Momo Motorsport: Vintage Jackie Stewart Steering Wheel.
- vintageappeal
- Jan 10
- 2 min read
The story behind the origin of Momo (Short for Moretti Monza) is nothing short of a movie. Founded in 1964 by Italian race car driver Gianpiero Moretti.
He commissioned a local craftsman to produce a custom steering wheel for his race car. This move set him apart from other racers because that steering wheel had a lot more grip, which caught the attention of other drivers. One race car driver in particular by the name of John Surtees, a Ferrari Formula One driver wanted one for his race car. That same year 1964 Surtees won the Formula One championship sporting the Momo steering wheel. Safe to say, the rest was history.
Throughout the years, Momo Motorports released various "Signature Series" steering wheels which featured the names and signatures of famous racers, like: Mario Andretti, Niki Lauda, Jackie Stewart. Just to name a few. I happen to have a 1983 Jackie Stewart, which I had installed in my old 1991 BMW 325i. I manage to score the horn button as well, which I was excited about, as finding an original one in good condition is pretty difficult.
Jackie Stewart was a British Formula One driver from Scotland. He was nicknamed the "The Flying Scot". His Formula One career was from 1965 to 1973, in which he won 3 World Drivers Championship Titles. Furthermore, at the time of his retirement held the records for most wins (27) and most podium finishes (43).
As I previously mentioned, I owned a BMW E30 which I equipped with one of the anodized silver version of the Jackie Stewart. Momo first released the anodized black version. My steering wheel being from the early 80's had seen better days, as you can see the Jackie Stewart signature fading away. However, the patina that the wheel presented, along with the bigger than usual grip size, just fit the BMW E30 nicely. The diameter is a respectable 350mm, along with a thickness of 34mm. I will say though, for those readers that want one for the E30, you will need to buy a spacer for it. The steering wheel has zero concave, pretty much it's flat faced, which will interfere with the turn signal and wiper switch as you turn the steering wheel.
Some might say I just like old things. I simply rebuttal by saying I like to own things that have a story behind it. A Vintage Momo Motorsport steering wheel, in a classic BMW E30, is a match made in heaven. Unfortunately, I sold the E30 a few years back. However, I still own the steering wheel. Might be time to get back into a classic to represent Vintage Appeal the correct way.
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