Tesla’s Cybercab isn’t expected to go into production until 2026, but when it does, it could find itself stuck with a vestige of automotive past: a steering wheel.
Certainly, we still use ruffles. But the Tesla Cybercab was supposed to be the first vehicle of the new future, and there’s nothing futuristic about the steering wheels.
Tesla Chairman Robyn Denholm blurted out an interview with Bloomberg that the autonomous vehicle may need to include one of those round, spinning things that we humble humans use to navigate our analog environment. That’s because flywheels are a big problem for regulators; they like cars to have them. If you want to sell a car without a car, you must request an exemption from current federal safety rules. And that involves many compromises.
Tesla unveiled the Cybercab at a lavish event in Hollywood last year, with Elon Musk touting the sleek two-seater as the future of mobility. The lack of a steering wheel was intended to convey the seriousness with which Tesla approached autonomous technology. It would be a purpose-built autonomous vehicle, built from the ground up to be autonomous, and autonomous only. There is no steering wheel to take manual control of the vehicle.
But it was also a huge risk for Tesla. Theoretically, a vehicle without pedals or a steering wheel could take months, or even years, to be approved on public roads. A more traditional-looking vehicle could come out much sooner.
We’ve already seen what happens when a company tries to build a purpose-built autonomous vehicle. General Motors tried to get an exemption for its steering wheel-less Cruise Origin shuttles and was left in the wind for a year. Ultimately, GM abandoned plans for the Origin and shut Cruise down completely after safety lapses.
Even if Tesla were granted an exemption, it would only allow the company to make and sell 2,500 Cybercabs per year. This would seriously undermine the company’s plans to transform itself into an AI and robotics powerhouse.
U.S. Department of Transportation Deputy Secretary Sean Duffy said he wants to streamline the exemption review process to allow companies like Tesla to put more fully autonomous vehicles on the road. But he can raise the cap on the number of vehicles allowed each year without an act of Congress — and last time I checked, none of those guys were working right now.
The current dispute between Duffy and Musk further complicates Tesla’s plans. The two appeared friendly during an on-site visit to Tesla’s Austin headquarters earlier this year. But since then, Duffy has been named acting administrator at NASA, and now he and Musk are embroiled in a dispute over a SpaceX contract. If only we lived in a country where we weren’t at the mercy of a few very powerful, very skinny men!
