I’ve never had a tech gouge my wheel. I have to worry more about my wife and her rings scratching the wheel than a tech and she has done it before.

As for wood steering wheels I love them in luxury cars, they feel so nice and solid and don’t age like leather steering wheels where they get somewhat shiny over time with the oils for your hands. I would have loved for my X7 to have a wood steering wheel.

 

African Zebra wood, my speakers are Von Schweikert vr5s. They sound exceptional, I have them vertically amped on four MC501s and an audio research preamp. Utter overkill sure......but man does it put you in a trance

 

So you're the one responsible for brown outs. No such thing as too much amp, those speakers are absolutely beautiful don't think zebra wood is banned just rare and expensive. Lexus won't be using it any time soon.

 

Thank you! They are very enjoyable and absolutely were worth it.

Yeah they do take a decent amount of power.....they have their own sub panel and power conditioner and may or may not nearly max out a 30 amp line lol!

I actually didn't know the wood was still legal but expensive, I did want to have some custom 1911 grips and knife panels made but thought I simply couldn't get it anymore. Good to know I may have a way to do it, thanks!

It would be awesome if Lexus allowed us to pick exotic wood like Bentley/Rolls does if you max out a LS or LC. The possibility would be endless

 

maybe was an engineering decision. Constant heat from the inside might cause expansion and cracks.

 

Yes, it’s not appreciated in everyday cars so Lexus might as well save some money.

However Lexus still thinks it’s a signature to
differentiate their higher spec cars :

 

not hard to grip at all. the heavy gloss / lacquer finish is very grippy.

however, i can't stand wood on steering wheels. it's not soft. it's cold if the wheel can't heat it. i can't stand the transition from wood to leather if it has both. But yes, it does look nice, but old school.

 

The wheel in my LS430 is in perfect condition. The steering wheel size is wayyyyyyy dated and large but the wood is gorgeous, still shines like only Lexus wood did back in those days. No cracks no nothing, garage kept.

LX has a nice, more modern and very thick wheel. I like that a lot but the wood isn't as nice. Not a lot of cars had wood better than an LS430 to be fair.

 

I always love how the interior of SC430 wood looks...i think it's birds eye maple or walnut 🥰

 

Yep, that was also early 2000s era.

Even the ES had a pretty much stunning interior then.

The wood in my LS430 still glows. It's way better than the wood in the LX. Not even close. And LX quality wood is great, it's just the LS430 had just that nice of wood.

 

Its just a non issue.

No issue gripping the wood portion of the wheel.

 

Does your S-Class have it? Or is it more sporty?

 

No it has it. Its an option but most of them have it. There acrually was one at one dealer that was magnetite black and RWD which I liked, but I passed on it specifically because it didnt have the wood/leather wheel.

 

Of course not when dry, but have you tried it in damp or wet conditions?

 

It might (?) just be the light-angle reflection, but in that view, to me, seems like one is looking more at a clear covering on the wheel-rim than actual wood underneath it.

Also, though there isn't enough detail in the photo through the windshield for a precise ID, in general, that looks like the split-divide stretch of 270 north of Clarksburg, although that stretch usually has more traffic on it.