W124 steering wheel deteriorating
 

Ok my 87 300d has the newer style w124 wheel in it like from a 90's w124. The bottom of the wheel is perfect and still has what I would call a shiny finish over it. The top of the wheel however is gettin tiny little cracks in it, lacks this "shiny finish" and when its damp out (last 4days), little bits of black come off on my hands, almost like eraser shavings... and it feels damp, however the bottom of the wheel never feels like this.
Is there anything out there that I can treat/finsih the wheel with to fix this issue? I really hate steering wheel covers, and I dont want to have to replace it.
Any thoughts and Ideas are much appreciated!
Thanks,
Zach

My 95 E300D has the same problem. I waxed the leather with carnauba car wax and it helped a lot, although it's not perfect. I applied the wax and then immediately started buffing it off before it dried. I did this 6 - 8 times.

What you are seeing is the leather dye failing. The leather "dye" on the wheel is really more like flexible paint. It is failing from all the sun exposure on the top of the wheel. You can refinish it yourself. The process is to remove the wheel, sand smooth with fine grain sandpaper, clean, redye, and then clear coat. I know the Leatherique people sold kits to do this, and so did some other vendors. Google is your friend here.

Thanks for all the responses.....
Zach