Watch Tesla’s crazy new way to shift from drive to reverse in new Model S

– Mar. 24th 2021 7:49 am ET

A new video shows Tesla’s crazy new way to shift drive modes (drive, reverse, etc.) in a new refreshed Model S after Tesla removes the stalk.

Tesla recently officially unveiled the new Model S and Model X refresh.

The update to the Model S and Model X includes a new powertrain and a brand-new interior, but one of the biggest changes is the new “yoke” steering wheel.

It has a “butterfly” shape, but the actual biggest change is the fact that Tesla removed all the stalks from the steering wheel and replaced the controls by force touch buttons on the wheel.

We did a deep dive on the steering wheel based on information that we obtained in a document Tesla shared with its staff after the launch in January.

Even the stalk for gear shifting from drive, reverse, neutral to parked is gone, and we learned that Tesla plans to replace it with something called ‘Smart Shift,” which uses Autopilot sensors and AI to automatically determine which gear the car should be in.

Tesla wrote in the document obtained by Electrek:

The vehicle uses its Autopilot sensors to intelligently and automatically determine intended drive modes and select them. For example, if the front of Model S/X is facing a garage wall, it will detect this and automatically shift to Reverse once the driver presses the brake pedal. This eliminates one more step for the drivers of the world’s most intelligent production cars.

While Tesla aims for this to be the main way to change gears inside the vehicle, the automaker is planning some other manual ways to change gears.

Now a new video from inside a refreshed Tesla Model S has surfaced on social media and shows that Tesla added a digital slider on the side of the main screen to change gears:

In the document obtained in Janauary, Tesla told employees that the new Model S and Model X would also have a more traditional way of changing gears through force touch buttons located on the center console.

However, some prototypes spotted in the wild had those buttons and others didn’t.

With delays to the first deliveries and some confusing information regarding the steering wheel, it appears that Tesla might have jumped the gun a little with the unveiling of the new Model S and Model X, and some details appearing to still be currently worked out by the automaker.

In the Tesla community, the decision to remove the gear stalk has been controversial to say the least.

What do you think about this new way to shift gears shown in the video above? Let us know in the comments section below.

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Tesla is a transportation and energy company. It sells vehicles under its 'Tesla Motors' division and stationary battery pack for home, commercial and utility-scale projects under its 'Tesla Energy' division.