The Tesla Model S Plaid’s steering yoke is likely the most controversial part of the performance EV, and it doesn't take more than a simple YouTube search to realize that.
But while most owners complain about it online and then try adjusting to it, one Tesla Model S Plaid owner took matters into his own hands and set out to replace the yoke with a normal steering wheel.
Ryan Huber is one of the first to undertake such a project, and he recently completed his retrofit by ditching the yoke for a Tesla Model 3 steering wheel, complete with stalks. He uploaded a video of his Model S Plaid with the round steering wheel, and this is what he writes about the operation in the description.
“When I started on this project, I planned to make everything, including the Model 3 wheel, work. Over the time I’ve had the car, I’d grown accustomed the yoke, minus the haptic controls, which remain awful (even in the new version). I planned to set the car up as Yoke + stalks for my normal config, and to toss the round wheel on for fun, rarely. But then I got the controls on the round wheel working, and I’m not going back to the Yoke.”
As you can see in the demo video above, he even made the Model 3’s wheel scrolls work with the Model S software. In a page he set up on github to offer instructions and updates for those who are interested in doing a similar conversion, he notes that the Model S Plaid uses a lot of the parts bin from the Model 3/Y.
“The electrical architecture of the Plaid is basically just that of an oversized Model 3, which is a smart move for manufacturing simplification.”
Ryan also says the change is “entirely reversible and no stock hardware is permanently modified.” For example, the shrouds with cutouts for stalks come directly out of a Tesla Model 3, leaving the Plaid shrouds untouched. Interested?
Here's what other people think about the Model S Plaid's yoke
Source: Ryan Huber (YouTube) via Electrek
