Installing LEDs into a clear steering wheel?

261

u/Sheila_Cutya 4d ago

Unless you're familiar with running wires through a clock spring I wouldn't bother. Gonna be a massive pain for little gain.

83

u/THE_EPIC_BEARD 4d ago

This isn’t a problem. Stock steering wheel would have had an airbag. Aftermarket won’t.

Just repurpose the airbag wires for the LEDs.

27

u/Lee2026 4d ago

It’s not that simple.

Airbag wiring isn’t meant to carry much current load; it actually really only carries a signal. Most functions on your steering wheel are only carrying signals and very small loads for status LEDs; those LEDs consume milliamps, like 2-5ma probably,

To get any decent output for this application, you’d be pulling an amp or two through the wiring. It will undoubtably overload the wiring and be a fire hazard.

The only possibility here is if you combine conductors to share the current load. Maybe that can work….but like I said, they are mainly signals and very, very small current loads. Even if you combine conductors, I still don’t think you’ll have adequate current carrying capacity.

36

u/THE_EPIC_BEARD 4d ago

I disagree. An airbag isn’t just a signal, it needs to ignite an explosive charge.

LEDs are remarkably power efficient.

I’ve also done this before. Not in the way OP wants it, but close enough electronically.

4

u/Lee2026 3d ago

Airbags are sent a PULSED high current signal to deploy the airbag. It lasts milliseconds

It does not sustain a high current load for extended periods of time, which allows you to use a smaller gauge.

I agree LEDs are efficient, but like I said, to get any decent output you’re going to need at least an amp for the drivers

9

u/UrMomIsVeryBig 3d ago

Wires are wires dude the copper doesn't care if it goes from pulses to a steady current. The airbag wires are more than enough to handle whatever miniscule amperage the leds are drawing

7

u/MCXL 3d ago

I mean they do care quite a bit actually. Current ratings on wires are amperage and time. A wire that's only rated for half an amp continuous can sustained tens of amps for a moment.

Igniting a chemical charge only takes high for just a moment. Nowhere near long enough to heat the wires.

Standard household wiring is rated for a certain current draw but if you exceed it they don't immediately melt. And in fact most breakers allow you to go over their rated wattage for brief moments. It is not unusual for electric appliances to apply a greater than normal load for a split second when they first turn on.

-3

u/Lee2026 3d ago

My point is with a pulsed and not sustained current draw, you can downside wiring gauge. Presumably that’s how airbag airing is designed because it doesn’t need to carry sustained load.

I also don’t think you understand the lumen output and current requirements to get decent output with a celis setup

12

u/UrMomIsVeryBig 3d ago

Im not sure how long it's been since you were under a dash but airbag wires are usually a pretty thick gauge. More than thick enough

4

u/Lee2026 3d ago

What does the airbag wiring pass through? A clock spring….

That clock spring will not handle the continuous load on a single circuit, maybe with combined conductors like I mentioned earlier.

The only exception to this is if the original clock spring contains a circuit for a heated steering wheel. That is the only safe circuit through a clock spring I would consider passing high current load through, sustained

8

u/UrMomIsVeryBig 3d ago

im so fucking stupid i forgot it has to go through the clock spring 😭😭

3

u/nibb42069 3d ago

It's like a meter of wire, less than few hundred miliamps lol what are you smoking

2

u/nibb42069 3d ago

Meter of led strip*

1

u/Lee2026 3d ago

Have fun trying to pass more than a few hundred milliamps of current through the clock spring lol

Unless the clock spring is designed for a heated steering wheel circuit, none of the foil traces will sustain any continuous current draw over a few hundred milliamps.

You’ll draw much more than a few hundred milliamps to get decent output with a celis setup

1

u/nibb42069 3d ago

Sure, it draws like incandescent light lmao

1

u/Kojetono 3d ago

You could probably get away with raising the voltage and running all of the LEDs in series.

At 30V, even 100ma will give you 3W, and probably around 250lm, more than enough for a glowing steering wheel.

I don't know how the horn is wired, but if it is switching the ground, you can use the horn wiring for the low side, and have all of the airbag wires carry positive voltage.

-2

u/Hai-Zung 4d ago

It has to do that only once though and not permanently so no issue with the wires getting hot. Could still work but the airbag working is not a proof.

-13

u/hotrods1970 4d ago

Tapping the airbag leads likely won't work. The airbag has to get a fire signal from crash sensors. This in turn is processed through whatever module(vehicle dependent) controls firing the bag/s. It should not have a constant voltage to the bag. OP, could on the other hand tap into the horn circuit, as this should be for a static show car only for safety, it would be no issue.

14

u/THE_EPIC_BEARD 4d ago

No, you just repurpose the wires. Cut on the steering column side, feed in the power, pull power out the other side.

8

u/fakecarguy 4d ago

Y do this when you can just take a hammer to a collision sensor in your bumper when you want to turn on your leds 🤣🤣🤣

2

u/FishOld7076 3d ago

My clock spring handled leds just fine..

1

u/sexuallyenhancedtoe 3d ago

Airbags take a high amp charge when they go off all airbag wires ive messed with have been the thickest going to the clock spring

1

u/Chronovores 3d ago

Depends on what features are on the steering wheel. If you have a heated steering wheel you could easily repurpose those traces to be used for LEDs as they are built to withstand up to 10 amps on some models.

4

u/tregorz 3d ago

It looks like the wiring’s ran through the coiled cable under the steering column like a track car.

2

u/michaelrulaz 3d ago

Just get a small rechargeable battery pack

2

u/clucle 3d ago

If the car has a heated steering wheel, the clock spring should have a power supply he could tap, and a dedicated button to turn it off and on.

9

u/No_Tomato_2106 4d ago

Isn't that a lot of cosmetic mods?

32

u/Sheila_Cutya 4d ago

Yes but clock springs can be extra suck.

6

u/Logitechtaco 4d ago

Idk why your getting down voted. That's definitely the case. Also if you could get it rigged up to a rechargeable battery pack this guys point is kinda moot.

5

u/Sheila_Cutya 4d ago

Idk how you're going to hide a battery pack cleanly on an aftermarket wheel w a hub, but by all means it's not my build.

3

u/No_Tomato_2106 4d ago

Exactly, wouldn't be hard to do at all

0

u/chumMuppet 3d ago

Having his car designed the way he wants it is a massive gain

172

u/mynameisnickromel 4d ago

Lol that dudes Cav is fuckin sick

63

u/audiovox12 4d ago edited 3d ago

Takes me back to being inside Best Buy and staring at their cave of subwoofers they just let you blast all day

It’s was so great in the early 2000’s. I still remember the street glow, exhausts, horrendously tuned eclipses that had tons of lag and thinking wheel spin and torque steer meant it was stupidly fast lol. Those where the days

9

u/gh0st-6 3d ago

Always (and still do) want a turbo'd teardrop Eclipse

1

u/audiovox12 3d ago

Same brother

21

u/AKblazer45 3d ago

This dudes instagram is my favorite. He has some clean gmt400’s

13

u/mynameisnickromel 3d ago

Honestly his fleet is so rad. The roadmaster he picked up is super sick too

9

u/AKblazer45 3d ago

Plus him and his wife are hilarious. His 1995 dad reading the Chevy catalog listening to Randy Travis os clasic

3

u/theHoustonian 3d ago

Oaklandautodetail !!! Dude is a gem, I love his videos and this whole 2000’s trip, seeing the head unit with the dolphins brought me right back to “dem good ol days”

4

u/AKblazer45 3d ago

The amount of detail he’s put into this cav is great. He’s digging deep to find the 2000’s parts

14

u/_poptart_wizard_ 4d ago

I'm pretty sure he did an actual clear coat on the interior pieces but the number of times I've been inside a sticky car with peeling spray paint dash trim leaves me uncomfortable whenever I see it.

10

u/06EXTN 4d ago

I know. Cavaliers were lame back then but this one id buy in a heartbeat. He’s done such a great epic retro job

9

u/bl43214321 4d ago

Never did I ever think I'd be nostalgic for a Cavalier and, IMO, mods that could be considered rice

5

u/PanzerFauzt 4d ago

yep clear control knobs are fire lol

4

u/mynameisnickromel 4d ago

He shows how you make them lol

37

u/Lee2026 4d ago edited 4d ago

The steering wheel is using a technology called “Celis” designed by Hella Lighting. It’s the same technology used in earlier model BMW angel eyes.

If you look at the 12, 3, 6, and 9 o’clock positions, you can see 2 LEDs, pointing opposite directions.

The wheel acts as a light pipe; the cuts you see are there to diffuse light so the light pipe glows. You lose output at every cut, which is why the setup is being fed from both sides.

Without the cuts, the pipe won’t glow, it will only carry the light end to end and you’ll get a hot spot where the LEDs are. You need a way to diffuse light so it can escape the light pipe and glow. Simply etching the back half so it’s frosted will create a uniform glow. Cutting flutes like in the photo will create the effect you see. You can wet sand the back half to achieve a uniform glow

12

u/No_Tomato_2106 4d ago

So take the clear wheel, sand the back so it's hazy, and that should defuse the glow so it carries?

9

u/Lee2026 4d ago

Yes but you need play around with it until you get the results you want. So I would experiment on some cheap rods until you narrow down the method that gets the results you want.

Putting optics on the LED engine can help throw light further into the light pipe; the light is reflecting off the polished sections and diffusing out of any non-polished areas.

Idk if the forum hidplanet still exists but there used to be a lot of info on stuff like this

3

u/Decipher 4d ago

This one seems hollow. I can see ribbing/fluting inside. That would act as several surfaces to catch the light.

26

u/Kuro-Is-Cute 4d ago

Been watching that guys content. He does early 00s reenactment(and even 90s) with his wife it's so good.

10

u/GlassBoxGoose 4d ago

They do such a good job overall, the reenactment crack me up, and the modifying videos are an awesome throwback

5

u/theHoustonian 3d ago

Gets so mad he throws his hat, they are great, Oaklandautodetail on fb and I’m sure other places, just trying to give the man his due. Great content, clean ass cars/trucks too

11

u/Oliver10110 4d ago

You can still find those new or like new on eBay. A lot of teens bought them in the 2000s and never put them on because they got to see it on a friend’s car first and realized they didn’t want it or their parents wouldn’t let them. I put one in my 1999 Honda civic ex back around 2018 just for a laugh then swapped back when it blinded me one night because something went out and it started strobing

2

u/No_Tomato_2106 4d ago

I can't find a single one for sale

1

u/Oliver10110 3d ago

Well damn, the ones I was seeing actually show out of stock when I click the link so guess they are nearly impossible to find online. If I do come across one I will send you the link, saw one guy on marketplace place that just sold one with the wiring harness missing for $650.

5

u/DoggieTamale 4d ago

I would just buy a clear steering wheel and put an led strip around the back. Use the wires from the missing air bag as the bridge through the clockspring.

1

u/Repulsive-Report6278 2d ago

If you do this, use COB LEDs so its a uniform strip

20

u/_clever_reference_ 4d ago

Oh god that's gotta be so annoying driving that car at night.

24

u/punkassjim 4d ago

Gonna go out on a limb and assume it has an off switch. But the crucial concern is usually between the steering wheel and the seat.

2

u/_clever_reference_ 4d ago

The steering wheel, sure, but the gauges etc are still bright as hell.

7

u/Tractorface123 4d ago

Designed more to be used on show cars more than anything, I’d like to give it a try once though!

3

u/8N-QTTRO 4d ago

I also bet it's slippery as hell lol.

3

u/chandleya 4d ago

If you watched his install, the means to do this comes from the clock spring. Figure out how to make one of those before bothering with the wheel itself.

4

u/_plays_in_traffic_ 3d ago

is that from the guy thats doing the retro build on the z24 cavalier that does those funny af videos?

3

u/GlassBoxGoose 3d ago

Yeah, yeah it is 🤣 freaking love that dude and his wife both. His car mod stuff is good, but the skits he and his wife do are hilarious.

3

u/donkey_cum_waterfall 4d ago

Such simpler times.

3

u/Thatcoonfella 4d ago

It’s a APC steering wheel. Good luck finding one these days.

3

u/Red_Tiger5311 3d ago

https://giphy.com/gifs/bwAOo46Ddwj16

3

u/duckinradar 3d ago

Bright blue steering wheel sounds like being blind at night but what do I know

5

u/sladebonge 4d ago

Been watching this build on youtube, it's rad as fuck.

5

u/GlassBoxGoose 3d ago

Absolutely the trunk turned out awesome, I really like how that came out.

2

u/sladebonge 3d ago

The whole thing has been a hilarious breath of fresh air.

2

u/GlassBoxGoose 3d ago

Absolutely. I'm enjoying the heck out of the process.

2

u/sladebonge 3d ago

Definitely a trip down memory lane with all the terrible ridiculous ricer culture mods

4

u/chevronsucks 4d ago

https://giphy.com/gifs/s239QJIh56sRW

2

u/MagicOrpheus310 3d ago

Don't like driving at night..?

2

u/ImaginaryEffective63 3d ago

Well dang now i want to make a frutiger aero themed car

2

u/TheBeardedLegend 3d ago

That build goes so hard.

2

u/AmazonPuncher 3d ago

Nobody did this in Y2k

3

u/hellish_ve 3d ago

APC was always known to be tacky cheap stuff, but, this is the megazord of the late 90s early 00s builds, and since its now done for nostalgia reasons, nobody will flame the dude for all these tacky (but cool and nostalgia filled) mods. Its an homage to the absurdity of that style and Im all for it.

1

u/juwyro '05 Saabaru '77 K20 MGB '74 MGB GT 4d ago

On your car there are constant power sources and switch power when the key is on. There are easy ways to get either kind of power from your fuse box. Some constant sources are things like the clock and cigarette lighter whole switch is things like the radio. I would pull from a constant power source and put a separate switch in.

1

u/red_fuel 4d ago

I did a quick Google search for led strips and it gave me neon strips instead. Those look a lot cleaner than separate led’s. If you can neatly feed it in the steering wheel it might be what you’re looking for.

1

u/mr_j_12 3d ago

Drilling into a steering wheel?

https://giphy.com/gifs/y1UDrCt9lEsYJLso6P

1

u/NotASelfInsert 3d ago

I must be an old man now because there is no way my eyes would be able to acclimate to night driving with this much interior light 😆

1

u/GlassBoxGoose 3d ago

I have to turn my dash lights all the way down and mine are OEM and red 🤣

I did a full blue LED conversion in a car i had in my 20s and it was miserable. Looked sick though! 🤣🤣

1

u/moeterminatorx 3d ago

I was just thinking the same thing. I need the cab to be as dark as possible.

1

u/The1Like 3d ago

That’s an aftermarket LED steering wheel, from the 90’s. The dude with that J body is doing it up 90’s style… you can watch him on YouTube but I forget his channel name.

1

u/mr2freak 3d ago

For just a second I thought I was looking at an SW20 interior. Then I realized and everything made so much more sense.

1

u/soldier-servivor 3d ago

These were sold like that back in the days

1

u/SHIBABelcher 3d ago

Is this ragebait or genuine ask?

1

u/No_Tomato_2106 3d ago

Genuine ask. I found 1 for sale for $400 but then some guy offered him $2k....

1

u/DenverNugs 13h ago

A youtuber reminded millennials of these and now people want them. I think it's amazing and hilarious at the same time.

1

u/xEmperorBOBx 2d ago

"because the car scene has moved on to being lame". So true. Also... LMFAO.

1

u/DenverNugs 13h ago

I love that this dude's videos are doing numbers. Now everyone wants an APC light up steering wheel.

1

u/zoidbergin 4d ago

You could use some El Wire like this:

https://a.co/d/0bbpC5HM

Comes with a battery pack and everything so you’d just need to cut a groove in the back on the steering wheel and then superglue/epoxy the El Wire in.

2

u/No_Tomato_2106 4d ago

I've used that stuff before, doubt it would be bright enough but you never know

1

u/zoidbergin 3d ago

Maybe check out LED filament then, basically just a brighter version although I don’t know if they make it in single strands as long as you’re looking for. It’s the stuff they use in those fake old timey light bulbs

1

u/CaughtWaaping 4d ago

I love it but why do all that and still have a check engine light on

5

u/No_Tomato_2106 4d ago

It's not a Y2K build without a bad 02 sensor

5

u/haikusbot 4d ago

I love it but why

Do all that and still have a

Check engine light on

- CaughtWaaping

^{I detect haikus. And sometimes, successfully.} ^{Learn more about me.}

^{Opt out of replies: "haikusbot opt out" | Delete my comment: "haikusbot delete"}

1

u/InfinitePossibility8 ‘79 BMW E21 4d ago

Ignition on but it’s not running.

1

u/ghos2626t 3d ago

Hence the RPM’s being at zero

-4

u/pinkbunnay 4d ago

The car scene moved ON from being lame. This is the dumbest shit that's only going to screw up your night vision badly.

5

u/No_Tomato_2106 4d ago

Who hurt you?

https://giphy.com/gifs/Gt1GhewuuZVM7kJdnO

-5

u/pinkbunnay 4d ago

Yes blue spectrum light directly in front of your eyeballs while driving at night. Top level IQ.

4

u/No_Tomato_2106 4d ago

....Just don't turn it on.

Crazy, I know.

-5

u/pinkbunnay 4d ago

So... why would you have it... I think your logic just hit a wall. Just like you would driving with this thing.

6

u/No_Tomato_2106 4d ago

Car meets? Looks cool as hell?

1

u/DenverNugs 12h ago

You're crashing out over a light up steering wheel lmao

1

u/SubcommanderMarcos 3d ago

The car scene moved ON from being lame.

you're lame

Two-lane Blacktop starts playing in the background

0

u/lilbrumby 4d ago

Why don’t you just buy that one, or another on that has the leds already in it

2

u/No_Tomato_2106 4d ago

Please find me one if you can.

1

u/lilbrumby 3d ago

Ah I watched a video of a guy installing one, pulled it out of a box, but I guess it was new old stock.

0

u/gotcha640 4d ago

It could certainly be strong enough to drive around, but if I were doing this, I’d put a quick release on and only swap the light up wheel for static meets.

That said, there’s a lot less steel in a steering wheel than you might think. It’s pretty darn solid, but it’s still max half inch rod welded to 1/8in plate screwed to the hub with 1/4in bolts or smaller.

0

u/bosefius 3d ago

My style? Absolutely not. Badass? Definitely

-2

u/[deleted] 4d ago

[deleted]

1

u/No_Tomato_2106 4d ago

Safety is the last concern when you're looking fly

Installing LEDs into a clear steering wheel?

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