

[nhcowboy28]

Thanks, that's good info. How does it feel to you? Was it worth it to you to do the upgrade?

The steering wheel is the best/most rewarding. Awesome especially in winter with the heated wheel.
Also nice in summer... never uncomfortable to hold when left in direct sunlight.

 

[robz32]

As long as you clean it religiously, it will stay looking good.

 

[P22Tyler]

As long as you clean it religiously, it will stay looking good.

That's good to know.

 

[BertBert2019GT]

Had my steering wheel/shift cover/arm rest on for a year. No issues.

I do wash my hands before driving to prevent junking it up.

I clean it monthly with alcantera cleaner.

daily drive 12k a year

no wear / durability issues at all except for the arm rest. You can tell where my arm lays on it. But nothing the looks horrible.

On a side note, did you do the full disassembly of the center console for the full replacement of the armrest w/hinge mechanism or did you just replace the armrest pad and for the alcantara pad and trim the plastic to bypass that inaccessible screw?

My alcantara arm rest has been sitting on my bench for months because i’ve been too lazy/too concerned with hidden-easy-to-break plastic clips to disassemble the center console to do the full replacement of the hinge mechanism.

 

[nhcowboy28]

On a side note, did you do the full disassembly of the center console for the full replacement of the armrest w/hinge mechanism or did you just replace the armrest pad and for the alcantara pad and trim the plastic to bypass that inaccessible screw?

My alcantara arm rest has been sitting on my bench for months because i’ve been too lazy/too concerned with hidden-easy-to-break plastic clips to disassemble the center console to do the full replacement of the hinge mechanism.

I did the short cut / dremel method (not full console disassembly).

as a result, the bottom most screws were never as tight as I like (very hard to get to) without wrecking the stainless steel edge on the back.

this a light squeak when I first rest my arm down.

probably should have gone full disassembly.

You get halfway there when you install the Qi charging tray. Might want to see that thread. That will allow movement (no bolts connected to floor) of the console. At that point, it’s just unplugging things from harnesses I’m sure.