Heated vehicle steering wheel having multiple controlled heating zones

A vehicle steering wheel comprising:

• a rim having a core structure and a cover wrap;
• a plurality of heaters surrounding at least a portion of the core structure to define a plurality of heating zones, wherein each of the plurality of heaters has an electric heater mat;
• at least one sensor for sensing location of a user's hand on the steering wheel;
• and
• a controller controlling the plurality of heaters to activate one or more of the plurality of heaters based on the sensed location of the hand.