Steering wheel information wanted

[Coastalman]

Will a steering wheel from a '69 Sprite fit a '59 Sprite? There is a nice steering wheel on ebay that I would like to put on my BE if it would work.
Thanks,
Charlie

 

[ChrisS]

Unfortunately no, the BE has a smaller shaft / spline diameter than the later cars.

 

[tosoutherncars]

Aren't there about four different setups?

 

[RickB]

Chris would know - he is "the man" when it comes to steering wheels!

 

[tosoutherncars]

Chris, please enlighten us... I would love to put an earlier wheel on my '78, but was worried about fitment.

 

[RickB]

Duncan, that's what I wanted too.
However I found that the one I got wouldn't fit.
There are ways of taking the hub from one and adapting it to another, but machining is required.

 

[John Moore]

I bought a MKIII Banjo Wheel for my Bugeye and it fits just fine. I tired to go back and find the thread, but the steering column size did change over the years, but a MKIII will fit. The only problem is that a bugeye has a horn in the middle, whereas a MKIII had the horn on the stalk, so I'll have to rig something up. I'll try and find a photo, but it does work.

 

[John Moore]

I think mine is from a '68, but I don't remember. Here's what it looks like in my bugeye.

 

[Coastalman]

John,
Yes, that is what I want to do! Was that a straight swap?
Charlie

 

[RickB]

wrong thread - sorry

 

[John Moore]

John,
Yes, that is what I want to do! Was that a straight swap?
Charlie

Yep! I wish I could find the thread, it's somewhere in the archieves during the past year. But the BE has the same column size as the MKIII... I think. Like I said they changed from 3/4 to 7/8" and back and forth.

Like I said, the only thing that isn't a direct swap is the horm. You'll have to figure that out as the '68 wheel doesn't have a push on the middle button.

Good luck.

PS - I would ask the Ebay seller to measure the spline hole.

 

[ChrisS]

I won't argue with John since he did it but everything I've seen is that the MKI/II Sprite - MKI Midget are the smaller diameter spline. All other cars have a larger diameter spline of the same count except 1970. 1970 is an oddball. The variations on the later cars has to due with turn signal cancellation and horn pushes. Most people are just happy to get the wheel they want on the car and deal with the horn separately. Some MGB Wheels will fit as well.

 

[Trevor Jessie]

I think the 1970 Midget wheel had splines similar to MGB's of the era.