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How to Install a Wheelskin over steering wheels that have those hand-grip bumps at 10 and 2: Since the mid to late 80's, I think, Pontiac and a few other companies have been making sport style steering wheels with thicker sections at about 10 and 2 o-clock on the rim. These are interesting, and give a driver a nice thick section of wheel to hold in the correct position for good driving habits and control (don't get me started on people that lean to the middle of the seat, and steer with one finger...the first tire blowout they have will be their last!). A problem this type of wheel creates is how to cover it correctly with a Wheelskin (or any other leather cover). Nobody I know makes a leather cover cut to fit this perfectly, but here at DC CarCare and at Wheelskins, we have dealt with this, and here is the best advice: SOLUTION ONE: Be sure to let us know if you are ordering a wheel cover for a steering wheel with these bumps. We will need the dimensions of the wheel at the thickest point (the bumps) and the "normal" grip circumference too, along with the overall diameter of the wheel. We can special order your cover from Wheelskins with a request for especially "stretchy" leather. We then size the cover to fit the bulk of the wheel, and usually the leather will stretch to cover the bumps, maybe with a bit of a gap at those points. Another way to help the installation is to wet the back side of the leather cover where those bumps are with water. You can also use a product available at most shoe stores/shoe repair shops called "shoe stretch". This is a chemical that can help soften leather in shoes (and Wheelskins). Then stitch up the cover as usual, taking care to pull the seams on the bumps together a bit more than you normally would. Using the Baseball Stitch helps, because you have two strings to pull tight instead of just one. SOLUTION TWO: This was suggested by one of our inventive customers. "Bob" has a Pontiac Sunfire with the bumps at ten and two o'clock. We ordered him a "stretchy" cover, but he went one step farther. I'll let him explain: "The baseball stitch worked well as I could pull it very tight and it locked previous stitches as I went along. I did shave down the bumps at 10 and 2. I used a 'microplane' and sandpaper." This may be a bit extreme, and it has the disadvantage of you never being able to just take off the Wheelskin and go back to the stock wheel without it looking bad. ALSO, I believe Bob's wheel was all vinyl, and not covered with leather at the factory. Cutting down the bumps of a factory leather covered wheel will be a bit messy, and you must keep a Wheelskin on at all times. This is not a problem for many people, but for those that are using a Wheelskin to protect a perfect leather wheel for the future, cutting on the bumps won't be an option. This installation (shown in the picture above with the Wheelskin on it, click on the thumbnail to get a bigger image) is VERY neat, preserves most of the 10-2 bump look and feel, and helps the seam close up completely where the bumps are. GREAT work Bob, and thanks for sharing this with us.
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