Do you think the steering wheel will make it to production?
Tesla first introduced the prototype Roadster back in 2017, with some outrageous styling and some lofty promises. CEO Elon Musk said back then that the Tesla Roadster may make it into production by 2020, but with the upcoming Model Y, Pickup, Semi, and everything else the company has up its sleeves, he has since adjusted those expectations. Nevertheless, Electrek had the opportunity to catch this Roadster in action.
One of its most standout features was its “butterfly” steering wheel. If you thought it looked crazy in the prototype, it’s made it through to this video pretty much unchanged. We are curious how practical that will actually be in the real world, but you can see it in action below. This type of steering wheel also misses the road legal mark in most markets, but Tesla’s engineers are confident it will make it through to production.
When the person filming asks how the Tesla employee likes the steering wheel, he says it “takes some getting used to.” We’ll certainly take him at his word on that. The wheel looks like it moves two rotations lock-to-lock, as he slowly maneuvers the Roadster in a parking lot. As with the car’s other mind-bending claims, we’re curious to see how this car actually handles when Tesla brings it to production.
We’re curious to see what you think about the new Tesla Roadster? Do you like the butterfly steering wheel, or should Tesla stick to something more familiar? Will the company be able to bring the butterfly steering wheel to production at all? Time will ultimately tell.
