• Hi Guest!
    You can help ensure that British Car Forum (BCF) continues to provide a great place to engage in the British car hobby! If you find BCF a beneficial community, please consider supporting our efforts with a subscription.
    There are some perks with a member upgrade!
    **Upgrade Now**
    (PS: Subscribers don't see this gawd-aweful banner
Tips
Tips

Steering Wheel Options

Share this page

Dadandson

Dadandson

Jedi Trainee
Offline
I am looking for an alternative to the large 14" or 15" steering wheel in my 74 Midget. I would like something smaller, around 12" and in chrome. Does anyone have any first hand knowledge of such a thing? Thanks
 
That would be fine. I would like to replace the stock wheel I have now. The wheels in Moss and VB are nice but they are the same O.D. as stock.
 
Thanks.
 
It is but a little bit out of my price range. I might try to find something on eBay and machine it to fit the MG. I have made many custom parts so far, so a steering wheel mod is a possibilty. I have more time than money and owning a machine shop helps. Is a wheel from a VW close?
 
Summit has a fairly comprehensive line of Grant steering wheels in various dameters. It's what I run on the race cars.
Jeff
 

Attachments

  • 9734.jpg
    9734.jpg
    67 KB · Views: 74
You might find that a 12" makes for twitchy steering on the interstate. I prefer 13". I like Lecarra steering wheels. They use a Motolita hub. Do you have access to a broaching machine to make those little splines in the hub?
 
Could I not modify the stock hub to receive a different wheel? I do not have broach equipment but I do have 3 wire EDM machines that will cut one off splines.
 
Or modify the wheel to go on the stock hub?
 
I have a Lecarra MK4 P/N 412. I used a Motolita B-4 hub.

I'm 6'-3", 215 lbs and way less flexible than when I had a BE in college. The 14-inch Lecarra wheel is good balance between size and feel. I live about 30 miles from the Lecarra factory. Been there a couple of times. Nice folks. I bought mine three years ago for $129.95. Motolita hub was extra.

https://www.lecarra.com/mk4.shtml
 
And, Lecarra will give you a choice of colors or even use your own leather/vinyl to match your interior.
 
I just recently got a real nice 13" alum. wheel off ebay for under $50! Keep looking there, they do come up!! /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/thumbsup.gif
 

Attachments

  • 9740.jpg
    9740.jpg
    38.2 KB · Views: 73
I got this from another web site. I will not refer you there as it lights up my virus protection software. It is by Rich Wagner

Steering Wheel Modification (smaller diameter)

" In my continuing efforts to fit a large body into a very small car, I offer the following modification to the steering wheel.

Remove steering wheel. My hub wouldn't come off so I just removed the spoke attachment bolts.
Carefully remove original rubber grip material - a single edge razor blade works well.
Cut spokes off flush with rim.
Cut out section of rim to desired size. eg. to go from standard 15 to 13", cut 2 x pi or 6.3" from the rim.
Now the fun part. Reshape rim to new diameter trying to keep it as round as possible.
Shorten spokes by about one inch.
Clamp together and weld rim and spokes.
Refit grip material using 3M weather strip adhesive.
I also added a foam wheel cover to keep everything together. Advantages: cost no adapter to move the wheel even closer to your chest horn still works (well, as good as it ever did...) Next project: Modify seat backs on later cars to gain some more valuable real estate for long legs (mine is a 74 midget and the seat back cushion looks much thicker than it needs to be)"
Rich Wagner


Paul
 
Back
Top