The Yoke Experience

[SVL77]

Have had my Plaid for 2 weeks now...and I'm 95% acclimated to the yoke. The process has formed a theory in my mind: The car is so uniquely powerful, it's prudent that the primary driver touchpoint requires some attention and mindfulness. It is a visual and tactile reminder that unless you are Lewis Hamilton, this is a machine with power that you are not accustomed to. The 5% that I am not acclimated to keeps me a bit more focused than I might not otherwise be.

Think this was part of Tesla's logic, or just 100% marketing?

 

[Tam]

...The 5% that I am not acclimated to keeps me a bit more focused than I might not otherwise be....

Focusing on the yoke is driving with distraction and that does not make it safer

Think this was part of Tesla's logic, or just 100% marketing?

The only logic from Tesla is the beauty (not function):

https://twitter.com/x/status/1435917094751768582

 

[Sbaimo]

Have had my Plaid for 2 weeks now...and I'm 95% acclimated to the yoke. The process has formed a theory in my mind: The car is so uniquely powerful, it's prudent that the primary driver touchpoint requires some attention and mindfulness. It is a visual and tactile reminder that unless you are Lewis Hamilton, this is a machine with power that you are not accustomed to. The 5% that I am not acclimated to keeps me a bit more focused than I might not otherwise be.

Think this was part of Tesla's logic, or just 100% marketing?

I believe the only reason for the yoke was that Elon thought it was cool. I am used to mine but it was unnecessary. I like the auto shift (reverse or forward) but I would have preferred a stalk for turn signals.

 

[Jsvette56]

I got Plaid about a month ago and immediately went on a 3500 mile trip up and down the west coast; it took about a 1000 miles to get use to the yoke and now that I’ve driven it 4500 miles I really like it and would not even consider replacing it with a wheel. Change is hard for people and I suppose early last century when cars had tillers people probably complained about the switch to steering wheels.

I do hate the touch buttons on the yoke though and hope Tesla eventually replaces them with actual push buttons. I‘m forever accidentally turning on my wipers.

 

[URBAN LEGEND]

I don’t think the yoke is the issue. It’s what is on the yoke and where it is that is the issue.

 

[BBB4000]

I don’t think the yoke is the issue. It’s what is on the yoke and where it is that is the issue.

This. Yoke is probably awesome, but don't put ALL the controls on it. That's just dumb.

 

[MrMrC]

Isnt the funniest thing with the Yoke that Elon stated that he didnt want it to block the screen. Then they designed the Yoke really wide so instead of blocking the small screen it blocks the big screen? I think you get used to the steering with the Yoke though, the real problem I think is the buttons. How many times are we doing to indicate left when the only thing I wanted to do is skip to the next song on the play list.........

 

[Darmie]

Marques went from not liking it to liking it.
I think a lot of the I don't like it post were peoples opinion not real world usage.

Marques Brownlee Now Loves The Yoke, Would Not Switch To Normal Wheel

Tech reviewer Marques Brownlee has completely gotten used to the yoke, "to the point where if given an option to switch to a normal wheel, I wouldn’t take it."

insideevs.com

 

[2putt4]

I don’t have a problem with the yoke, just the turn signals. I got used it in a few sessions of driving in the city, same as one pedal driving.

• If you’re turning one direction and want to quickly indicate and turn the other direction, the yoke is flipped 180 and your hands are out of position. I have to maneuver from a busy intersection a quick left and then a right into my driveway and it’s difficult for me to indicate to the cars behind me my intent to quickly turn right. It’s perfectly fine for highway and basic 90 degree turning.
• When the yoke is flipped 180, hard for you to manipulate your thumb to signal.
• If buttons are important to them, they should have at least done it the Ferrari way where left and right are on opposite ends. Turn left with my left thumb and right with my right thumb. They should have also made them tactile buttons or levers on the wheel like thumb paddles. Capacitive buttons are hit/miss and I have to look down to make sure my thumb is on it at times.
• Ideally the stalk should have been left for turn signals. Regardless of yoke position, the stalk will always be in the same place.
• Yokes are mainly for race cars where your steering angle is rarely beyond 90 degrees.

 

[2101Guy]

Funny how we STILL havent seen a "I love the yoke AND I love not having stalks, LOVE small buttons for turn signals, LOVE not being able to honk horn via airbag" type of post. The all are "hey, yoke isnt that bad afterall"....and thats it.

Also, is Marques one of the influencers who gets preferential VIP type treatment from Tesla? Tesla the same company known to revoke credentials, invites, early access, etc to those who have posted non-positive vids about their products?

 

[Wolfsbane]

I've been driving with the yoke for two week and it really is NBD. Seriously, if you can adapt to one-pedal driving, you can adapt to the yoke. Is it better than a conventional wheel and controls? No. Is it worse? Not in my experience. It's just different and different can be cool and fun even when it's just different for being different's sake. What I find FAR more annoying is the fact that there is no B-Pillar height adjustment of the seat belt shoulder strap. For the life of me, I cannot find a way to position my seat so that the shoulder strap doesn't rise up into my neck. It's infuriating.

 

[PlaidLambo]

any way to retrofit some other tesla steering wheel into the plaid?

 

[DukeofURL]

any way to retrofit some other tesla steering wheel into the plaid?

There have been some people who have discovered a model 3 wheel and stalks will fit, but it requires a CAN bus transcoder to adapt the signals. Possible, yes, but at the end of the day it's totally unnecessary once you've had the car a week or two.

 

[2101Guy]

IF Tesla would simply re-anable ability to honk horn from the airbag and change the turn signals to a trigger on the back of each side of the yoke? 90% of issues are then resolved with the needless switch to the combo of yoke/no stalks/no horn via airbag/little turn signal buttons

 

[BigNerd]

So there are 2 things that I wonder about yoke driving vs wheel driving:

1. When I make a turn, I'm used to the auto turn back of the wheel when I'm accelerating while I'm holding it and the wheel passes through my fingers, is that different with a yoke?

2. I also steer with my palm sometimes using the top of the wheel as a starting point, how does that work with a yoke?

For vehicles that don't make sharp turns, I can understand the the yoke. but are maneuvers like a 3 point turn cumbersome with a yoke? I'm sure everyone will get used to it but I just don't think it's practical.

I see some vehicles that are flattening out the bottom of the steering wheel (the 22 Leaf has that) but no one is flattening the top of the steering wheel for visibility.

 

[DukeofURL]

So there are 2 things that I wonder about yoke driving vs wheel driving:

1. When I make a turn, I'm used to the auto turn back of the wheel when I'm accelerating while I'm holding it and the wheel passes through my fingers, is that different with a yoke?

2. I also steer with my palm sometimes using the top of the wheel as a starting point, how does that work with a yoke?

For vehicles that don't make sharp turns, I can understand the the yoke. but are maneuvers like a 3 point turn cumbersome with a yoke? I'm sure everyone will get used to it but I just don't think it's practical.

I see some vehicles that are flattening out the bottom of the steering wheel (the 22 Leaf has that) but no one is flattening the top of the steering wheel for visibility.

It's definitely different, and takes a bit of getting used to, but its second nature for me now, a month later. I got in my wife's BMW over the weekend and it was awkward driving with the wheel, and I went to press the button for a turn signal and had to reach around the back for the stalk. It all felt so foreign to me, despite the fact I'd been doing it for ~25 years lol.

How quickly we forget the old ways, I guess...

 

[David_Cary]

It's definitely different, and takes a bit of getting used to, but its second nature for me now, a month later. I got in my wife's BMW over the weekend and it was awkward driving with the wheel, and I went to press the button for a turn signal and had to reach around the back for the stalk. It all felt so foreign to me, despite the fact I'd been doing it for ~25 years lol.

How quickly we forget the old ways, I guess...

Yep - and that is the issue for couples.
If I ever got a Yoke, my wife would never want to drive it. Some might be fine with that and think it is a positive. But, we have need to shift cars from time to time and the yoke would be a big problem - as would turn signals, horn etc.
BTW - we currently have 2 Teslas. Early adopters but not yoke adopters.

 

[bandido]

There have been some people who have discovered a model 3 wheel and stalks will fit, but it requires a CAN bus transcoder to adapt the signals. Possible, yes, but at the end of the day it's totally unnecessary once you've had the car a week or two.

How is the horn access? Everyone talks about the shape, but what if pedestrian is about to step off curb in front of your car? Little neighbor kid running , or car changing into your lane? Everyone is instinctively able to adjust to using your right thumb instead of hitting the middle of the wheel? Generations of panic conditioning to hit center of wheel, to right thumb?

 

[DukeofURL]

How is the horn access? Everyone talks about the shape, but what if pedestrian is about to step off curb in front of your car? Little neighbor kid running , or car changing into your lane? Everyone is instinctively able to adjust to using your right thumb instead of hitting the middle of the wheel? Generations of panic conditioning to hit center of wheel, to right thumb?

The workaround is you can use you entire right palm on the right side of the yoke (covering all of the buttons), that will trigger the horn... or just press the single button, but that's harder to do in an instant.

 

[DukeofURL]

If I ever got a Yoke, my wife would never want to drive it. Some might be fine with that and think it is a positive. But, we have need to shift cars from time to time and the yoke would be a big problem - as would turn signals, horn etc.

My wife doesn't mind the yoke shape/turn signals/etc, neither did my mom when she drove it - but my wife doesn't like driving it for two other reasons. 1) Too much power (which is solved by Chill mode), and "it's too expensive, I'm nervous driving it", hahaha.