Ford Solved Tesla’s Yoke Dilemma More Than Five Years Ago
By Edward A. Sanchez – Feb. 23, 2021
A few weeks ago, I wrote a post on the 2021 Tesla Model S and Model X yoke steering wheel. If you haven’t read it, you can find it here. After some research and digging, I concluded, along with many others, that while the design was unconventional and controversial, it didn’t seem like it was necessarily illegal.
An Australian Tesla enthusiast channel “Tesla in the Gong” did a video, in which the steering wheel in a current Model S was digitally edited to simulate the shape of the yoke wheel in the new Model S. In normal driving, it didn’t seem like the design adversely affected maneuverability, control, or safety, with the possible exception of going around roundabouts, in which the driver’s arms got close to getting crossed-up a few times. The other scenario in which the yoke wheel could prove inconvenient – or at least uncomfortable – would be in making a U-turn. Though it seems like Tesla is covering its bases, with some validation builds of the 2021 Model S reportedly running around with more conventional “hoop” steering wheels.
Tesla’s proposed 2021 Model S and X revamp includes a potentially problematic steering wheel yoke design. (Image courtesy Tesla)
Pure steer-by-wire steering systems are still in a relatively nebulous area from a regulatory standpoint, similar to the yoke wheel. They’re not strictly prohibited, yet most auto manufacturers do not use them for fear of liability in case of electrical/electronic failure. At least with a mechanical system, if the power assist mechanism fails or malfunctions, the driver could still operate the car to either pull over or to reach to the next logical stop to get the vehicle repaired.
However, there is a possible workaround that Tesla could employ that would allow the yoke wheel to be practically implemented in a vehicle with mechanical steering. Ironically, the technology is more than seven years old, and has been in mass-market, series-production cars for more than five years in the form of Ford’s Adaptive Steering system. This system was initially offered on the Edge midsize crossover, and later in the F-Series Super Duty models starting with the 2017 model year.
Ford’s compact Adaptive Steering system can change a vehicle’s lock-to-lock ratio dramatically. (Image courtesy Ford)
The system is actually quite compact, clever, and to the end user, practically invisible, except for making the vehicle easier to maneuver at slower speeds. The entire mechanism is housed within the steering wheel hub itself and consists of a small electric motor and worm gear mechanism. In a Ford Focus prototype, the system was able to reduce the “lock-to-lock” steering turns from 2.6 to 2.0 turns. I had a chance to experience the system for myself in a 2017 Super Duty, and can attest to its effectiveness driving it back-to-back with another model not equipped with Adaptive Steering.
In terms of safety, Ford says that in the rare event of failure of the Adaptive Steering system, that the system “locks” and defaults to a purely mechanical, non-variable ratio system. If Tesla were to implement a similar system in the Model S or Model X equipped with the yoke wheel, I could see where the design could conceivably make sense. But the yoke wheel is definitely a compromised design if it’s mated to a non-variable-ratio steering system.
(Main image courtesy Ford)
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