Six things we learned driving Merc’s new Cybertruck-style steering system

 1. The yoke ain’t no joke

Remember those bizarre-looking steering ‘wheels’ from Tesla Model S, X and Cybertruck, and how they were almost universally disliked? Well, not content with 40-inch screens across the dash in the new GLC, Mercedes is ignoring all that and ploughing headlong into the future… by soon offering a steering yoke on the updated EQS.

It’s not just there to make owners feel like an extra from Star Trek though, it’s fitted exclusively when customers specify a new steer-by-wire system. This makes Merc the first German manufacturer to offer the tech – where there’s no physical connection between the wheel and front wheels, only electronic signals – allowing (theoretically) infinite and constant variability in the steering ratio, and less kick back and vibrations making their way to your palms.

What this means in layman’s terms is that the yoke isn’t such a silly idea when you realise arm twirling, or adjusting your hand position on the wheel in any way, isn’t required because the steering ratio at low speeds is so direct. And there are other benefits too…

2. Enjoy the view

Such as the view you get of the instrument panel in front of you, and the road ahead of you, is significantly improved versus a traditional helm… given the top and bottom halves of the wheel are effectively missing.

It also makes it easier to get in and out of the car, and creates an airier feel in the cabin, says Mercedes… and they’re right. What they haven’t weighed that up against is how all your friends and family will think you’re a bit of a berk the first time they see it.

3. It reminded me of the Cybertruck

Elon’s stainless-steel dream also has a yoke and a steer-by-wire system, and it’s that truck I thought of the first time I turned the yoke on the EQS prototype we had (a brief) stint in on a short slalom-style course. You simply don’t expect large, heavy, extremely long cars/trucks to behave like this when you twitch your wrists.

A combination of that souped-up steering ratio at low speeds and four-wheel steering, with a whopping 10 degrees of lock on the rear axle, mean a quarter-turn is all that’s required to have the nose carving a tight circle and the rear noticeably scooting around behind you.

4. It takes some getting used to

Boy does it take some getting used to. Admittedly we only had 15 minutes zig-zagging through cones, which wasn’t nearly enough to recalibrate my body and brain, but I spent longer in the Cybertruck a few years ago and with time that did begin to feel more natural, useful and significantly less effort than twiddling a traditional electromechanical setup.

Worth mentioning that this hyper-sensitivity is only at crawling speeds to maximise manoeuvrability. As the speed rises the ratio lengthens and at cruising speeds the rear tyres turn in-phase with the front for stability and smoothness.

5. Redundancy built in

“But what if the car has an electrical meltdown, do I plough straight into the nearest tree?” Fear not, Mercedes has thought of this and built in what it calls a ‘redundant system architecture’ with ‘basically two signal paths’ in case one fails. In the unlikely event of a complete failure ‘lateral control is still possible thanks to rear-axle steering and targeted wheel-specific braking interventions via the ESP’. Reassuring.

6. Next stop – no steering wheel at all  

For all those recoiling at the idea of a yoke, and the whole premise of steering-by-wire, consider this: I spoke to an engineer who mentioned another clear benefit of the system is for fully autonomous cars that don’t require any human steering input at all. Without any physical connection, there’s no ghostly twirling of a wheel required in a ‘hands-off’ mode, at which point your yoke (a usefully more foldable shape than a circle) could simply crinkle itself up and disappear into the dash. Now there’s a concept car signature we never thought would become reality… until now.