Yoke Steering

[Tam]

...I'd say the nicks complaining here were never interested in a Tesla or an S Plaid...

I do want to trade up for the better not worse.

I used to own 2012 Model S 85 and I wanted to trade up for better utility: more room for my cargo than the S could take so I ordered the X.

When I found out that the X could not do that because the beauty of the second-row mono-post seats couldn't fold flat in 2015 so I lost interest.

I could learn to love those beautiful seats but not at the expense of functionality.

Two years later, in 2017, at last, Tesla produced a version without those beautiful seats so that I could fold them flat and that's how I got mine in 2017 and not 2015.

With the current yoke steering wheel, I do think that I can handle it fine just the same way as I could learn to love those unfoldable mono-post seats in the Model X but it does give me a pause and it did kill my interest in trading up for now.

 

[Dolemite]

Hey. I’ve got it. We’re going to put 1,000+ horsepower in a car, and give them a steering wheel from a Nintendo.

 

[mark95476]

Left thumb to turn the volume up or down --or--
Right thumb to turn the speed up or down.

Incorrect, unfortunately. Until Tesla changes the way AP monitors driver attention, you need keep at least one hand on the wheel/yoke so that AP detects slight torque input from the driver. If it doesn’t, the “nag” happens quite frequently at highway speeds (more that once every minute).

 

[MagnusMako]

If it aint broke, don't make it a yoke.

Why should anyone need to "get used to" something that wasn't necessary or an improvement in the first place?

Just because you can adapt to something to make it less uncomfortable, doesn't mean you should.

And to the guy who said hands on 3 and 9 and you're fine - that's not even where the problem lies. It's turning the wheel at low speeds and sharp angles where you get into trouble. There are countless scenario's where I see this being problematic as more of these hit the road.

Hopefully a company or two just comes out with a nice aftermarket steering wheel and doesn't charge a fortune.

 

[ThomasD]

Had 3 pairs of gloves handy: nitrile gloves, thin/lightweight gloves and heavy fleece gloves--the yoke buttons worked with the first two, but not the fleece. OTOH the yoke is heated, so you could argue you would not need the fleece gloves.

How was it with leather work gloves

 

[EvilNuff]

The problem is the yoke is just flat out inferior to the wheel. There are literally no benefits to the yoke. On the other hand, yokes are designed for other applications than normal street driving. Hand over hand, 3 point turns, backing up, long distance driving comfort (ie shifting your hand position for a change of pace) among other things are all problems with a yoke. Objectively it is just worse.

Yes you can "get used to it" but why on earth should you have to get used to an inferior product for no reason? You can't loan your car to friends/family as they won't have "gotten used to it". You can go on and on but the simple fact is Tesla *must* start offering a wheel or they will flat out start losing sales. I personally will not convert my Cybertruck reservation into a purchase until there is a wheel option (factory or good aftermarket).

 

[VT_EE]

I wonder more about the lack of stalks than the shape of the wheel. In Omarsultan's video, he only turned on the indicators from a near-straight position - I want to see how one turns on indicators to e.g. leave a round-about, where the wheel is already turned significantly.

That is not a problem in the US. Almost no one realizes you are supposed to use the turn signals when exiting round-a-bouts.

 

[VT_EE]

The problem is the yoke is just flat out inferior to the wheel. There are literally no benefits to the yoke. On the other hand, yokes are designed for other applications than normal street driving. Hand over hand, 3 point turns, backing up, long distance driving comfort (ie shifting your hand position for a change of pace) among other things are all problems with a yoke. Objectively it is just worse.

Yes you can "get used to it" but why on earth should you have to get used to an inferior product for no reason? You can't loan your car to friends/family as they won't have "gotten used to it". You can go on and on but the simple fact is Tesla *must* start offering a wheel or they will flat out start losing sales. I personally will not convert my Cybertruck reservation into a purchase until there is a wheel option (factory or good aftermarket).

My wife would never drive it with a yoke. Of course, that may not be a problem depending on how you look at it.

 

[Wol747]

Incorrect, unfortunately. Until Tesla changes the way AP monitors driver attention, you need keep at least one hand on the wheel/yoke so that AP detects slight torque input from the driver. If it doesn’t, the “nag” happens quite frequently at highway speeds (more that once every minute).

...and what about when the a/p is reversing while turning through 90'? I am sure it WILL reverse when FSD comes......

 

[omarsultan]

I will try to keep an open mind, but I cannot imagine how limiting the number of positions you can place your hands, enhances the experience, especially on long drives. As someone who will go 15 hours (with kids and dog) there is no way that I keep my hands at 9/3 the whole time. Now you cannot rest your hands at 10/2 or top of wheel. Yes, I know , not optimal, but this is reality.

I agree with the aforementioned interface of grey on grey.

Seems to solve a problem, that no one really had, and if they did this seemingly creates more problems (visibility vs hand positioning). Change for the sake of change is definitely NOT first principle thinking.

You are not limited to 3/9-o'clock. The rim that comprises the bottom half of the yoke is a key design addition--it lets you vary hand position. For the last couple of days, I am back to most one handed driving, resting an arm of the door or center console armrest and grabbing the yoke by one of its corners.

 

[bay74]

That is not a problem in the US. Almost no one realizes you are supposed to use the turn signals when exiting round-a-bouts.

Well hopefully non-US Model S/Xs will still have the indicator stalk.

Yeah, right.

 

[Ocelot]

I know I shouldn't be feeding the troll...

- AP is standard on all Teslas. No need to keep your hands on the yoke/wheel at all times.
- One hand, two hands, no hands... AP doesn't care.
- If you want to rest your hands, try the bottom of the yoke/wheel.

I don't think Tesla is going to have a difficult time finding customers for their new S and Y.

I'd say the nicks complaining here were never interested in a Tesla or an S Plaid.

Got me. Nine years hanging out. Own an X, EV advocate locally, and a car “guy”. This equals a troll? people are allowed to disagree, without receiving insults. Makes for a better world. Hopefully you can appreciate the differences.

 

[Ocelot]

You are not limited to 3/9-o'clock. The rim that comprises the bottom half of the yoke is a key design addition--it lets you vary hand position. For the last couple of days, I am back to most one handed driving, resting an arm of the door or center console armrest and grabbing the yoke by one of its corners.

Yes, I see that, but on a really long road trip , most people’s hands will be top...middle..bottom. Essentially everywhere.
As a person who really likes driving, I rarely even use cruise control...and have engaged autopilot once ..just to see what the deal was.

 

[Snerruc]

And in five years no one will even care if the wheel was round or yoked. There's always a hue and cry whenever anything new is tried, sometimes it catches on, sometimes it doesn't, as in the pushbutton gear selectors on '56 Chryslers. Which didn't survive. It's possible the yoke will disappear, too. If there's not a clear advantage, it probably will.

Darn, I still miss those shift buttons. They made it much easier to rock a car out of a snow drift.

 

[diplomat33]

Motor Trend has a good review of the yoke steering wheel:

2022 Tesla Model S Plaid Steering Yoke Review: So, Is It Good or a Gimmick?

Is Tesla's unconventional new steering yoke the way forward or a step backward?

www.motortrend.com

 

[AperiodicCoder]

The problem is the yoke is just flat out inferior to the wheel. There are literally no benefits to the yoke. On the other hand, yokes are designed for other applications than normal street driving. Hand over hand, 3 point turns, backing up, long distance driving comfort (ie shifting your hand position for a change of pace) among other things are all problems with a yoke. Objectively it is just worse.

Yes you can "get used to it" but why on earth should you have to get used to an inferior product for no reason? You can't loan your car to friends/family as they won't have "gotten used to it". You can go on and on but the simple fact is Tesla *must* start offering a wheel or they will flat out start losing sales. I personally will not convert my Cybertruck reservation into a purchase until there is a wheel option (factory or good aftermarket).

This is pretty much how I feel. Here I am with my 3 and a Cybertruck reservation but also looking at an X for my wife. All was well when we saw the pre-production vehicles with a standard wheel. It appeared at that time they would offer a non-yoke option for people that didn't care about the novelty of the yoke (that's what you get with the yoke: novelty and a less obstructed view of the pretty binnacle).

I'm seriously hoping they relent and offer a standard wheel at some point. I would probably still go with Cybertruck and it'd be one of those crappy quirks of the vehicle that you just accept (AI wipers, anyone?) as it's otherwise too great, but I don't think I'd like to subject my wife to the awkward driving with the yoke that I see in all videos with it.

I feel like we saw the wheel in the pre-production vehicles because there were cooler heads trying to talk Elon into offering it and he finally put his foot down. Who knows.

(And since I'm picking on the S, why oh why didn't they update the taillights with better diffused LEDs like on every other model they make?)

 

[omarsultan]

Yes, I see that, but on a really long road trip , most people’s hands will be top...middle..bottom. Essentially everywhere.
As a person who really likes driving, I rarely even use cruise control...and have engaged autopilot once ..just to see what the deal was.

In the same boat--rarely use cruise control, let alone AP. Nonetheless, the yoke is comfortable for lazy one-handed driving, for me, at least.

 

[jsmay311]

Motor Trend has a good review of the yoke steering wheel:

2022 Tesla Model S Plaid Steering Yoke Review: So, Is It Good or a Gimmick?

Is Tesla's unconventional new steering yoke the way forward or a step backward?

www.motortrend.com

To save others a click, here's their verdict:

"We went into our steering yoke experience with an open mind, but the more time we spent with the 2022 Tesla Model S Plaid, the less we liked it. Tesla may be able to get away with the whimsy of a yoke in a sports car like the long-delayed Tesla Roadster—the type of vehicle whose owners perhaps drive only occasionally as a weekend toy—but in a daily driver like the Model S, it's pointlessly annoying."

 

[MagnusMako]

Honestly I wouldn't even like it in the Roadster and I'm considering getting that car as well. But there's always the aftermarket to hopefully save the day so we shall see. Not a fan of Elon doubling down on it. I don't see why not just give people the option? I find it hard to imagein it'd be that hard to change between them in production lines. Heck they could even upcharge for a regular wheel $1000 and I bet most people would pay for it.

 

[kavyboy]

Not a fan of Elon doubling down on it.

Come on over to the waypoints thread!