Just picked up a 2011 C4S cab. I love the car, but i've got a question about the heated steering wheel. Anyone think it feels wimpy? I've had heated wheels in other vehicles, and this one seems pretty weak. When I've tried switching it on, I can BARELY feel it. I've tried leaving it on for awhile to see if it just takes longer to heat up, but it actually seems to be the opposite... it seems to start to heat up only in the 3 and 9 positions and then fade to pretty much nothing after 5 minutes or so.

Just wondered what others think about their heated steering wheels before i head to the dealer.

Thanks for any responses.

Cheers

Ross

 

I thought that by 'weak' you meant out of place for a sports car. In cold climates, in particular, people rarely drive this car in the winter, and if they do they wear gloves - a much better option. But no... you used 'weak' literally, you think it's not hot enough... The last thing a sports car driver wants is a steering wheel on fire.

The road to the GT-erization of the 911 is almost completed. You should wait for the 991 that's your lounge car on wheels and it actually looks like a 911...

 

Let me explain, since you're clearly scoffing at my heated wheel. I live in Northern Canada. We get at most eight weeks of great weather. 6 months of the year we have a real winter. The remainder of the year is inclement and unpredictable cold temps... temps that most of the world would consider unbearable but to us is just another day. And no, even though I have in the past driven AWD performance cars in the winter up here with appropriate tires, I do not plan on hammering through snowbanks with my 997.

That said, because of our short summers, the vast majority of our driving is in cold, crappy weather. I don't see anything MORE wrong with having a heated wheel than I do having a defroster, a cabin heater, or even heated/cooled seats, let alone air conditioning.

But hey, thanks for your very useful response.

Cheers

Ross

 

The point I made is that a heating steering wheel is not going to do much in your climate, where a good pair of gloves would do a better job. I am told that the 997 heated steering wheels do heat up and feel warm in lower latitudes. I doubt they will feel warm to you with your weather conditions. You would need a much more powerful heat element which when deployed in other climates would be too hot. Makes sense?

 

That does, yes. Thank you. You would actually be surprised how much a heated wheel will improve driving comfort in frigid conditions. My winter vehicle has one, and it's like most luxury items... you quickly become spoiled by it and decide you "need" it. With gloves off it actually keeps my hands much warmer than with gloves on... there's more direct contact with the heated surface. My motorcycle has heated grips as well (although I always wear gloves on the bike), and same goes... once you've had them, you're spoiled. And it greatly lengthens the comfortable riding season.

Anyway, sure, I know it's not really a hardcore sportscar thing, but truthfully neither is a cabrio, which is what i have. I love it anyway.

Thanks Adias. I'm jealous of your warm weather down there.

Cheers

Ross

 

You have a cabrio up there?!? I admire you hardcore guys! Cheers!

Re the heating element in your steering wheel... ask your local dealer what he finds in other cars.

 

Wow, a Cab in Alberta? That's pretty hard core, right there.

We flew up through Yellowknife to Tuktoyaktuk and returned through White Horse where we had a few days' weather delay. We were in a Cessna, and I had to wear flying gloves for the first twenty minutes of every flight and pre-flights were a trial. Mostly we saw the Beaver at local airports with their nice snug cabins, but I did see one Stearman on the trip and it startled me. A Stearman in your climate? Possibly part of a black-fly or mosquito spraying program, but still.

Now you've given me a new benchmark. A Cab. My oh my. I'd have heated wheel and seats and then be wearing heated underwear except for the weekend they schedule Summer.

I suppose you're considering a Spyder to replace the Cabrio?

Gary

 

Haha! Actually, my wife already has a Spyder. She loves it too.

Cheers

Ross

 

I knew it! Heh heh...

G

 

So I have a 997.2 cab but live in tejas. While we don't have your world it does get around 28F or so during the winter and I use the car as a daily driver. The heated steering wheel IS odd...I have commented before that it feels like there is a variable thermostat in it as it does feel warmer at times (hot) and almost not on at all at other times in about the same conditions and same point in the drive but different days. If you do take it in to the dealer I would be interested knowing whether it is variably thermostatically controlled .

 

I bought a hard top from a 996 for $400 to use on my cab (C2S) in the winter. It was an easy mod to make it fit. I'm not sure if a 996 top with fit your MY but it may help a little in the winter.

 

I drive my Targa year 'round here in the Pacific Northwest, and during the winter, we get snow on the ground and the temps can drop into the 30's during the evenings. When I go home at 7pm and the car's been sitting in the lot all day, that car interior is very cold. Generally, the weather here isn't bad enough to require gloves, and gloves, while providing an insulation between the steering wheel and the fingers, also take away some of the feel of driving, so I generally don't use gloves nor wear my winter coat while driving (its tossed behind the seat).

The heated wheel will fix this (I just had it installed on my car as for the first 2.5 yrs I've had the non-heated thicker wheel (no heated wheel option in 09's with 6spdMan gearbox). I don't want the heated wheel to warm my hands, just to warm the wheel to 50+ degrees will likely be fine. I suspect for that purpose its just right.

You would not want to have the wheel heat up to rapidly or too much as it could impact the longevity of the wheel due to the rapid warming and thus expansion of the materials and how that affects them over time.

Depending on your climate and driving style, different options may work better.

 

That's interesting, I'll ask them about that for sure and report back. It is at least helpful for me to hear that it is perhaps not just a problem with my car in particular.

Thanks for the response.

Cheers

Ross

 

Thank you for the suggestion.

Cheers

Ross

 

I certainly wonder the same thing regarding the longevity. My winter vehicle, a 4x4, has a heated wheel and it gets REALLY nice and toasty, almost too warm sometimes. But when you jump into the vehicle after work, when it's -35, that warm wheel is so very welcome. I usually shut it off after five or ten minutes, or until the heater really starts kicking in. Since the vehicle has only been through a single winter, I'll be interested to see how the wheel material holds up over time.

I guess i just had different expectations based on my experience with my other vehicle. If the Porsche wheel is not as strong, well, so be it.

Cheers

Ross