First Drive with a Steering Wheel on a Model S

[dsm363]

Thanks for the detailed comments @sleepydoc! Let me see if I can address them.

Yes, I would consider the professional driver to be inexperienced after only three weeks. This said, please remember that I am not referring to track use; only average street driving. I agree that the wheel is safer on a track.

With respect to the dash being a bad design; the word bad can be subjective. Let’s assume that you are correct, and the design of the dash is bad. My point is that there is better visibility (for me, and with a nod towards ergonomics, for most, I suspect) with the yoke.

Let’s close with your “soul” comment. You and I are simply different. I can work on any car myself, and I can fix anything myself armed with enough time and money. I intentionally drive cars that are not “safe”: a 1936 Chrysler Airstream, a brass era Jewett, a Corvair… and on and on. I don’t need safe cars, and in fact, I enjoy driving “unsafe” cars more than I do “safe” cars. The soul of a car is important to me. Anyone who restores and drives antique vehicles knows that they are not safe by today’s standards: single piston master cylinders, no airbags, roofs that can collapse in a rollover (convertibles for example), no seatbelts… and again… on and on and on. I do not care about safety, and I don’t care much about reliability except on modern vehicles.

There is no right or wrong with respect to the choice between a yoke and a wheel, except on an individual level of analysis. Whatever you want is right for you, and whatever you do not want is wrong for you. My intention with my post was simply to convey my feelings but not to impose them on others.

Again, thanks for the detailed reply.

Joe

There is better visibility of the dash as Tesla designed all the UI around no steering wheel blocking the view. It was never an issue in the 2012 Model S at least. So it is a bad design to throw in a round steering wheel and not make so UI changes to those cars.

The yoke would be fine with steer by wire as others have said. The removal of center horn (now fixed) and turn signal stalk were some other bad design decisions.

 

[TomServo]

I do wish Tesla would have altered the turning to include a variable steering ratio with the Yoke. That would be the icing on the cake.

 

[MikeChicago]

I do wish Tesla would have altered the turning to include a variable steering ratio with the Yoke. That would be the icing on the cake.

Interesting you say that because apparently there might be a different "mapping" for the turn, according to the service advisor I talked to yesterday. They are quoting the option to replace my steering wheel with a yoke and explained the process. At the end, he said we change the software to tell the car it has a yoke, to "remap the steering profile and show correct graphics on the display."

There may be something to it.

 

[terranx]

Interesting you say that because apparently there might be a different "mapping" for the turn, according to the service advisor I talked to yesterday. They are quoting the option to replace my steering wheel with a yoke and explained the process. At the end, he said we change the software to tell the car it has a yoke, to "remap the steering profile and show correct graphics on the display."

There may be something to it.

Asides for maybe adjusting the steering assist, the software change is for the display (which you can actually do yourself in service mode).

The actual steering rack is still mechanical linkage. You can't change that ratio with software (without some fancy hardware anyway, which our cars do not have)

 

[MikeChicago]

Asides for maybe adjusting the steering assist, the software change is for the display (which you can actually do yourself in service mode).

The actual steering rack is still mechanical linkage. You can't change that ratio with software (without some fancy hardware anyway, which our cars do not have)

I think you are spot on here!

 

[PlaidAlbert]

Well written. Refreshing in today’s world. I love the yoke, but hate the turn signal buttons and especially the horn button. It is flat out dangerous. Good luck finding them when you’re turning enough that you have to take a hand off of the yoke. The steering wheel doesn’t rectify these issues. If it did, horn in the middle at the airbag and a turn signal stalk, I would swap for the steering wheel.

 

[maynoc71]

the yoke is trash. i happily swapped it out w/ the retrofitted traditional steering wheel and have not regretted it one bit. i tried to get use to the yoke for almost 2 months. there's a reason why new Tesla MS are set to standard steering wheels and yoke wheels are a $1000 upgrade. the Tesla technician who replaced my steering wheel that Musk wants to discourage the yoke purchases and eventually phase them out due to too many complaints.

 

[popgodazipa]

It's hard to unsee the yoke if you know what I mean. The side by side shot just makes it look like something is off. Great color combo...is that cream interior?

 

[jlv1]

I just wish I could get a turn signal stalk back.

 

[PR0FESSOR]

Man… I love the steering wheel condom in the lower left image!

the yoke is trash. i happily swapped it out w/ the retrofitted traditional steering wheel and have not regretted it one bit. i tried to get use to the yoke for almost 2 months. there's a reason why new Tesla MS are set to standard steering wheels and yoke wheels are a $1000 upgrade. the Tesla technician who replaced my steering wheel that Musk wants to discourage the yoke purchases and eventually phase them out due to too many complaints.

View attachment 1013670

 

[maynoc71]

It's hard to unsee the yoke if you know what I mean. The side by side shot just makes it look like something is off. Great color combo...is that cream interior?

Yes cream interior. And the retrofit wheel is very well made with premium leather and awesome stitching.The yoke is notorious for peeling after a few months.

 

[maynoc71]

Man… I love the steering wheel condom in the lower left image!

Yea, the condom was to protect from potential fluids from the technician's hands.

 

[FASTTTT]

All,

My 2023 Model S Plaid is in the shop for a track package install, and the loaner vehicle Tesla provided me is a 2023 Model S with a steering wheel. I have seen countless threads on steering with a yoke versus steering with a standard round(ish) steering wheel, and I am finally able to make an informed analysis.

Driving with a steering wheel is (as expected) much easier to use to toss the Model S around in the curves. More control, more grip variations, and no learning curve.

The downsides?

As many have noted, one of the major downsides is visibility. No matter how I adjusted the steering wheel to fit me, it blocked the driver’s display more than the yoke. I felt as if there was no correct position for the steering wheel…. But there is more:

If one were to suggest that a car has a soul, a defining characteristic that makes it utterly unique, then replacing the yoke with a standard steering wheel is like ripping the soul out of the Model S. It would be fair, I think, for those reading this to find my previous statement to be a bit melodramatic, but bear with me.

When I enter my Model S Plaid with a yoke, the yoke is the center of focus, not only for me, but for every passenger who gets in my car. Typical first words are “this feels like a spaceship”, and this is BEFORE I accelerate. The yoke seems to “fit” the Model S in a way that a steering wheel simply does not. For me, having a standard steering wheel in the Model S is nothing more than a regression to the mean; instead of standing out, it pulls the entire interior and driving experience down (with the noted exception to racing control, which I do very rarely since I daily drive with my Model S Plaid).

I can guarantee everyone reading this missive that the complaints about driving with a yoke are overblown; it becomes as natural as driving with a round wheel very quickly. In my opinion, the clownish attempts to portray maneuvering in tight areas on YouTube have more to do with novice driving and exaggeration than actual flaws related to driving with a yoke.

In my opinion, if you are trying to make the decision between a yoke and a steering wheel; stick with a standard wheel if you are not a gearhead, if you prefer an automatic transmission to a standard transmission, and if a vehicle is just a way to get from point A to point B.

If however, you want to experience everything there is to be experienced in a Model S, if you know how to drive and are able to adapt and learn, and most of all, if you want rise above the mean, get the yoke and stick with it; you will be richly rewarded.

Joe

View attachment 1013098
"Tesla Model S Steering Wheel (Day 7 of 50)" by Au Kirk is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Admin note: Imaged added for Blog Feed thumbnail

In my view, my 23 MS Plaid would be perfect with the yoke and the lower part of the wheel attached. Form + better function. I wonder if anyone has 'removed' the top half of the steering wheel above the stalks? or added a yoke mod?

 

[zoomer0056]

In my view, my 23 MS Plaid would be perfect with the yoke and the lower part of the wheel attached. Form + better function. I wonder if anyone has 'removed' the top half of the steering wheel above the stalks? or added a yoke mod?

Good questions.

 

[MaddWrappsLLC]

The yolk was weird at first, but also kinda fun!

 

[evo9rs]

The yolk was weird at first, but also kinda fun!

there are so many ways to interpret this

 

[evo9rs]

I fly aircraft, and I think yokes are corny. good for low performance aircraft if you must... and that's about it.

 

[zoomer0056]

I fly aircraft for a living, and I think yokes are corny. good for low performance aircraft if you must... and that's about it.

What do you think was the idea that brought the yoke to aircraft?

 

[evo9rs]

What do you think was the idea that brought the yoke to aircraft?

something to assist a wider (lower) variety of skill, or to placate the egos of overly enthusiastic control inputs from underskilled / immature pilots that are flying low performance aircraft. this is a guess.

or, a transition from a steering wheel.

I am interested, though, in your "inputs"

 

[dmurphy]

I fly aircraft, and I think yokes are corny. good for low performance aircraft if you must... and that's about it.

I have a hard time calling a 747 a “low performance aircraft.”