2023 Silverado 2500HD Custom - Steering Wheel Upgrade

lmullenaux · March 3, 2023

My steering wheel only has cruise control on the left side but no audio or phone controls on the right. Is this possible to add? The dealership said "there is nothing available for that". It appears online but not super clear. I'm not well versed in auto-mechanics but can follow instructions easily.

Sonders · March 7, 2023

you can swap out to wheel with the steering wheel controls no problem, but to get them to function is a different story. I believe some activation has to be done through dealership for functionality. Also you would need to determine if you even have the pin outs in your factory harness running to the wheel to support the additional controls. I recently did a wheel swap in my truck and I had issues with cruise control and Collision Avoidance buttons not functioning. The pin outs where different on the new steering wheel plug vs the plug in my truck. Information on what is compatible between similar models is still pretty vague.

newdude · March 7, 2023

GM/the dealer can't help you.

You need to use a company like WAMS. You NEED the cluster, no way around this as the radio controls on the wheel operate through the cluster.

4.2" Color Cluster Upgrade Kit for Steering Wheel Audio Controls 2019-2023* (T1) - White Automotive & Media Services (whiteautoandmedia.com)

nards444 · March 7, 2023

So your about 5-6 years to late. Back in the 2010 era you could buy parts like automatic lights, steering wheel parts, etc. Pop off covers and plug things in and off you went. Literally turned my FX4 ford back then into a lariat with about 200 bucks in parts. Truth be told then and I would bet now the wiring harnesses were the same for most trim levels in cars. Issue is now is one of a few things. 1. Dealer will have to activate the option, I have heard some do it free on up to 300 bucks. 2. Dealer wont do it. 3. The software or head unit in the truck isn’t compatible. Some will ask can I find a different unit from a junkyard, yes you can but a dealer will also have to activate that. Long story short, you need to buy the options you want these days

Sonders · March 8, 2023

18 hours ago, nards444 said:

So your about 5-6 years to late. Back in the 2010 era you could buy parts like automatic lights, steering wheel parts, etc. Pop off covers and plug things in and off you went. Literally turned my FX4 ford back then into a lariat with about 200 bucks in parts. Truth be told then and I would bet now the wiring harnesses were the same for most trim levels in cars. Issue is now is one of a few things. 1. Dealer will have to activate the option, I have heard some do it free on up to 300 bucks. 2. Dealer wont do it. 3. The software or head unit in the truck isn’t compatible. Some will ask can I find a different unit from a junkyard, yes you can but a dealer will also have to activate that. Long story short, you need to buy the options you want these days

I hear ya there; I'm sadly coming to that realization. Boooo.

dal1980 · March 8, 2023

I learned this the hard way with the lack of an integrated brake controller on my 2014 1500. Truck didnt have it stock, looked into adding it in the dash and what a mess that would've turned into (wiring harnesses, BCM programming etc). Ended up with a standalone unit....

But looked so easy to pop the parts in...

Jettech1 · March 31, 2023

@Sonders I think I may have stumbled onto something for the steering wheels. I ordered this cover only because one of the reviews says it fits perfect on the steering wheel with no leather on it. Also it is a sew it yourself one like I've been looking for. See what you think.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B618FT4V/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Sonders · April 3, 2023

On 3/31/2023 at 4:49 PM, Jettech1 said:

@Sonders I think I may have stumbled onto something for the steering wheels. I ordered this cover only because one of the reviews says it fits perfect on the steering wheel with no leather on it. Also it is a sew it yourself one like I've been looking for. See what you think.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B618FT4V/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Looks pretty good. I think you should be the test dummy on this for the forum. Give it a try and report back with what you think. I've already got my replacement oem leather wheel so I'm good currently.

Jettech1 · April 3, 2023

9 minutes ago, Sonders said:

Looks pretty good. I think you should be the test dummy on this for the forum. Give it a try and report back with what you think. I've already got my replacement oem leather wheel so I'm good currently.

I'm just glad you put "test" in front of dummy.... lol....

truck24 · December 19, 2023

Has anyone swapped their steering wheel? If so, how much did the dealership charge to program the truck?

Jettech1 · December 19, 2023

1 hour ago, truck24 said:

Has anyone swapped their steering wheel? If so, how much did the dealership charge to program the truck?

This has been done in the past without much luck. I'm not sure what model you have but I can tell you, you might want to look at a different mod from what I've read.

today14 · January 22

Bumping this back up...Looking at a 2024 2500 Custom trim level and I noticed over the weekend while on a test drive that the steering wheel didn't have a button to answer the phone through the truck. I understand not having the steering wheel audio controls (even though they were an option a few years ago on the customs) but not having the call pickup button on the steering wheel is odd.

Has anyone successfully swapped out a custom steering wheel?

rjgvt · January 22

After reading several posts with people trying to upgrade a truck model to another level like headlights, grills, steering wheels, etc, I would think it would be easier to buy the model with the options you want.

newdude · January 22

14 hours ago, today14 said:

Bumping this back up...Looking at a 2024 2500 Custom trim level and I noticed over the weekend while on a test drive that the steering wheel didn't have a button to answer the phone through the truck. I understand not having the steering wheel audio controls (even though they were an option a few years ago on the customs) but not having the call pickup button on the steering wheel is odd.

Has anyone successfully swapped out a custom steering wheel?

Gonna have to watch WAMS (White Audio and Media). They are working on refresh truck upgrades at the moment. Clusters are not the same as 20-23 so those can't be used on a 2024.

today14 · January 22

Odd that it's not a simple plug and play - i understand if I was trying to get a heated steering wheel. On the Ram HD boards swapping steering wheels are pretty straight forward. guess more surprised that the call pickup function isn't standard across the board.