Genuine BMW Race Display Steering wheel w/ Coral Red interior
What is it?
The BMW M Performance Race Display Wheel is quite possibly the most over the top modification available directly from BMW. For those who are unfamiliar, the BMW Race Display Wheel is a high tech steering wheel with shift indicator lights and an LCD screen at the top of the wheel. Unlike a lot of these wheels that have been popping up on eBay and Alibaba in recent years, this is a Genuine BMW part that you can have installed at your local BMW dealership. The Race Display Wheel is finished in alcantara and has BMW M colored stitching. This kit from Kies Motorsports includes Genuine BMW dry carbon fiber trim that matches the rest of my interior. Click here to view on Kies Motorsports’ store.
The Race Display Wheel features alcantara, BMW M colored stitching, and optional dry carbon trim
Initial setup
LED startup animation. Note the buttons at the 10 and 2 position.
When you start the car, the LED’s greet you with a light dance and you’ll see the BMW M Performance logo on the screen. Then you press and hold the L and R buttons to turn the screen on. These two small buttons at the 10 and 2 position are used to navigate the menus and change settings using a combination of short, long and double presses. I’m not going to lie, it’s cumbersome to use and takes a while to get the hang of.
When you initially set up the wheel, you can choose between metric and imperial units, change the brightness of the display and LED’s, and set the RPM that you’d like the shift lights to come on at. After the wheel is set up, you can toggle between the three modes, EfficientDynamics®, Sport, and Race. You can turn the wheel off at any time by holding down the L and R buttons for three seconds.
Driving Modes
EfficientDynamics®: Fuel consumption stopwatch, Consumption Average Speed, EfficientDynamics® index
Sport: G-force with memory, water/ oil temperature, stopwatch
Race: Lap timer, race section clock, quarter mile timer
In EfficientDynamics® mode, there’s a fuel consumption stopwatch, consumption average speed, and an EfficientDynamics® index. This part of the menu is a little silly to me. I mean, this steering wheel is meant for race cars, why is one third of the functionality dedicated to fuel efficiency?
Sport is the mode I use most. In this mode you have a lateral and longitudinal G meter with a stopwatch, lateral G memory that will save 30 consecutive turns that you can review later, and oil and water temperature. For daily driving, I often set the display to show temperature to more accurately keep an eye on operating temps, although oil pressure would have been a nice addition, since the car already has an analog oil temperature gauge. The display is capable of showing real-time RPM, but strangely only in the rev limiter setup screen. You can’t actually display it in any of the other modes.
Finally, there is Race mode which is meant for track use only. In this mode you have a lap timer, race section clock, and a quarter mile timer. There is an optional measuring trigger that will automatically capture your lap times on a race track via an infrared receiver that’s sold separately.
Sport mode, displaying water and oil temperature
Installation
I’ll be honest with you, the installation is pretty involved. It took me 7 hours including filming, but you could probably do it in 3 if you’re not stopping to document each step. Still, I’d set aside a full day for this so you don’t feel rushed. The car won’t be drivable during the install for obvious reasons, so be sure to have all the tools you need before you get started. I’d say this is an intermediate to advanced install. It involves removing the airbag, taking apart the steering column and dashboard, re-pining wires and tapping wires into one of the car’s control modules. There are a lot of tedious steps and if you miss even one of them, the wheel won’t work. It is do-able though and personally, I felt a sense of satisfaction having installed it on my own.
Because the wheel has it’s own control module, there is no coding required. Once you re-connect the battery, it simply works, which is a miracle for BMW. Since you are re-using your stock airbag and you aren't modifying the airbag wiring, there are no error codes to worry about. The car’s computer won’t know the airbag was ever removed. Watch my complete step by step installation guide here.
Removing the clock spring from the center column and re-pinning wires
What it’s like to live with
So what’s it like to daily drive with this wheel? It makes the interior feel exotic. Like you’re sitting in the cockpit of a high end supercar. I’ve said it before, but from the driver’s seat, it’s hard to believe it’s just a 3 Series. The rim of the wheel is about the same thickness as my stock Sport Line wheel and feels natural in my hands. At night, especially on dark roads, the shift lights can be a bit much, so it’s nice to have the option to turn them off for casual night time driving.
The alcantara did take some getting used to. It’s a texture that feels unusual at first on a steering wheel. I haven’t had it long enough for it to need a deep cleaning, but when I notice it’s dusty, I simply wipe it with a dry microfiber cloth. I will say, it makes me hyper aware of how clean my hands are, and I’ve got in the habit of bringing extra water when I go skateboarding so I can rinse my hands off before I drive home. Some people have suggested driving gloves but I’m not sure that they are my style.
Accelerating with the shift lights set to 6,000 RPM
Quirks
As cool as this wheel is, it’s not without its quirks. First, the wheel is off by default and you need to manually switch it on every time you start the car. I think I’d want it to be the opposite. I think I’d want it on by default, and have the option to switch it off if I wanted. You’re paying so much money to get this extra functionality, I would think you’d want the wheel to be on more often than not. Also, after 10 minutes of driving, the display goes to sleep. While it’s asleep, the shift indicators still work, but you need to tap either the L or R button to wake the screen up. I looked in the owner’s manual and there is no setting to change this, it’s simply how the wheel is programmed. I can’t think of any logical reason for this, and again, I’d rather it be on all the time with the option to turn it off when I decide.
But the biggest quirk though is the operating temperature threshold. The wheel simply doesn’t work if the temperature is above 140 degrees F (60 degrees C). If you try to turn it on, the lights will flash red and then turn off. The first time this happened, we had gone shopping on a hot day with the car sitting in a parking lot with no shade. I panicked at first because I thought the wheel was broken. I checked the manual and sure enough, it’s a safety feature to protect the electronics in the wheel. After driving with the air conditioning on for a few minutes, the wheel works again. I thought it was weird that electronics that are designed to be used inside a car apparently can’t handle high temperatures. It almost seems like an oversight or design flaw. Being in Michigan, this is only an issue 3 months out of the year, and only if the car has been parked in full sun for a while. But if you live in Florida or Texas, I could see this being annoying.
THE GOOD:
Genuine BMW = QUALITY
Adds helpful parameters like coolant and oil temp. G-force is fun to look at
Looks and feels exotic
THE BAD:
EXPENSIVE (Say goodbye to your kid’s college fund)
For the price, I was really hoping for more parameters
The wheel doesn’t work above 140F/ 60C
Things to know before purchasing
If you plan on buying this wheel, here are a couple things to take note of. The wheel does not include the airbag, buttons, or paddle shifters. If you have an M3 or an F30 M Sport, you will need to reuse your existing buttons and airbag. If you have a base F30, the buttons and airbag won’t fit and you’ll need to buy those separately. There is a version of the display wheel that’s compatible with the base airbag but it’s a different part number. The display wheel does not support the heated wheel function. My car didn’t have a heated steering wheel, so it was a non-issue for me, but might be a deal breaker if you use that feature. You could still install the wheel, but you’d lose that functionality.
Is it worth it?
Despite the quirks and price tag of this wheel, it’s one of my favorite car modifications I’ve ever done. I wish it could display a few more parameters, but the ones that it does surface like G force and quarter mile times make driving exciting. Installation is tedious, but rewarding once you’ve got it installed. While the extra grip from the alcantara and the shift lights may give you an edge on the race track, you’re mainly buying this for the cool factor. It’s a gadget, a toy. And for anyone looking to build the ultimate F30 or F80, this Race Display Wheel should be high on your list.
Fitment
F30 3 Series, F32 4 Series, M2, M3, M4
Watch the video review