Amongst the hubbub surrounding Tesla's updated
Model S sedan and Model X SUV sharing
a new interior layout with a horizontally oriented touchscreen and offering
ultra-quick new three-motor Plaid variants, one change stood out. Literally, it
pokes out of the
new dashboard in the Model S and
Model X. It's the wacky airplane-yoke-style not-round
steering wheel Tesla
says both electric vehicles will come with. But will the
automaker really ship such an unusual steering interface to customers?
We
found some images of the new Model S with a regular steering wheel buried
within the source code of Tesla's website, which suggests to us that even the
automaker is hedging that the new wheel shape may go unloved by customers or,
more critically, be banished by regulators.
Wait, Can Tesla
Even Sell Cars With A Steering "Yoke?"
The law isn't totally clear on
whether or not the new Teslas' steering yokes are fair game, although, in recently proposed rule changes to primary
vehicle controls amidst the rise of self-driving cars, the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) noted it has never fully defined the
necessary shape of a steering wheel—i.e., that it must be a complete circle or
at least mostly round. It's only written that the control must satisfy crash
standards. In fact, in seeking to clarify definitions of driver controls (and
explicitly cover such interfaces in self-driving vehicles that may not need
them at all), the NHTSA states—while specifying its wording on the topic—that:
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