Best steering wheel?

[Jesda]

I NOMINATE

BMW E46




You have good grip where it counts and it's shaped in such a way that makes it comfortable for cruising. Plus, it's pretty.

[Bubba1]

Best IMHO is the OEM Ferrari steering wheels from the 50's-60's by Nardi. Polished Mohagany rim, 3 classic brushed aluminum spokes, real glass horn button with the prancing horse logo. Simple, functional, and elegant.

[MinisterofDOOM]

I dislike 3-spoke wheels. When cruising on long drives, I like to drive with my hand at the bottom. My Maxima, Q, and LS have all had similarly-designed 4-spoke wheels that let me do that comfortably.
Oddly, unlike most other people I know, I do not prefer particularly small-diameter steering wheels. I don't want them too big, either, but a lot of sports car steering wheels are just too small for my taste.

The Q's was my favorite, though. Every time I drove the car I found myself NOTICING how natural the the steering wheel felt. I have long arms and long fingers, and the wheel just seemed to "fit" me. The diameter and grip thickness were both perfect. The Q's steering wheel has a larger diameter than most steering wheels.
The wheel also ALWAYS left a full view of the entire instrument cluster, regardless of the wheel's position.



The LS has a few strikes against its otherwise decent steering wheel:
1: It's a Ford, so the wheel is NOT CENTERED. It drives me nuts. The 12 O'clock position is farther from the centerline than the 6 O'clock position. It makes following the wheel on return (such as the natural tendency for the wheel to return to neutral position coming out of turn...I forget the term for it) really unnatural.
2: The cruise and audio controls fill up the 4- and 8-O'clock recesses. I am actually quite fond of the button layout itself--I simply wish the overall design was more compact.
3: The instrument cluster is only fully visible through the steering wheel from my 6'4'' eyelevel with the wheel fully raised and extended. I drive with it fully lowered and only partially extended. The 70-90 mph range on the speedo is obstructed unless I move my head quite a bit--which is extra irritating when you live in a state with lots of 75 and 80mph speed limits. The traction control indicator (comes on whenever TCS kicks in...as though you need a light to tell you when you've got jarring throttle reductions happening) is also obscured as it is located in the peak between the tach and speedo. Fortunately, I never need to look at it since it only comes on when Advancetrac is enabled and I rarely drive with it on.

I think the wheel itself is attractive...particularly the metal Lincoln badge in the center. It's just that it was clearly not designed by a car person.

I completely despise the mess of a lego block my dad's 2004 Maxima has for a steering wheel.
The bottom spoke is GIGANTIC and square and gets right in the way of where I want to rest my hand at times. The side spokes are also gigantic and also square, so they're not comfortable to rest the palm or thumb on.
The radio and cruise controls are also protruding rocker switches, which is terrible. During aggressive return-steering (see above) I find that my palm hits the rockers and changes the audio source or turns cruise on (doesn't activate...just turns on) when I don't want to. And return-steering gets pretty aggressive with the Maxima's 260ft-lb-fueled torque steer. Controls on the wheel are also completely unlit...no label OR switch lights. Not only do you not know what the control does, you have to feel around for it. And since the spokes are thick and square it's not as natural and effortless as it might seem, even with the protruding switches.

[Bubba1]

I kinda pictured your LS with a chain link steering wheel with a whip holster beside the seat....

[Kompresshun]

The Audi S4 steering wheel has always been one of my favorites:



In a classic car though, i've always loved the C2 Corvette wheel:

[Jesda]

I also nominate, from early 90s and late 80s Cadillacs:



HOLD ON, HEAR ME OUT!


This thing is ugly as sin, I realize. It comes from a time when air bags were a big deal and took up a ton of space, but the magic is in the two spokes and the gigantic center hub. On a road trip you could easily rest your hands on either side of the "bread loaf" in the middle, and it made the dashboard-mounted climate controls and onboard diagnostics (all Cadillacs since 1980 came with a built-in code reader and diagnostic display) easy to access.

There's also raised/thickened ends for the thumbs at 10 and 2. Most comfortable steering wheel ever.

[MinisterofDOOM]

Unfortunately, the cars those wheels came attached to weren't so great. Crummy powerplants (HT4100 I'M LOOKING AT YOU), wrong-wheel-drive, and they were TINY cars by Cadillac standards. They really weren't worthy of the Cadillac name. As far as I'm concerned, the brand disappeared in 1985 and mysteriously resurfaced in 1992.

[Jesda]

The later 4.9L cars were excellent. Super dependable with a mountain of torque and a responsive 4T60E 4-speed, but they had a short run from 1991 to 1995 (Deville-only by the end). Getting 26mpg on the highway was nice too.

Same goes for the Northstar -- a head gasket eater in the beginning, GM got it figured out a decade later in 2003.

GM likes to get things right just as they're phasing them out.

[Jesda]

Another funky two-spoke:


In some Citroen models the rim rotates while the center remains fixed.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kU2kcVh2Vqk[/youtube]

[MinisterofDOOM]

That video made me dislike Citroen more than I already did. 1980s LCD displays everywhere and a goofy steering wheel. Real high-tech. LCD tach is unacceptable. What's the response rate on a basic LCD like that? .5Hz? You'll peg redline before the gauge catches up!

'82 Celica was hot. I LOVE the back end of those cars.

[Mr1der]

I've always been a fan of the classic Grant GT. It's kind of an icon.

[asoomal]

Best one I've felt so far is the S2K. Kinda small, but feels really great in your hands.

[Kompresshun]

Kinda small, but feels really great in your hands.

[Mr1der]

ha. I like the wheel on my EP3

nice and meaty, not too busy.

What you can't see too well is the red baseball stitching inside.

[flohtingPoint]

Fernando Alonso's steering wheel. Costs more than your car.

[Mr1der]

not a wheel, doesn't count!

ummm...flight control maybe?

[skydragoness]

I can't even post this with a straight face, looks like a ThunderCats logo at the bottom right.

[flohtingPoint]

not a wheel, doesn't count!

ummm...flight control maybe?

According to section 13.2 of the FIA Technical Regulations for Formula 1, it is =P
http://argent.fia.com/web/fia-public.ns ... 2-2011.pdf

Edit: I didn't look it up just for this (that'd be fairly douchy), I read it each year when it's released to the public.

[nissangirl74]

Nardi Wheel. I can't find my pic ATM and Bella is at Jason's but it is very similar to the one Joel posted except it has a Datsun logo instead of the Ferrari. It feels perfect when you grip it, (Also, what she said)

[AZ89two4Tsx]

BMW has always had some of my favorite steering wheels. Anything off the ///M cars, hehe.





Always feel comfortable and the perfect size imo, regardless if they're leather/alcantara.

Other than, any Nardi takes the cake for me.

[frapjap]

I'm very surprised that no one has mentioned their preference for 3 vs 4 spoke wheels. I HATE 3 spoke steering wheels.
Case in point.

I love the 4 spoke GM style from the late 80s-early 90s. The extra bumps at 10 and 2 are awesome to hold on to and fit my hands just perfectly- especially when piloting the car around the track. I can also do as Jesda suggests and rest my hands on the "pillow" where the upper two spoke converge. Most of the time when I commute or am just puttering around I rest my left arm on the arm rest and hold the wheel casually between the left spokes, usually with my thumb or fingers resting on the bottom one. On really long drives (and the reason I HATE 3 spokes) I drop my left hand and rest it on the bottom of the wheel.
With so many holes (thats what she said) there is always somewhere that your hands will have contact with the wheel.

A lot of what I described above can't be done with a typical 3 spoke. You cant rest your hands on it unless they're up high, thus not utilizing the arm rest. You can't grip it by the bottom because of a fat turd in the way. And the biggest issue I have is that a 3 spoke wheel should have the horn in the middle, NOT the side on a button. Though the above 4 spoke wheel does not have a center mounted horn, the buttons are hard to miss in a "DAMN YOU FOR CUTTING ME OFF" rage.

[mmkeller]

It may not be the best, but I would love to get my hands on one.

[Bubba1]

I'm surprised by the BMW wheel love. I find them, especially the newer ones needlesly complex. I guess I'm a traditional kinda driver, IMHO there should not be any buttons on the steering wheel except for the horn.

[flohtingPoint]

I'm surprised by the BMW wheel love. I find them, especially the newer ones needlesly complex. I guess I'm a traditional kinda driver, IMHO there should not be any buttons on the steering wheel except for the horn.

I want as many as possible. I have buttons to set telemetry equipment (gps, pedal position sensors), review laptimes/temps/speed in sectors/etc, button to set temp warning lights/shift lights, and much more.

[Bubba1]

I want as many as possible. I have buttons to set telemetry equipment (gps, pedal position sensors), review laptimes/temps/speed in sectors/etc, button to set temp warning lights/shift lights, and much more.

What's the benefit to reviewing laptimes/speed in sectors in your steering wheel while you're in the middle of driving a 60 second autocross burst?
Aren't those typically things you set up, review or change between sessions?

[flohtingPoint]

I want as many as possible. I have buttons to set telemetry equipment (gps, pedal position sensors), review laptimes/temps/speed in sectors/etc, button to set temp warning lights/shift lights, and much more.

What's the benefit to reviewing laptimes/speed in sectors in your steering wheel while you're in the middle of driving a 60 second autocross burst?
Aren't those typically things you set up, review or change between sessions?

None while driving but you review them while in grid or while staging. I'm also looking over the trail of EGT to see how I'm jetted. The buttons dont have to be on the wheel to be used while driving =P

[300ZXttZMAN]

I am a bit bias but I really do love the Z32 steering wheel designs.


(BTW this is not my interior)

The reason why I like the steering wheel is because it flows nicely with Z32's controls which are right at your finger tips mounted on the sides of the speedo.

[Jesda]

Kinda small, but feels really great in your hands.

[MinisterofDOOM]

I'm very surprised that no one has mentioned their preference for 3 vs 4 spoke wheels. I HATE 3 spoke steering wheels.

I did above.
And I agree. 3-spoke sucks.

[asoomal]

I am a bit bias but I really do love the Z32 steering wheel designs.


(BTW this is not my interior)

The reason why I like the steering wheel is because it flows nicely with Z32's controls which are right at your finger tips mounted on the sides of the speedo.

Same goes for the S13. It's a pretty good wheel.

Doesn't the "Nismo" wheel for the 350Z use a 300ZX wheel?