NHTSA might not consider half a wheel to be enough.
It has been a busy 24 hours for Tesla. The Model S will get updates from the EV manufacturer. This includes the new Plaid trim, which has more than 1,000 horsepower and hits 60 mph in less than two seconds. Plaid + trim has over 500 mile range. It’s the half-wheel that drives the car that draws the most attention, however, as impressive as it is.
It caught our attention, as well as the eyes of almost everyone who saw the Tesla announcement. We received a lot of reader feedback on, ranging from the design to be used to adjust the steering ratio to legal production cars.
We can’t speak about ratios until we have the opportunity to get behind the wheel (or yoke). Motor1.com contacted the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to inquire about the non-wheel-wheel. A spokesperson for the NHTSA provided this brief but informative reply.
“At the moment, NHTSA is unable to determine if the steering column meets Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. For more information, we will contact the automaker.
Logic suggests that an automaker would take care to ensure that radical new designs comply with federal regulations. It’s possible that Tesla designers reviewed such matters and the NHTSA may have had a miscommunication. Tesla is the company that makes SUVs that can open in celebration mode and have gullwing doors. Tesla asks drivers whether they want to be with their mommy before going into Ludicrous mode. The company that introduced the outrageous Cybertruck is Tesla, raising questions about legality. We doubt that the NHTSA is confused.
Tesla may be aware of safety concerns, as images showing the Model S with a standard wheel have surfaced, but nothing is official. The NHTSA would like to learn more about this part-wheel, and, frankly, about the whole car. Keep watching.