Benefits of smaller/larger steering wheel diameter?
 

Beyond driver fitment, what are the benefits/drawbacks of a larger or smaller steering wheel diameter? I'm sure it has something to do with the % rotation of the steering wheel with respect to the degree the wheels turn, but I'm not sure of the actual relationship. Beyond that, for tracking, is it worth it to change this? To be clear, not racing, as I BELIEVE removable steering wheels would be required in some if not nearly all classes, but just for HPDEs and Open Lapping. Furthermore, this question is not asked with respect to the money being spent elsewhere that it might do more good. I'm too poor to buy much of anything, even my engine rebuild, so I won't be wasting it on something made by MOMO or OMP or whatever. For whatever reason, this just got into my head in the past few days, and I lack the understanding of physics to work it out myself (Yeah, C- !).

Re: Benefits of smaller/larger steering wheel diameter? (sscguy)
 

i got my sparco for $169........i dunno how much cheaper you expect to find and still get something decent.

Re: Benefits of smaller/larger steering wheel diameter? (sscguy)
 

The steering wheel will turn the same amount of per cent with a lowrider chrome chain steering wheel as it will with an OEM wheel and the same amount with a boat tiller for any given angle at the front wheels. I think the main benefit of aftermarket wheels is that they provide a grippier surface, such as suede.

One might have a higher steering effort with a smaller wheel and a smaller ability to "fine tune" the line.

I've never heard of removable wheels being required in production car based racing, and I've seen many a race car with an OEM wheel with it's airbag contents gutted out.

Re: Benefits of smaller/larger steering wheel diameter? (sscguy)
 

A smaller wheel quickens the ratio at the wheel somewhat in that for any given input your hands travel a shorter circular distance. The smaller the wheel the greater the effect. You'll especially feel the difference in small to medium inputs under 1/2 turn of the wheel. The only downside is that it increases the steeing effort. No biggie and can even be a plus with p/s but on manual racks too small of a wheel can become an issue. 325-350mm is a decent size, imo. Most stock wheels are 375-400mm

I bought a used grant wheel (13" I think) on ebay for $10, and I love it!
giant improvement over stock diameter

One time I sat in a car that has Momo Team steering wheel, I believe it is 280mm? Man that thing is really small.

Methinks that the steering might get too sensitive at such small radius.

Re: Benefits of smaller/larger steering wheel diameter? (Mike P.)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Mike P. &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">The steering wheel will turn the same amount of per cent with a lowrider chrome chain steering wheel as it will with an OEM wheel </TD></TR></TABLE>

I thought those were to help with driving in hand cuffs. https://honda-tech.com/forums/images...s/emsmilep.gif

Re: Benefits of smaller/larger steering wheel diameter? (jsi)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by jsi &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">A smaller wheel quickens the ratio at the wheel somewhat in that for any given input your hands travel a shorter circular distance. The smaller the wheel the greater the effect. You'll especially feel the difference in small to medium inputs under 1/2 turn of the wheel. The only downside is that it increases the steeing effort. No biggie and can even be a plus with p/s but on manual racks too small of a wheel can become an issue. 325-350mm is a decent size, imo. Most stock wheels are 375-400mm</TD></TR></TABLE>This is precisely why I bought my 350mm wheel, and precisely the effect I have observed during smaller movements. Still have to flail at my car's 400 turns lock-to-lock steering rack, but the flailing happens within a smaller region of space. No more skinning my knuckles on the sunroof tracks when recovering from a slide. https://honda-tech.com/forums/images...es/emsmile.gif

Re: Benefits of smaller/larger steering wheel diameter? (sscguy)
 

To reiterate what has been said...

A smaller steering wheel does not change the number of turns lock-to-lock.

A smaller steering wheel does change the distance your hand moves while going lock-to-lock (or any smaller movement for that matter). It also changes the amount of effort required to steer the car (small steering wheel, wide tires, and no power steering can be fatiguing).

Re: Benefits of smaller/larger steering wheel diameter? (Crack Monkey)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Crack Monkey &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">...(small steering wheel, wide tires, and no power steering can be fatiguing).</TD></TR></TABLE>

time to hit the gym Al... https://honda-tech.com/forums/images...es/emsmile.gif

Re: Benefits of smaller/larger steering wheel diameter? (SJR)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by SJR &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">time to hit the gym Al... https://honda-tech.com/forums/images...es/emsmile.gif</TD></TR></TABLE>

Har Har Har.

On the track, it's not an issue. But trying to parallel park the old RX-7 on Kumhos with a tiny wheel was a PITA - especially strapped into a bucket seat.

Re: Benefits of smaller/larger steering wheel diameter? (Crack Monkey)
 

that just brought a funny visual: getting your driver's license in the SR7, and trying to parallel park it, while straining to hear the trooper's comments over the exhaust.

thing is, how often did you have to parallel park the race car?

Re: Benefits of smaller/larger steering wheel diameter? (SJR)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by SJR &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">that just brought a funny visual: getting your driver's license in the SR7, and trying to parallel park it, while straining to hear the trooper's comments over the exhaust.

thing is, how often did you have to parallel park the race car?</TD></TR></TABLE>

Me? Quite often, since I used it on the street.

Normal people? Never, unless VIR is raelly crowded.

Re: Benefits of smaller/larger steering wheel diameter? (sscguy)
 

I picked up a 320mm Momo Thunder from LTB on clearance for $120 and absolutely love it. A sparco 50mm extension from Curpier makes it even better.
My car does not have PS and I drive it/park it daily. It does take a little getting used to, but nothing too bad.
It is worth mentioning, however, that the #1 reason I changed the wheel , is that my long legs simply didnt fit in the car without a smaller one. While I love the wheel, if I fit well in the car with the stock one, I probably wouldnt have changed it.

One thing to consider is the loss of airbags on a street driven vehicle and how that affects saftey and street legality.

Re: (Nova_Dust)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Nova_Dust &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">One time I sat in a car that has Momo Team steering wheel, I believe it is 280mm? Man that thing is really small.

Methinks that the steering might get too sensitive at such small radius. </TD></TR></TABLE>hahaa, thats what I bought first, it was like 11"dia !!!! returned it for a 320mm momo and its much better.

compared to stock it requires more effort but I like the momo's stiffness, it gives much better feedback.

Cheap Wheel
 

Someone else mentioned Grant Wheels, I've got on that I bought new at the local roundy-round shop for $40 including adapter. It's a little smaller than stock but more importantly it's MUCH stiffer. I never realized how flexible the stock steering wheel was. It's Grant Part Number 338, the Classic Wheel. It's the same one we have in the Legends Car. You can get it from any distributor that get stuff from Keystone Automotive.

Re: Cheap Wheel (STS_Underdog)
 

haha, I bought a grant steering wheel when I had my 86 nissan sentra stationwagon! I couldnt believe that they would make an adapter for that car, although it did apply to several other nissans, but all old models. It was a great steering wheel though. Those have got to be the cheapest thing, and you can get the ones with flames and all that weird sh*t!

Re: Benefits of smaller/larger steering wheel diameter? (sscguy)
 

I simply cannot believe this -I've driven my 33 year old car with the larger steering wheel and a '99 vehicle with a much smaller steering wheel - it has to be cranked at least 1 1/2 times as far as the old size to get the same amount of turn.

You just bumped a 9-year-old thread to argue a previous comment. Hilarious


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Re: Benefits of smaller/larger steering wheel diameter?
 

ftfy

Re: Benefits of smaller/larger steering wheel diameter?
 

I actually got a 280mm steering wheel and after getting used to it, I kind of miss it after switching to a larger woodgrain wheel. And it was way lighter to carry around. The handling was a little akward but after u get used to how small the rotations ur arm makes it was quite funny. To drive. Almost like a go kart feel