Multi function steering wheel + poss flat bottom

Looking for a fit / supply fit of the above.
Must have multi function, flat bottom a bonus.

Can travel reasonable distance.
Thanks.
 
Do you mean like this ...

48306


... if so, it's a long arduous process, and a @timmus retro-fit.

We needed to change the buttons and Tom rewired the airbag. It won't work fully with the standard Symphony II or Concert stereos (only volume control I believe), but works great with RNSE.
 
Hi Andew,

Apologies that a few of your messages from recent times have gone unanswered. You may not have seen my 'Vanishing Act' thread... https://www.a2oc.net/community/index.php?threads/vanishing-act.38536/
I'm just and so geting back to work, having had a relatively prolonged period of comparative inactivity.

Multifunction steering wheel (MFSW) compatibility is a total minefield. Unfortunately, you can't just choose a steering wheel that you like and expect it to work in your car. Let's start with the standard A2 MFSW, as shown below, which was the only MFSW available for the A2 from factory...

index.php


This is a 4-spoke SE steering wheel with buttons integrated into the airbag. It controls standard Audi stereos as well as RNS-E SatNav and offers full functionality including volume control, track skipping, radio tuning, CD selection (assuming you have a CD changer), etc, etc.

I flew to Denmark to install this kind of steering wheel in a 1.2TDI, as shown below. You can see that it has thumb-roller controls and is flat-bottom, but RNS-E SatNav is fitted in the centre console. Jeremy's photo above shows the same arrangement, though his steering wheel is not flat-bottomed.
index.php


I recently devised a way of creating a 3-spoke Sport MFSW, as shown in the photo below...

99d7ea5a8f5976c953d8504833e36552.jpg


This was originally a tiptronic steering wheel, designed for changing gears on an automatic. Physically, it is exactly the same as the 3-spoke Sport steering wheel fitted to the A2, except it has the up/down buttons. I have created a custom control module that intercepts the gear change commands and converts them into stereo commands. As such, the right-hand buttons control volume and the left-hand buttons control track skipping, radio tuning, etc. Whilst it works with all standard Audi stereos and RNS-E, there's a lot of work in the conversion from tiptronic to multifunction.
This steering wheel is fitted in Alanb's A2. He chose to have it retrimmed in perforated leather. At present, to my knowledge at least, it is the only Sport multifunction steering wheel in existence.

Have a think about exactly what your priorities are based on what I've written above. Feel free to ask more questions. :)

Cheers,

Tom
 
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Hi Andew,

Apologies that a few of your messages from recent times have gone unanswered. You may not have seen my 'Vanishing Act' thread... https://www.a2oc.net/community/index.php?threads/vanishing-act.38536/
I'm just and so geting back to work, having had a relatively prolonged period of comparative inactivity.

Multifunction steering wheel (MFSW) compatibility is a total minefield. Unfortunately, you can't just choose a steering wheel that you like and expect it to work in your car. Let's start with the standard A2 MFSW, as shown below, which was the only MFSW available for the A2 from factory...

index.php


This is a 4-spoke SE steering wheel with buttons integrated into the airbag. It controls standard Audi stereos as well as RNS-E SatNav and offers full functionality including volume control, track skipping, radio tuning, CD selection (assuming you have a CD changer), etc, etc.

As Jeremy says above, if you're looking for a modern MFSW with thumb-roller controls, you must have RNS-E.
I flew to Denmark to install this kind of steering wheel in a 1.2TDI, as shown below. You can see that it has thumb-roller controls and is flat-bottom, but RNS-E SatNav is fitted in the centre console. Jeremy's photo above shows the same arrangement, though his steering wheel is not flat-bottomed. All the photos you'll find of this kind of steering wheel installed in an A2 are fitted in combination with RNS-E. As such, if you have a single-DIN dash with a Concert II CD player, you first need to upgrade the dashbard to double-DIN, then fit RNS-E SatNav and then fit the steering wheel.
If you connect such a steering wheel to a standard A2 stereo (such as a Concert II CD player), only volume control will work. All the other buttons will be nothing but decoration.

index.php


If you'd like to have full MFSW functionality when combined with a standard Audi stereo, allowing you to tune the radio, skip tracks, etc, then you'll have to use a steering wheel from the same era as the A2. Until recently, they didn't exist as anything other than the 4-spoke SE design shown at the very beginning of this post. However, I recently devised a way of creating a 3-spoke Sport MFSW, as shown in the photo below...

99d7ea5a8f5976c953d8504833e36552.jpg


This was originally a tiptronic steering wheel, designed for changing gears on an automatic. Physically, it is exactly the same as the 3-spoke Sport steering wheel fitted to the A2, except it has the up/down buttons. I have created a custom control module that intercepts the gear change commands and converts them into stereo commands. As such, the right-hand buttons control volume and the left-hand buttons control track skipping, radio tuning, etc. Whilst it works with all standard Audi stereos and RNS-E, there's a lot of work in the conversion from tiptronic to multifunction.
This steering wheel is fitted in Alanb's A2. He chose to have it retrimmed in perforated leather. At present, to my knowledge at least, it is the only Sport multifunction steering wheel in existence.

Have a think about exactly what your priorities are based on what I've written above. Feel free to ask more questions. :)

Cheers,

Tom
Hi Tom.

Hope you are well, nice to hear from you.
I def want 3 spoke wheel, with full stereo activity or as much as.

So your creation sounds down my street.

A flat bottom would be awesome, however I do tend to like to keep the inside looking manufacture fit, but have plenty of gizmos working behind the scenes.

Could you please pm me at your convenience, costs and dates available please Tom.

From the previous mods you done on my A2, I value your professionalism.

Many thanks Andy
 
Hi, Id be interest in the 3 spoke multifunction steering wheel too!
can you PM me the details and costs?

regards
Findlay
 
As Jeremy says above, if you're looking for a modern MFSW with thumb-roller controls, you must have RNS-E. If you connect such a steering wheel to a standard A2 stereo (such as a Concert II CD player), only volume control will work. All the other buttons will be nothing but decoration.
If you'd like to have full MFSW functionality when combined with a standard Audi stereo, allowing you to tune the radio, skip tracks, etc, then you'll have to use a steering wheel from the same era as the A2. Until recently, they didn't exist as anything other than the 4-spoke SE design shown at the very beginning of this post.
However, I recently devised a way of creating a 3-spoke Sport MFSW:
This was originally a tiptronic steering wheel, designed for changing gears on an automatic. Physically, it is exactly the same as the 3-spoke Sport steering wheel fitted to the A2, except it has the up/down buttons. I have created a custom control module that intercepts the gear change commands and converts them into stereo commands. It works with all standard Audi stereos and RNS-E
So, if I may ask - however impolite it may be for my first post here to be a question resurrecting an age old thread - what keeps you from doing the same with thumb-roller MFSWs?

(and if I may ask two other things - is the A2's 4 spoke MFSWs the same as the A4 and A6's, or is there some subtle difference that prevents a direct swap?)
 
Good evening,

Welcome to the Club where you’ll find a friendly community who will try to go the extra mile to assist in answering your questions.

First off:
So, if I may ask - however impolite it may be for my first post here to be a question resurrecting an age old thread - what keeps you from doing the same with thumb-roller MFSWs?
There is no new development required here for the thumb roller type MFSW. I have an A3/5 FBMFSW fully installed and working with a Concert 2 in Project 250. Here is the function it provides:

Right hand buttons, only the the thumb roller works which controls the volume, no other button presses do anything unless you have a RNS-E.

Left hand buttons, scrolling the thumb roller moves through your stored radio stations. Pressing the thumb roller scans for the next available radio station. No other button presses work unless you have a RNS-E

Your next question:

(and if I may ask two other things - is the A2's 4 spoke MFSWs the same as the A4 and A6's, or is there some subtle difference that prevents a direct swap?)

To the very best of my knowledge there is no difference between the factory 4 spoke MFSW found in the A2 and the A6. Both steering wheels look to have an 8Z0 part number, this is from a quick search so happy to be corrected. I guess that’s the same for the airbag with the multifunction buttons, from another quick search for both vehicles they seem to both use an 8E0 multifunction airbag. Just a guess, but I imagine the same goes for the A4 and A8 from the same era.

Hope this helps.

Kind regards,

Tom
 
I have an A3/5 FBMFSW fully installed and working with a Concert 2 in Project 250.
Was there any particular level of work needed to make it work any more than fitting the "period-correct" MFSWs requires?
Right hand buttons, only the the thumb roller works which controls the volume, no other button presses do anything unless you have a RNS-E.
Does the press to mute work too?
Hope this helps.
It does indeed, thank you loads! c:
 
To the very best of my knowledge there is no difference between the factory 4 spoke MFSW found in the A2 and the A6. Both steering wheels look to have an 8Z0 part number, this is from a quick search so happy to be corrected. I guess that’s the same for the airbag with the multifunction buttons, from another quick search for both vehicles they seem to both use an 8E0 multifunction airbag. Just a guess, but I imagine the same goes for the A4 and A8 from the same era.
Judging by 7zap, many more A2-compatible (8Z-coded) steering wheels were specified on the contemporary A6 and other similar models than actually on the A2 itself, presumably because there were more interior decor packs in the bigger car that to my eyes at least suit the A2 slightly less - some of the shiny wood-rimmed ones look more appropriate for a Lincoln Town Car and associated demographic than an A2 for instance. I will now retire and put on my flame-proof overalls if I have upset anyone!
 
Judging by 7zap, many more A2-compatible (8Z-coded) steering wheels were specified on the contemporary A6 and other similar models than actually on the A2 itself, presumably because there were more interior decor packs in the bigger car that to my eyes at least suit the A2 slightly less - some of the shiny wood-rimmed ones look more appropriate for a Lincoln Town Car and associated demographic than an A2 for instance. I will now retire and put on my flame-proof overalls if I have upset anyone!
If anyone feels offended by that assessment, then by all means, flame me too!
I mean, the A2 would need to work a lot harder to pull off, say, a wooden shift knob.
It always looked a lot more urban, a bit more, er, 'hip' to me, shifting towards the image Audi has today. Or at least, tries to tell us it has.
 
Judging by 7zap, many more A2-compatible (8Z-coded) steering wheels were specified on the contemporary A6 and other similar models than actually on the A2 itself, presumably because there were more interior decor packs in the bigger car that to my eyes at least suit the A2 slightly less - some of the shiny wood-rimmed ones look more appropriate for a Lincoln Town Car and associated demographic than an A2 for instance. I will now retire and put on my flame-proof overalls if I have upset anyone!
Firstly I’m not disagreeing!! But it can be done - @A2Steve used wooden trim from an A8 I think that looked great to me?
 
@Special edition fitted a 3-spoke wooden steering wheel in an A2. Any photos, Dave?
I seem to remember people making naval comparisons. ?
I’ve dug my flame proof overalls out too - just in case - so here goes…..flat bottom A1 multi function steering wheel, RNS-E (obviously) and white dials are the best looking upgrades possible for the interior…….had to pick my jaw up off the floor the first time I saw that!
 
Hello again,

Some very direct questioning for the later style MFSW installation which I’ll not fully answer as it involves adapting the steering wheels airbag loom. It’s a subject that I’m not comfortable to fully share on as I’d hate someone to cause themselves or anyone else injury due to not completely understanding what’s involved with this particular retrofit. Adapting the wiring of airbags is not something I would recommend, but if ignored, then the work should only be conducted by a qualified professional who understands the potential hazards associated with these these devices.

Was there any particular level of work needed to make it work any more than fitting the "period-correct" MFSWs requires?

What I can answer is that this is quite a quick installation once you understand where to take the necessary feeds from along with obtaining the correct controlling module. Understanding a wiring diagram along with being competent with a solder iron is an absolute must.

Does the press to mute work too?
Unfortunately and very frustratingly, pressing the right hand thumb roller doesn’t give the mute function:

Within an A2 with a RNS-E installed, pressing the mute button just makes the navigation system repeat the last given voice command along your route.

Within an A2 without a RNS-E installed, pressing this mute button does nothing.

Glad I was able to answer most of your questions, sorry I cannot assist further.

Kind regards,

Tom
 
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