They’re available on Amazon and other online outlets. They cost as little as $6.99. And they can blind you or kill you. Stop using them.
That’s the message from National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) this week, which is calling out manufacturers who make rhinestone steering wheel decorations.
“The product is a metal or plastic plate, usually covered with rhinestones or other shiny decorations, with an adhesive back that covers the vehicle’s logo in the center of the steering wheel,” NHTSA explains. With a quick search, we found rhinestone copies of virtually every automaker’s badge on sale for a few dollars.
The problem? They fit in the center of a steering wheel cover. Steering wheel covers are designed to fly safely out of the way when the airbag behind them deploys. An airbag deploys violently thanks to a small explosion. The bag it unfolds is soft enough to keep you safe, but there shouldn’t be anything hard in the path of the blast.
The little plastic logo, instead, can become a projectile.
Even the automakers who design and build cars had to learn not to put detachable emblems on steering wheel covers. Both Chevrolet and Nissan have had flying emblems recalled in recent years.
If even the factory sometimes gets it wrong, nothing attached with double-sided tape will stay put in a crash. Sadly, the NHTSA reports, “at least one driver suffered a serious injury that resulted in the loss of sight in one eye” from a stick-on badge.
The agency’s warning, we should note, does not apply to wraps that cover the exterior of the steering wheel — the part your hands touch while driving. Those are generally not affected by an airbag deployment. So, Bedazzle your Hyundai all you want — but don’t put anything on the steering wheel cover.
“Consumers should also remove any such decals that they have already applied to their steering wheels,” the NHTSA warns.
