FAQ - frequently asked questions

The SpacerShop steering wheel spacer is:

• – a mechanical device made in 2 parts, one in steel and one in aluminum.
  – It has the function of a spacer, or a shim, of an extension that brings the OEM steering wheel of vehicles closer to the driver.
  – It’s thickness is 5 to 6 cm (2″), depending on the car model to which it is destinated.
  – It can be installed on cars, vans, pick-ups, trucks, buses, commercial vehicles of all kinds.

It is a new invention, available on the market since a few years, Made in Italy, which novelty consists in being able to bring the OEM steering wheel closer.

The novelty and specialty of the steering wheel spacer is that it brings the steering wheel closer including all its functions, which remain active: 

– the airbag

– the radio, cruise control, steering wheel heating and lane assist buttons

– the paddles that allow the automatic gearbox to operate in manual and sequential mode.

It is maintenance-free and does need inspection or replacement.

The SpacerShop steering wheel spacer improves the driving position

– create more legroom: after installation, slide the seat backward and drive with legs more extended, holding the steering wheel as you were used to. With this little trick the car (or the van, or the camper…) becomes more comfortable in any situation.

– better modulation on the pedals, no longer hit the dashboard with the knees. 

– boosted driving pleasure: steering feels more prompt and direct steering, making the vehicle feel like a glove of which you feel an integral part, not just a driver who can operate the controls. The whole driving setup becomes much more natural. Even vehicles intended for everyday use and not particularly performing, become pleasant to drive as if they were sports cars.

– It maintains the originality of the vehicle’s interior. It is the only product on the market that improves the driving position without forcing you to change the steering wheel and is designed in a way that looks like a dashboard component born with the vehicle. It is discreet and not very visible, oriented more to the pleasure of use than to be noticed.

– It is a reversible mod, plug and play. There is a specific one for each vehicle. And it’s designed to be installed without permanent modifications to the vehicle, such as cutting or welding. It can be uninstalled and everything goes back to the way it was before.

– Car enthusiast and track day lovers already got how well they will feel: by moving the seat back a little you can better modulate the action on the brake, even with the left foot, and the heel-toe comes easier. With the steering wheel close together, you can also lower the seat a little and no longer touch the roof with your helmet.

The SpacerShop steering wheel spacer reproduce the method that car manufacturers use to fit the steering wheel on vehicles.

All steering wheels are mounted on cars by an hole in their center, which mates a rod coming from the steering rack called steering column. A gearcutting machined in the bore /rod, called spline, ensure alignment and differs for each brand of car.

The steering wheel spacer has to be installed in an intermediate position between the steering wheel and the steering column. It’s built using the same materials that are used to make the steering wheel and column: aluminum and steel.

The spacer replicates the shape of both the steering wheel and column in the junction where they mate and stand the steering effort.

Our strenght is the 100% OEM matching gearcutting machining of the spline, to ensure easy, fast and safe assembly.

Each steering wheel spacer is sold with the assembly instructions included, which can be consulted on this site first. 

The installation can be carried out either by a mechanic or by yourself.

Whenever possible, we record an installation tutorial video, specific to each vehicle, and publish it on our youtube channel to help further.

You can buy it online on this site, browsing through the product pages divided by car brand.

We accept payments by PayPal and credit card.

We ship worldwide, preferably with DHL courier.

You can also order by email from the contact form at the bottom of the page.

We have an big sales network, which can be consulted here.

This is one of our strengths: almost all of our steering wheel spacers have been developed in collaboration with customers, who often live on different continents.

If you can’t find the spacer for you, we’ll evaluate the creation from scratch together. You don’t need to have your car here, but you must first identify the exact model and year of your car, even better if you send us a photo of the steering wheel.

It can take up to 4-8 weeks to create a new spacer, and it may happen that we send you a prototype, even 3D printed, to test-fit on your car to evaluate the aesthetic impact.

We have sent prototypes back and forth from the US or Australia many times and have always been able to please customers, who usually enjoy a lot this type of technical collaboration.

Spacer’s standard thickness is 5 to 6 cm (2″). This length is also the one that everyone is usually comfortable with.

It is not possible to have it shorter because there are minimum thicknesses to be respected for safety.

It can be made longer, up to 10 cm (4″), but it’s rare that we are asked for this, and only by 2 meters tall people, or by drivers with disabilities.

Normally we do not accept requests for spacers 1 or 2 cm longer because the cost of designing them and especially producing them becomes very high in relation to the benefit obtained.

If your car already has depth adjustment, the steering wheel spacer can be mounted and the existing adjustment continues to work. Even in the case of an electric steering column.

This is a misconception widely diffused from people who has not yet used our spacer.

It is correct that the turn turn signal and windshield wiper levers are not approached with the steering wheel, and for the first 2 days of driving you have to get used to it, but you quickly and automatically learn to operate them with your fingertip.

The benefit of the steering wheel approach is so appreciated, that and wants to return the spacer because of the levers (non)issue.

By the way, we accept return and refund, so please don’t worry.

A few customers tried to fit brackets purchased online on the levers to bring them closer. We advise you to consider this solution after a few weeks of driving with the spacer installed, to be sure you really need them.

Yes, returns are accepted. In this case, however, the shipping cost is at your expense and you will be reimbursed after we have checked that the product has no damage (even if only cosmetic) of any kind.

Accepting the return makes the purchase more serene, then it almost never happens that we are asked for a return for this reason. On the contrary, it is more likely that the same customer will want to buy again in the future, when he changes the car. Because once you’ve tried the steering wheel spacer, you can’t live without it.

In any case, if you remove the spacer, your car will return exactly as it was before. The steering wheel spacer is a 100% reversible modification.

Most cars have very long wires inside the steering wheel, and installing the spacer, they can be reconnected easily and without being pulled while driving.

In some cases, the wires of the steering wheel controls are too short, so we will include in the box a wiring harness with connectors that allow to extend the wires without cut and weld them.

This is to make sure that in the future you can remove the steering wheel spacer and leave the car as it was before.

Normally, going to the official service network of your car, still under warranty and with any part of it modified (an oversized intercooler or turbochargerfor example), can generate problems with car manufacturer’s warranty.

There is no definitive answer fo all, because the warranty policies of car brands are not the same everywhere.

Some are very strict, some are flexible and if the part mounted has no relation to the failure that may happen to the car, the warranty remains valid. For example: if you fit the steering wheel spacer  and the engine breaks down a while later, there are dealers who will change the engine for you under warranty because the spacer has no influence at all on the engine. While other dealers may decide otherwise.

In any case, the steering wheel spacer can be removed without leaving any trace of it on the car.

As for the homologation, it is not intended for road use. At the moment we are too small company to undertake the bureaucratic procedure that leads to the possibility of obtaining the regular permission on the car’s papers, but it is something we would like to do in the future.

Also, the laws changes from country by country. We have supported individual customers who wanted German TÜV homologation for their specific car and we are working to TÜV homologate all our products, but it will take time.

In the meantime, we share the technical drawings requested by individual customers to obtain TÜV approval on their car, so that you can download them and show them to your TÜV office before purchase to find out if they are useful.

All our products are manufactured in Italy and designed by us near Monza.

We have the 2D-3D softwares to make design and technical drawings, 3D printer for prototyping, 2 CNC machines and the CAD-CAM software for production.

We no longer need to rely on external workshop for any production step other than paint.

The raw materials, aluminium and steel, are purchased new, in bars, from big companies here near Monza, which provide certification of the chemical composition of the alloys used.

The real question we are often asked is: “but can you make a living from this?”. Because the novelty and uniqueness of the product is such that it often raises doubts we got used to, and we must tell that we also enjoy it a little.

This company mostly makes steering wheel spacers only, it was born from this idea, come by chance and not originally meant to become a job. It’s the enthusiasm and demand by customers from all over the world (we sell 95% abroad) that pushed us to create this company, which keep growing.

The passion for cars, driving, racing, tuning,  people met on the way, gives us motivation to expand the range of products we offer.

We don’t set ourselves creative limits, and we make some projects just for the pleasure of doing them. The only limits are time and resources, which fortunately increase as the company grows.

Over the years, we have seen many customers change their car and ask us for new steering wheel spacer,  and this makes us confident in the future.

If you have read this far, you are now a bit part of us and we thank you for the attention and support that you may want to give us.