Steering wheel peeling?

I've got a 2021 Tacoma with the premium package. The leather on the steering wheel appears to be peeling in a way. I originally thought I caught something on it, but after a week of sitting it actually got worse. I don't use hand cleaners, lotions, sanitizers etc. I also don't wear rings, jewelry, etc. So I'm at a loss for what could be causing this? Has anyone seen this before?

 

that is either extra long finger nail damage, or careless loose wrist watch damage, or getting in and out of the car using the wheel as support with a set of keys in your hand, have also see damage like this from bottle caps in the hand

 

I was going to guess diamond ring damage

 

Looks like small little gouges to me. Definitely looks like something has been catching on it, whether that be a watch, keys, wife, cat, idk..

You can tell from the bottom set of peels, it starts with less pressure on the bottom, and pressure increases towards the top actually causing gouges. It didn't just naturally happen, I can tell you that. The picture shows something is obviously dragging across the wheel.

There's also a super tiny instance of it at the very top of the pic too. Maybe try some lotion since your hands are so rough

 

In the heat will make it easier to scuff up. Scuff mine just from a vacuum hitting it. Could possibly be from your pants something hard or something simple as nails.

 

Looks like more of a scrape versus peeling. The straight line of abrasion kind of tells it like that?

 

That’s definitely fingernail damage or a sharp edge object running across it like a fingernail would.

My wife, who spends more on nails than I do on gas, had the same on her car till she pointed it out and asked me if it was coming apart. When I told her, she shortened her claws the next time.

 

I've got a few from the clip on my pocketknife as I climb in/out. My hip just brushes the wheel as I pivot and there is a pointy clip on one of my Benchmades.

 

I've had a few of these happen in my life. One was from a fingernail, another from pulling a backpack over from a passenger seat. I think the last one was from a rivet on a pair of blue jeans. Currently, I only get in my vehicles wearing flannel.

 

The only possible explanation I can think of is a pocket knife? I'm not married, so jewelry us out of the question. No watches, my fingernails are short. My hands aren't especially rough. My routine when getting in is I toss phone,wallet and keys on passenger seat then slide in. Grab keys and start. I'm not overly large so my body doesn't appear to be physically hitting the wheel.

On a side not, there is a similar but much smaller spot on the top left corner of the wheel.

 

100% pocket knife and key related

 

I had a smaller scrape like this, and it worn down over time. I don't recall ever seeing it on the test drive and after PDI it was there (I suppose I could have missed it). At first it bothered me, not to look at, but I could feel it when using the wheel. My scrape however was a fraction of what OP has.

 

coat zipper

 

It's your clip on your pocket knife. The same thing has happened on my 3rd gen 4Runner that has a much more noticeable smooth steering wheel. There is a lot less area to maneuver getting in and out of the 3rd gen Tacos. It's easy to pivot the wrong way and have the clip drag across the steering wheel.

 

That is the bottom of the steering wheel. My bet is that it's a belt buckle. When you get out of the truck, you'll scrape it unknowingly.

 

Wheelskins (https://wheelskins.com/) makes good leather steering wheel covers. A lot of choices in colors, etc. It's the kind you hand stitch on, so it takes a few hours. Worth it to protect the factory cover. When it wears out, just replace with a new one.

 

I appreciate the lead. I'm waiting on word from Toyota if they will cover replacement. Either way, I think i might just try this cover out. A ton cheaper than a new steering wheel.

 

Yep 100%. I had to make it a habit of covering my pocket knifes belt clip with my hand when getting out of the truck.

 

As others have stated, that’s 100% caused by the user and not a factory defect. A nice “stitch yourself” cover and a couple of hours will fix that.

 

Ring