Tesla makes yoke option, regular steering wheel standard again

The unpopularity of the yoke is disputed, but a regular wheel becoming a Tesla store best-seller speaks volumes

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Elon Musk, a Tesla interior designer, and an egg walk into a bar. We may never know exactly what happened inside, but the designer and Musk emerged holding a rectangular yoke-style steering device some time later, while the egg never did.

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Bad yokes aside, Tesla actually did announce in early 2021 that the refreshed Model X and Model S Plaid would have a squared-off yoke instead of a steering wheel. It was optional at first, but then Tesla said the yoke would replace the wheel as standard. By that summer, the reviews were in. Some enjoyed the novelty of a unique shape, but most people agreed that the yoke wasn't all it was cracked up to be.

So, Tesla scrambled the decree and reinvented the wheel, adding the circle back into the cockpit as an option, and later making it standard again. [UPDATE: In May 2023, Tesla moved to make the yoke a costly option once again, charging US$250 for the feature if you want one in place of the standard round steering wheel. Our original article, about the steering wheel being sold as an accessory to replace yokes, continues below. —Ed.]

In late March 2023, the company made available on its online store a US$700 retrofit package, "Model S/X Steering Wheel Retrofit," so owners could replace the yoke in the car they already bought with a good ol’ steering wheel.

Well, it feels like Tesla has once again underestimated just how much people appreciate a steering wheel (or dislike a yoke), because that retrofit product debuted just over a week ago, and already the brand has sold out of the thing, reports AutoEvolution. Yeah—the part is no longer available from the brand's online store or on the app, from what we gather.

The outlet suggests the Steering Wheel Retrofit was "probably one of the most successful items in the Tesla Shop" ever, though it is hard to say since the number of wheels Tesla made available is not known. Also unknown: the future of the yoke in new Tesla vehicles, though last we checked, the upcoming Cybertruck gets a round steering apparatus. What a concept, huh?

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Tesla introduced its optional yoke in 2021, then later made it standard on new S and X Plaid cars After a short stint where buyers could choose either, the yoke has gone back to being a costly option Tesla's online store also recently offered a US$700 replacement wheel for owners of a Model S or X with a yoke Within a week, the "accessory" had sold out, allegedly making it one of the store's most popular products ever included