When I get in the car after it has been sitting in the hot sun for a few hours there are little balls of tar like substance that seems to have bled out of the seams on my steering wheel. After 10 years of owning my Bird this year is the first I've seen of this. Has anyone else experienced this?
When I get in the car after it has been sitting in the hot sun for a few hours there are little balls of tar like substance that seems to have bled out of the seams on my steering wheel. After 10 years of owning my Bird this year is the first I've seen of this. Has anyone else experienced this?
All this time I thought I had the only car that does that?!?! I don't get it from my steering wheel though it's from my shifter instead. It's black gunk, right? I don't know why it does that but when you find out let me know, I'm tired of having black marks on my hand...looks like I've been coloring with the 'special' kids all day. :tongue:
yea my mark does the same thing from the shifter. I think it's the the materials breaking down. Mine only does it if it's been sitting in the heat. I just don't want to buy another shift knob right now.
My shifter knob does the same thing. I just get a Towel and wiped it off real well.. I tryed putting water on it and rubbing it and that helped me for about a year
My 94 has never done that. I put a thick layer of armorall on every month though, shifter knob and steering wheel. It makes it a little difficult to drive, but if you put a good coat of armorall on the steering wheel every once in awhile, it shouldn't. Do all the seals too. My buddy had a 94 bird that leaked like a mother and his steering wheel "bled." Much easier to slap some armor all on the seals, steering wheel, and shifter rather than replace em...especially if they're a unique color (red).
Yes, wow, that's funny. My 92 just started doing this a few weeks ago. I thought it was the finger oil crude buildup. I didn't realize that it was oozing out from the seam.
Perch
I think that is caused by the leather (or leather like material) drying out. My wife's steering wheel did that for awhile, then the top layer of material just started flaking off. Now it's a little gross, part leather, part rubber. The shifter handle hasn't done it yet, but I always used to armor all that when I was doing the interior. I never did the steering wheel because it is dangerous. I think that either a decent leather cleaner/conditioner or the low shine, non-slippery armor all is the ticket to keep the material from drying out, then leaking.
I think that is caused by the leather (or leather like material) drying out. My wife's steering wheel did that for awhile, then the top layer of material just started flaking off. Now it's a little gross, part leather, part rubber. The shifter handle hasn't done it yet.........
NOOOooooo ... quite the OPPOSITE! In Fords 'infinate-wisdom' the leather-wrapped wheel and shift handel both got a good coating of gunky-lubrication gel before the wrap went on specifically so the leather DOESN'T DRY OUT!! Years of dirt, sweat, oil and wear from hands don't bother the leather a bit due to the constant lubrication from within. HOWEVER, when the interior of the car gets up to +160 degrees like mine does in the AZ sun the gel tends to liquify and seep out the seams.(further lubricating everything). Always keep a rag handy til the weather gets cooler. Oh, and one final warning ,,,, I would NEVER use ArmorAll on anything that I touch - that stuff can seep into the pours of your skin easier than whatever you smear it on!
My steering wheel did the same thing, and one day at the JY I found a nice leather wheel for $5, bought it and my old one went to the dump. Problem fixed, going on 3 years.
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