Now that delivery of our 1st Editions is getting close, I'm wondering how hard it will be preventing the white leather steering wheel from becoming permanently discolored. Aside from dirt transfer which can reasonably be controlled, I'm wondering how fast & easy the white leather may discolor just from oxidation (sun, dust, age, etc.) or any normal hand lotions that you may use. I keep my cars for many years, so the last thing I want to see is a permanently discolored wheel that looks bad. The fact that white leather turns yellow over time isn't good, but I'm wondering with care how many years I could get out of it before it's noticeably yellow.
Anyone ever had to care for white leather in the past? ...and if so, any recommendations on products you found that work well for hindering oxidation or hand cream absorption?
I'm thinking you could cover it if gets bad enough, but no one wants to do that....and covering it early in it's life will probably just accelerate discoloration differences between covered and uncovered areas. It may not even be possible to cover without affecting 'hand on wheel' detection.
I'm also wondering how UV stable the white plastic will be on the interior trim parts so that they don't yellow either. I'm sure VW has tried their best but does anyone have any other VW vehicle references where white trim was used?
I would start by having a windshield sun screen on day 1 and use it always. May consider doing some window tinting w/98% UV protection. That should at least mitigate the yellowing effect.
I would have ordered a 1st edition, except for all the white touch points. Baffles me why that wasn't an option. I went with the regular RWD Pro instead.
Years ago I had a car with white leather seats, and keeping them looking clean was tough. They picked up blue dye from a pair of jeans pretty easy, for example. Darker color leather would pick up the dye just the same - it is just harder to see.
I really don't like white trim in the car (never had one). Just try using armor all wipes on you car steering wheel --- you would be amazed how dirty it is afterwards.
You won't know until you try. I can make the observation that they now make gloves that are designed to work with touchscreens (like a smartphone). I am not sure what it is that they do to make this work, but if your regular gloves are giving you trouble, then perhaps a pair of smartphone gloves would do the trick.
That damn white steering wheel forced me to change my FE reservation in September. Given a second opportunity, I said what the hell. Guess I’ll keep wipes in the car and get some driving mittens or something.
My BMW i3 had a white steering wheel and I just wiped it down every once in a while with a high quality interior cleaner. I'm a fan of Chemical Guys Inner Clean quick detailer and protectant. Did that for 10's of thousands of miles and the steering wheel never looked anything less than new.
You should be wiping down a black interior just as much as a white one. (Ideally, monthly) Black steering wheels that are glossy mean they've never been cleaned - the wheel should be matte. Getting a black interior over white because of dirt concerns just says "I don't clean my interior, and I don't want to clean my interior."
Well it finally happened. Since I was a teenager, I have had a habit of writing notes on my palm. today I did so and got Blue ink on the white steering wheel. Fortunately I can report that a little rubbing alcohol on a cotton swab cleaned it right off. Followed up with Lexol and good as new.
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