Original Factory-supplied RSR-style leather steering wheel

[andyjboy]

Unfortunately I need to raise some cash to finish off a house renovation so some of my rare early parts will have to go ... here's the first one:

An original thick-rimmed leather 380 mm "RSR" steering wheel supplied in 1974 by the Factory's Race Department in Germany :











These shots show the comparison with a std leather-rimmed 380 mm wheel :





The wheel is in great condition with only a couple of very minor 'indentations' (from storage ?) in the leather which may massage out.

Included is a copy of the original Race Dept invoice dated Nov 1974 - the pack of chewing gum hides the original purchaser's name & address (from whom I bought the wheel) :



Price is $3000 + shipping (note that I'm in the UK)

Email: andyjboy@hotmail.com

[Cornpanzer]

Hi Andy. Hate to hi-jack, but.....
Could you do me a favor and measure the diameter of the grip. Easiest way is to wrap a piece of string around it and then measure the length of the string. Second, coul dyou take a good picture ofthe stitching on the spokes for me?

Thanks so much....Bitchin wheel!

[andyjboy]

Dave - the circumference of the leather rim is 3 5/8 in (92mm).

I'll take some photos of the stitching tomorrow.

[gunzel]

Interesting to note that the number stamped on the hub is not the number on the invoice, however the invoice part number is the part number in the 1973 RSR parts book.I always thought the number on the hub was not the real part number for an RSR wheel. Nice to see it in print. Wish I had an extra $3000. Want to swap for anything?

[orange911]

Using the traditional european format (day, month, year), the date of the order was February 74; yet the hub was stamped 8 - 74. Did it take 6 months to make it?

[fourteenten]

It doesn't really matter what part number Porsche used in the hub, as long the base was good voor a 914/6 or RS. I guess for the RSR then just had the company that makes the wheels to use thicker leather. If you look in the parts manuals you can find 803.10 and 805.11 for the 914/6 normal thickness, 806.10 for the RS (same as the others), 805.10 wider grip and probably the RSR was even thicker. For sure this is the real stuff. Good luck with the sale Andy.

Cees

[preS]

Using the traditional european format (day, month, year), the date of the order was February 74; yet the hub was stamped 8 - 74. Did it take 6 months to make it?

Me too am fascinated by the fact that the wheel seems to be 6 months younger than the date stamp on the wheel. Esp. since there is a freight number on the invoice, so I would think that the wheel (from the invoice) was shipped on or shortly after the 11th of February (and not November the 2nd since it's a German invoice).

Richard

[andyjboy]

Yes, you're right that the date on the invoice, since it came from Germany, would have used the conventional date format (ie not trhe US format).

I don't have the answer for this discrepancy (but I will ask the original purchaser to see if he can shed any light on it) but over the years I have probably owned over a hundred 914/4 & 914/6 380mm wheels & from memory I don't think that I've ever seen an 803.10 plastic wheel dated later than 1971 - if you look closely at the date code on this wheel it appears that the '4' in 74 in much heavier than the '7' , suggesting that it has been stamped over another number. Maybe the Race Dept overstamped it '74 (for their own records) but didn't bother about the month ? ...

Some more pictures:






Note also that the part number & date code are 'reversed' compared with most other wheels - ie the part number is at the bottom & the date code is at the top - although this is not the first time I have seen this...

[preS]

To me it looks more like 8 7.4 . Can it have meant something else than the month/ year? Is there a . between the 7 and 4? Is this common?

Richard

[Cornpanzer]

Thanks for the additional info Andy!