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Alfa 164 Mahogany Steering Wheel, a Momo?

9K views 19 replies 5 participants last post by  pinino 
#1 · (Edited)
/edit 1/21/16

The enigmatic logo on this steering wheel has now been positively identified. It is not Allied Signal, but Magna International, a major manufacturer of steering wheels and air bags located in Aschaffenburg Germany.


Here is the lineage:

1974 - Kolbenschmidt (KS) bought a company in Aschaffenburg that produced complete steering wheels and also later airbags (Bayern-Chemie)

1993 - Kolbenschmidt sold this division to Magna

1996 - Magna sold this division to TRW

The wheels were manufactured complete with airbags and covered leather.

In a nutshell: the first leather covered airbag wheels for the 164 are Kolbenschmidt. The early face-lift leather (or PVC) covered wheels are also Kolbenschmidt; latter face-lift wheels are Magna, virtually unchanged. The maker of the wooden rim upgrade is still an open question.

I am grateful to Mr. Dittmar Schuster, Corporate Communications at Kolbenschmidt AG for shedding light on this subject. /edit

The thread Catalog of factory and aftermarket steering wheels, started by marksgtv on the Alfa BB in January of 2011 gives a wonderful overview of hand-crafted steering wheels for many of the most exotic marks including Alfa Romeo. Recommended reading for all.

The Italian specialty steering wheel maker “Momo”, formed by Gianpiero Moretti in 1964, had a very close relationship with Alfa. That is, until about 1990 when things get a little foggy. While the early wheels are from the era of “in-your-face motoring”—before the adoption of strict federal safety regulations (read: airbag and soft pvc crash absorbing material)—around 1990 things begin to change.

Perhaps Gianpiero Moretti, saw this change coming when he sold Momo to Breed Technologies in 1995, a huge manufacturer of airbags, crash sensors, steering wheels and seat belts. Breed gobbled up many smaller firms in the 90s, including AlliedSignal, an airbag manufacturer. Allen Breed, its founder, author of some 90 patents, was acclaimed by Wall Street “entrepeneur of the Year 1995”. By 1999 things soured so much that the company was forced to file for bankruptcy. That’s a familiar Wall Street story, no?, unbridled growth, too much debt, in a highly competitive market, company goes bust. Luckily Momo survived and today, after going through some hard times is thriving so it appears, owned by a group of enthusiastic motoring investors.

The very rare 4-spoke mahogany and leather steering wheel (381 mm) with integrated airbag module that Alfa offered on the 164 Super in 1996 and 1997 has always intrigued me.





While using the exact form and airbag module of the non-wooden type introduced around 1994, the mahogany work and leather cuffs are indeed artisan, the option costed approximately 770 Euro, a pretty hefty sum for 1996-97. It’s certainly conceivable that it is from the Momo workshop, yet there is no Momo badging or labeling anywhere, externally or internally.

Contrast this with the 368 mm mahogany and leather 3-spoke steering wheel for the Alfa 156, introduced around 1999, which is clearly stamped “Momo” on the back side of the wheel frame.






I’ve mounted several of the 164 mahogany wheels and never really paid much attention to any of the obscure markings inside. Well, my curiosity was killing me so I asked Muhammet of autoteile74 who kindly sent me a photo of the inside frame. Since the photo is unclear I’ve annotated some of the pertinent tidbits of information.



At the very top center, cast in the aluminum frame is “Alfa Romeo” in its distinct script. To the left there appears the casting “DE” and to the right an enigmatic logo. Muhammet guessed it could be “Mopar”, but looking closely it seems to be composed of the letters “A L L” with a dot between the two Ls, probably signifying an “i”. /edit [incorrect! it is "MI" for Magna International] /edit


Searching airbag history from this period I think I found the answer: AlliedSignal. The company was a major manufacturer of airbags and also named in patents for integrated airbag steering wheels and horn mechanisms. Here for example is a link to a patent (obviously not for this wheel) that includes AlliedSignal, published Nov. 2, 1995:

https://www.google.com/patents/DE4415765A1?cl=pt

As mentioned AlliedSignal was bought by Breed Technologies in 1997, just one year after it acquired Momo. Looking at the photo again you see that the Allied logo is repeated in the lower part of the frame on a white sticker with part number. This particular wheel is date-stamped "Feb. 1997".

So all put together—Breed owning Momo by 1996 and Breed becoming the new owners of AlliedSignal, it seems pretty clear that we have our answers:

Alfa Romeo contracted the work to a variety of firms, to... A̶l̶l̶i̶e̶d̶ ̶S̶i̶g̶n̶a̶l̶ Magna International, for the integrated airbag/steering wheel module, horn mechanism, & molded plastic; Siemens, for airbag ecu, software and clockspring; the skeleton of the wheel is a product of DE (Germany), and Momo, now under the ownership of Breed probably fitted the mahogany wood rim with leather trim, likely the last step in the manufacturing sequence.

But is it a leap of faith to say that Momo supplied the wood and leather work? Based on the similarity of this specialty 4-spoke 164 wheel with that of the Alfa 156 3-spoke wheel, and the fact that Momo had a long-running relationship with Alfa for earlier non-airbag wheels, I think it's quite plausible that Momo was the firm who did it. And here, another document I found, dated June 3, 1996, summarizes Breed Technologies aim:

"MOMO SpA, a BREED subsidiary, is a worldwide leader in the design, manufacture and sale of the finest quality wood and leather trimmed steering wheels. This high-end craftsmanship, coupled with BREED's advancements in complete airbag system technologies will allow the Company to offer Original Equipment Manufacturers and the aftermarket industry, a complete, high quality integrated product."​

BREED INTRODUCES INTEGRATED STEERING WHEEL TECHNOLOGY - Free Online Library

So, very much like the nature of the Alfa 164 itself, this unusual steering wheel appears to be the product of different companies based in different countries with Momo doing the final touches (my hypothesis until someone more knowledgeable and who lived these years tells his story).
 
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#10 · (Edited)
As an add-on to this thread, I'd like to address the full-leather steering wheel of the earlier 164s, namely what the 1991-1993 US-imported cars came equipped with. As most 164 owners know there are two types, one with black stitching (L & B), the other with red stitching (S).



Here the casting marks on the wheel frame are different from the mahogony wheel. While "DE" (Deutschland) and "Alfa Romeo" are the same as the mahogany, instead of the "Magna" logo there is a superimposed "S" + "K" logo (the "S" is quite elongated).



But what is it, SK or KS? It appears on Alfa clocksprings as well and I just found it on an Audi steering wheel stamped on the horn mechanism. Well, it turns out to be KS or Kolbenschmidt AG, maker and designer of steering wheels during this time.



Here are two very relevant patents from 1988, which may be the ones for this 164 wheel.

Patent US5097720 - Steering wheel skeleton - Google Patents
Patent EP0292038A2 - Skeleton construction for motor vehicle steering wheels - Google Patents

So, like the later (mahogany) wheel, this one too is the result of a mix of companies, Alfa contracting out to KB (steering wheel skeleton & horn mechanism) and Bayern-Chemie (airbag) and Siemens AG (airbag ecu). I have been informed by a representative at Kolbenschmidt that their steering wheel manufacturing—including more that 150 different types—was "complete steering wheels with airbag and leather cover".
 
#11 · (Edited)
I have a brand new never mounted black leather steering wheel for the 91-94 164 models.

It has the K over elongated S on left and the DE on the right like yours.

I have a used 95LS wheel with DE on left and K over elogated S on the right.

I have air bags for both of them but I removed clock springs. so the turn signal tabs would not get damaged as one was broken off on new wheel.

I replaced broken T/S and horn contact using one from clock spring with bad clock spring ribbon.
 

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#13 · (Edited)
It is same as 91-94 wheels just reversed.

inside wheel and air bag are different from 91-94, too.
 

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#16 ·
Looks like the same air bag and inards of the two wheels look the same, too.
 
#15 ·
Very interesting history. I like the older wooden steering wheels, but never cared much for the mahogany/plastic insert combination. Seems like to much of a contrast of beautiful wood craftsmanship and cheap stamped out plastic for my taste:)
 
#20 · (Edited)
This 4-spoke mahogany steering wheel, from a Mercedes Benz 500E (W124), has an uncanny similarity with the 164 mahogany wheel of 1996-1997 (post #1). The design of the wheel with simple leather cuffs forming the transition between airbag and rim is nearly identical to the Alfa wheel. For those of you not familiar with the 500E, it was a limited edition high-performance version the W124 hand-built by Porsche—only c.10,000 made. It had a top speed of more than 160 mph, came with 4-piston calipers, flared fenders to accommodate a wider track, and leather seats by Recaro. The steering wheel pictured is currently on Germany ebay for €1,050.
 

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