Tesla Makes a U-Turn as Regular Steering Wheel Returns to Model S and X

• The Tesla Model S and Model X are once again available with a regular steering wheel.
• A yoke is still offered, but a steering wheel (pictured above)—now with capacitive buttons versus stalks—returns as a no-cost option.
• Already yoked Model S or X EVs can have a steering wheel retrofitted for $700, but the Tesla service isn’t available until March.

The tried-and-true steering wheel returns to the Tesla Model S and Model X. While the steering yoke that has been mandatory since the cars’ 2021 redesign is still offered, people who order a new S or X can once again drive with a normal wheel at no extra cost.

Unlike before, the new steering wheel in the Model S and Model X doesn’t have stalks that control the blinkers, windshield wipers, or gear selection. Instead, all of those functions are now handled through capacitive buttons and controller balls, just like those found on the yoke.

One of these is not like the other.

What about all the folks who bought a Tesla Model S or X with the yoke-style setup and are unhappy with it? Well, Tesla is letting those customers swap it out for a real wheel with a retrofit option through its online store. It won’t be available until March, and it costs $700, which is said to include installation through Tesla service.

The return of a regular steering wheel to the Model S and Model X represents a symbolic U-turn by Tesla—and, more specifically, by CEO Elon Musk. Back in 2021, in the months after the company stirred up controversy by only offering both models with a yoke, Musk tweeted that there was no chance a traditional steering wheel would return, even as an option. The irony is that eggs have a yoke, and Musk may have a little on his face.

While Tesla’s yoke-style tiller has its fair share of detractors (including us), it’s still better than a steering wheel that flies off in your hand while you’re driving.

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