Have a '72 Cutlass with the rallye steering wheel but the rubber seems to be oozing and getting greesy feeling. Have to really wipe it down good after waking it up from storage and after that it's not too bad. Any way to stop it?

 

Mines doing the same thing.

 

It is volatiles outgassing from the rubber (and products like Armor All just provide more volatiles to ooze). I've had excellent results wiping the wheel with pre-cleaner (the stuff you use to wipe down a car before painting it). This is essentially the same product as Goo Gone, but in a gallon can. You can get it at auto paint stores - or, you can use Goo Gone, it just costs more per quart in the consumer package.

 

I've also taken the scum off with denatured alcohol. It would probably require less elbow grease using the Goo Gone or pre-cleaner.

 

I used laquer thinner on mine, worked like a charm. Didn't take off anything but the sticky mess
Steve

 

Thanks. I have Goo gone at home so I'll start with that.

 

Joe, mines getting sticky again also. Are you talking about wax and grease remover? Laquer thinner seems a little strong to me as in another post. But if it works, hey.

 

I bought a stock sport wheel a while back and I found it oozes like all the rest.
I did realize that they ooze a lot more in the summer when it is hot. This makes them more of an issue for us down south.
In the winter, it took months for the stickiness to become evident.
In the summer, it takes just weeks.
I use Eastwood's PRE, which is similar to lacquer thinner. It is strong but does not harm the wheel. Just do not get it on anything else.

I have never installed the wheel and do not think i will due to the stickiness it gets. It is in the back room on a shelf, sticky as can be after 5 weeks. Time for another wipedown while I figure out what i am going to do with it...

 

Just a thought, I worked in the coatings business for years (43) and when we had a surface that was out gassing or became sticky with time we would coat it with clear shellac. Shellac will stick to most surfaces and when dry only alcohol will soften it up. I don't know what the makeup of the above steering wheel is but if the shellac can slow the exchange of oxygen/air to what ever the compound is in the wheel it could be a fix......Tedd

 

I know this is an old thread, but since I stumbled across it...

I'm not a chemist, but many years of experience in old furniture and construction restoration has taught me that all urethanes and many other (maybe all) synthetic rubber, foams and similar materials eventually begin to decompose. Foamed urethanes all seem to do this, and about 25-30 years seems to be the end point for most of these materials, while others last a little bit longer. Once that begins happening, there is nothing that can be done to halt the process. As others have found and noted here, you can clean the surface, but the material will continue to decompose until it completely falls apart. 'Foam rubber' products are the most obvious materials to see doing this, and it appears to begin suddenly. Squishing up an old piece of urethane foam is often like squeezing an oil-soaked rag. Some vinyl formulations will decompose in a similar way, although they tend to just become permanently sticky as they approach a certain age.

I'm guessing that the old rally steering wheels are experiencing a similar process, and there is probably nothing that can be done to preserve the material.

 

I think the only real fix is to take the wheel to a steering wheel resto shop and have the nasty rubber grip removed and have it recovered. I got a quote for that and it is a tad higher than a repro kit.