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Thanks so much for sharing your pictures and feedback! We strive to make our wheels perfect and really appreciate your kind words.
I couldn't find out how to ask via private messaging ... Maybe it's disabled for new users? Anyway, I would like to know if I can share your pictures on our Instagram!
Anders @ GD
please feel free to use the picture and quotes for your Instagram!
I have my previous heated steering wheel from '17 SVR available in the market place if anyone is looking for a donor to get redesigned vs. sending their current one in. It's located in USA currently.
SOOO.... I finally after a 4 day dispute with US Customs (as their 3rd party broker set a really high value on the steering wheel which cause it to be held up), received my new custom made steering wheel from Guardian Designs. I sure did learn a ton of stuff in this process.
First, make sure to triple check with them the steering wheel is from the exact same make and model version of your F-Type. The wheel they sent me must have come from an earlier model and as a result and 3 failed install attempts, I had to switch over the steering wheel wiring harness, buttons and ultimately the rear clock spring retaining ring that sits on the back of the actual steering wheel (or whatever you call that piece). While the wheel itself looks great and was made very well, the installation of this was not very user friendly as I believe the donor wheel they used came from an earlier model.
In addition to the above mentioned items (which were troubleshot one by one as a new issue would come up each time I put the steering wheel and airbag back together to test, I had an issue with a loose wire inside the actual connection that cause a manual gear box disabled issue that took me a while to troubleshoot. The steering wheel picture above this post is what my stock buttons looked like and where the alignment marks where on my stock wheel, but the donor wheel they used had them in a different spot. Luckily I was able to swap the parts over from the other wheel so I think it should be fine, but I believe the install would have been much easier had the donor wheel been from the same model year or VIN range.
All said and done, everything was finally transplanted over from my original wheel and things seem to be working, but this was a very frustration experience and not one I would recommend doing or would I do again if I had the chance to.
I would also add, getting a different year wheel, means the markings that help you align your steering wheel on the column centered do not line up, so you if you find yourself in this situation, you need to be very careful to line things up exactly as you took off the old wheel.
Can you do additional sculpting prior to the new wrap? I'd send you my flat bottom wheel to ensure there are no compatibility issues with a replacement. I'd be looking for something similar to this with perforated sides but no carbon.
Originally Posted by Anders-GD
Yep, it can be done by yourself.
You can send in your wheel in advance if you wish, it's also possible to return it after you got your new wheel.
We will do our best to prevent the issue with wiring and buttons happening again.
Originally Posted by TH3FRB
Can you do additional sculpting prior to the new wrap? I'd send you my flat bottom wheel to ensure there are no compatibility issues with a replacement. I'd be looking for something similar to this with perforated sides but no carbon.
If the wheel is without heating me may do some sculpting, but I'm sorry to say the one you showed is not our style, it's too much.
We do flat bottoms, flat tops, reduced diameter, oval rim shapes, thumb rests, embroidery, and we can change the placement and angle of seams.
We just released two new options, punched nappa/Alcantara with colored background and side cutouts.
Here you can see both of those on a ND Miata wheel: https://forum.miata.net/vb/showpost....postcount=1735
Anders @ GD
Last edited by Anders-GD; Nov 26, 2020 at 05:14 PM.
Thanks to this thread, I ordered a new steering wheel for my F-Type, and have received the pre-shipping photos below. My F-Type is a white R, so I opted for standard and perforated leather with white X stitching and no accents.
I also asked them to recover my XJR steering wheels. The first is a 2004 X350. The style is the same as the factory wheel was:
And for my 2016. The car has red stitching on the instrument panel, and red panels on the seats, so I asked for red X stitching on the wheel to match, with perforated leather on the outer ring.
With Brexit + Covid 2.0 + Christmas + Kent basically being used as a giant freight depot at the moment I'm not sure when I'll get to fit them, but from the photos they look really good.
Thank you NJ68, and others for recommending Guardian Designs - I would not have found out about them without this thread.
Brexit meant it took nearly two months for the parcel to clear UK customs. I've fitted the X351 XJ wheel here, X350 wheel here and here is the F-Type one:
I'm really happy with the quality and fit. I was unsure about the carbon fibre trims (hydro-dipped) but they're growing on me so I'll run with them for a bit. I can always switch back to grey if the shininess distracts me. I suppose I could always recoat them with a matt lacquer so they match the OEM dash trims.
SOOO.... I finally after a 4 day dispute with US Customs (as their 3rd party broker set a really high value on the steering wheel which cause it to be held up), received my new custom made steering wheel from Guardian Designs. I sure did learn a ton of stuff in this process.
First, make sure to triple check with them the steering wheel is from the exact same make and model version of your F-Type. The wheel they sent me must have come from an earlier model and as a result and 3 failed install attempts, I had to switch over the steering wheel wiring harness, buttons and ultimately the rear clock spring retaining ring that sits on the back of the actual steering wheel (or whatever you call that piece). While the wheel itself looks great and was made very well, the installation of this was not very user friendly as I believe the donor wheel they used came from an earlier model.
In addition to the above mentioned items (which were troubleshot one by one as a new issue would come up each time I put the steering wheel and airbag back together to test, I had an issue with a loose wire inside the actual connection that cause a manual gear box disabled issue that took me a while to troubleshoot. The steering wheel picture above this post is what my stock buttons looked like and where the alignment marks where on my stock wheel, but the donor wheel they used had them in a different spot. Luckily I was able to swap the parts over from the other wheel so I think it should be fine, but I believe the install would have been much easier had the donor wheel been from the same model year or VIN range.
All said and done, everything was finally transplanted over from my original wheel and things seem to be working, but this was a very frustration experience and not one I would recommend doing or would I do again if I had the chance to.
I would also add, getting a different year wheel, means the markings that help you align your steering wheel on the column centered do not line up, so you if you find yourself in this situation, you need to be very careful to line things up exactly as you took off the old wheel.
So just a note relative to the installation of my wheel. Th left side button supplied with the wheel did not function and the dealer swapped in my old damaged button and it worked. The issue with my original wheel was that it had the sticky issue and the bezels and buttons were damaged by the previous owner trying to clean them.
This was one of the driving factors with having guardian supply me a new wheel. Overall the guardian option was cheaper and better looking then replacing just the parts that were damaged.
I did have to buy a new left side button cluster and have it installed.
Also a couple of things to note that when I was looking up the part numbers for the buttons (check right side part numbers are different for non-heated wheels) That it appears the replacement button part numbers are the same from 2014 to at least 2019-20 MY's They also redesigned the buttons the newer buttons react faster when touched and they have a angled rocker feature molded into them vs the 2014 and some 2015 flat buttons. So I tend not to think its switch related unless the switch is broken.
I don't have an answer for some of the incompatibility issues that some people may have experienced other then that maybe the pin outs on the harnesses have been changed and or it is related to programming after the install.
I have heard varying talk about programming being needed or not after a wheel swap. or I do wonder if a right hand drive wheel vs left hand drive wheel might be an issue when swapping?
I tend to lean towards the programming being required in some cases due to the part numbers for the replacement switches from 2014 to 2020 all being the same per wheel option.
The switch that did not function with the wheel guardian supplied looked brand new and I see no reason why it should not have functioned. It may have just been damaged.
Guardian was very helpful and supportive. I would not hesitate in buying another wheel from them. I hope this helps anyone that may be looking to change wheels.
So I've been in touch about getting a replacement wheel for my 2017 F-Type R, but it looks like it'll be a few weeks before they have a flat bottom heated wheel in stock. Apologies if either of these questions have already been answered but I've read through the entire thread and I'm still unsure.
1) Does the price quoted on the website include a core charge? IE, am I expected to send them my stock wheel when I'm finished swapping it or do I keep it?
2) For anyone who's done red stitching, which color most closely matches the stock red stitching in the F-Type interior? Their website lists 4 shades of red (Bentley, Ruby, Ferrari, Fluorescent), and I don't want the stitching to stick out like a sore thumb compared to the rest of my interior. I'm sort of considering just going with black stitching for this reason, but that seems sort pf understated when spending $1k on an aftermarket wheel so I'm torn.
