Do steering wheels from newer model minis fit the r53 ? I been finding some absolutely amazing r56 but nooooooo r53 steering wheels. Plz chime in, thank you.....

 

Everything I’ve seen posted about this says the wheels are not interchangeable. The airbag system is different as well as the connectors.

Depending on your budget, the basic wheel is very similar and most of the cool wheels I’ve seen are custom and available for 1st or 2nd gen.

Any links to the wheels you’ve found?

 

I'm interested in this as well.

There was a Sparco quick change wheel hub that went for $40 on ebay the other day. Would have pulled the trigger, but I like my media controls too much.

Anyone have pics of a nice Gen 1 wheel that's been redone? I like the three spoke look, but the two spoke control feel better to me

 

I have an aftermarket wheel already.. there's just better r56 wheel options as far as custom wheels , like carbon fiber flat bottom wheels or ones with shiftlights built into them..
will they physically bolt on with no issue ? Idc about airbag n buttons though possibly I could splice them in

 

AFAIK, any custom R56 wheel configuration can be built with a 1st gen wheel. It’s probably just better regarding supply and demand for the vendor to pre-make R56 wheels to sell since the cars are newer, and have any 1st gen wheels made by request.

Check with NAM vendor Guardian Designs as they have great looking wheels with several options in material, thickness, shape, color, etc. for all generations of MINI. They recently introduced a shift light wheel for Mazda with an OBD II interface and smartphone app to configure it. The shift light interface seems universal so it might be able to be added to a MINI wheel too.

 

I'm looking to have a 3-spoke R53 wheel retrimmed in all alcantara, just like the one below (which was done at Royal Steering Wheels in the UK). Any idea who can do this work in the US, please? Will try Guardian Designs. Anyone else?

 

A lot of the custom wheel and upholstery items seem to have the work done in Poland, even if based or have offices somewhere else. Redline Goods has DIY custom wheel skins, padding kits, shift boots, etc. There’s an address in Delaware, but there products (some/most?) ship from Poland. Poland is also listed as the workshop location on the Guardian Designs website.

For the US, not sure if he is still around, but a guy named Colby from a BMW forum started a website/business after doing a few wheels for himself and forum members. I think Dallas Custom Steering Wheel started primarily as a Corvette specialist, but they now have wheels and interior items for several different cars, including MINI.

The first thing I look for besides the overall wrap and stitch quality is if the seams perpendicular to the rim are completely flat. A high quality wheel will have grooves in the padding for these seams to lay completely flat. Many wheels have a slight ridge on either side of the seam where the excess material is behind the wrap. IMO, this band of excess material is a missed detail and gives the wheel an aftermarket look.

 

I like that Guardian wheels has a lot of options... and has been posting to this forum quite a bit.... They like the minis and seem to have a good eye for detail...
They are based in Europe.. but they do not need your old wheel... so you don't have to worry about the shipping thing.

Contact them... they seem to be very helpful.... but know that there is no "cheap" way to do it... I've seen some horrible Chinese wheels for the mini from AliExpress... that looked great in the photos... you get what you pay for here.


https://cobywheel.com/










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I got a quote from Royal back in 2017 and the price for a wheel like this shipped back then was about 175GBP, not including any customs fees or duties. It also didn't include shipping a wheel to them for refinishing. No mention of cores or core charges in the email so this might be a problem as your car will be without a wheel for the duration of the re-trim unless you get a second wheel to send them. The turn around time was quoted at 1-2 weeks and 3 days shipping back to the US.

The Coby website mountainhorse posted above is the site I was thinking of. The quality looks similar to Royal, but that's just going by pics on the internet and not seeing either in person. You'll have to contact Coby to see if they'll do a MINI wheel and the cost, but it checks your box of staying within the US.

 

You may already be aware of the factory MINI Sport Steering Wheel shown here: https://www.pelicanparts.com/More_In...-6-769-733-BOE
It's thicker, leather covered and can accept carbon fiber spoke covers. We have one on the GP.

 

Isn’t that just the stock wheel that came on every facelift car (at least in the US)? It was stock on my car.

 

You're right...Wrong p/n. But there is a thicker, padded wheel version and that's what I've got. I'll try to find the correct p/n.

 

Are you referring to the JCW wheel? Those have been really hard to find for several years now. Occasionally a well-used example pops up for sale.

Part numbers are here.

I’ve been kicking myself for not buying a full leather version 10 years ago when they were available. The part alcantara ones seem to have been more numerous.

 

That's the one! Apparently, both the full leather and the alcantra are now NLA. So glad I have one.

 

I think that the spline size on the steering column is different between the R53 and R56.

 

i don't care about the airbag but it can be attached ? i love the r56 wheel with all black buttons and center

 

Check these guys out: http://www.dallassteeringwheel.com/sw1.htm

 

I don’t think the wheel itself will fit because of the difference posted by CRC If you only prefer controls with black buttons and trim, and not the contoured trim with indents or the slight button shape differences of the R56, you can try painting them. The faces on the buttons are already black so they would just need to be masked with small dots to keep the icons and illumination after painting.

 

So... I've had an email exchange with EuroImpulse.

They can do their Carbon-Fiber and leather, flat bottom... OR, round, thicker grip... with or without 12:00 stripe in diff colors.
They offer Alcantara, Smooth or Perforated leather... Choice of stitch color.

PLUS: They do R56 AND R53 Wheels.

$699 with one month lead time. NO Core Charge... or exchange.
$50 upcharge for Paddle Shift compatible wheel.

According to their site... all work is done in Japan.

https://euroimpulse.com/

Heres one from EuroImpulse for an Audi & VW...
They said they'd send me some pix of the R53/56 wheels this week.

Also...Saw this post from a while back...

I think "Dan" is this company on Ebay
https://www.ebay.com/itm/223197687029

I believe they can do special order on request... His business is US based...but probably does overseas work.