Volkswagen admits defeat, will ditch haptic steering wheels
Tuesday, 25 October 2022
Volkswagen’s new touch-based steering wheel hasn’t exactly gone down well with buyers. The controls can be difficult to use and it seems that the voices of the owners has actually reached Volkswagen’s ears.
Thomas Schafer, head of the VW core brand, revealed in a post on LinkedIn that customer feedback has indeed made a difference: 'We are sharpening our portfolio and our design, plus creating a new simplicity in operating our vehicles.
“For example, we are bringing back the push-button steering wheel! That's what customers want from VW.'
The Golf is due for a facelift sometime around 2023, with test mules already being spotted overseas, and spy pictures have shown prototypes with large new touchscreens and previous-gen steering wheels with physical buttons.
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We’d expect the wheel to get a fresher look for its debut to match the rest of the car.
Unfortunately, the LinkedIn post only mentioned the steering wheel. Touch controls elsewhere in the Golf (and other new Volkswagens), like the air-conditioning and stereo system, are seemingly carrying on. That means unilluminated sliders below the touchscreen that are impossible to see at night and easy to miss.
The prototypes with the larger touchscreen seem to have a small angled shelf below the screen to rest your hand on, which would help a bit. Hopefully Volkswagen adds some lights behind the sliders as well.
Meanwhile, the incoming electric ID.4 and ID.5 both have similar touch-based air-conditioning controls along with the touch steering wheel. We might be waiting a while for those models to get the clicky-button steering wheel update.