[RZ-4-Me]

The RZ 450e will be getting a steer by wire system at a later date that "enables the electronic exchange of steering and road surface information between the advanced steering control and tires via electrical signals, not mechanical linkage."

MEET THE ALL-NEW LEXUS RZ, THE LUXURY BRAND’S FIRST BATTERY EV - Lexus USA Newsroom

PLANO, Texas (April 20, 2022) -- Lexus is proud to unveil details of the all-new 2023 RZ 450e, the luxury brand’s first global Battery EV (BEV).

pressroom.lexus.com

AVAILABLE STEER BY WIRE WITH INNOVATIVE STEERING CONTROL ELEVATE THE HUMAN-MACHINE CONNECTION

Available in the U.S. at a future date, the Lexus-first Steer by Wire system enables the electronic exchange of steering and road surface information between the advanced steering control and tires via electrical signals, not mechanical linkage.

The control’s steering angle is set at approximately 150 degrees, thus greatly reducing the driver’s workload and eliminating the need for hand-over-hand operation at intersections, U-turns, parking, winding roads and other driving situations. Unhindered by a sizeable standard steering wheel, designers crafted the steering control’s compact shape and lowered the instrument meter’s placement to encourage driver engagement and environmental awareness.

A cockpit space encouraging even more engagement with the car has been achieved by minimizing driver eye movement during driving and naturally drawing the driver’s eyes forward. With Steer by Wire enabling the electronic exchange of steering and road surface information between the steering wheel and tires via electrical signals, Lexus focused on the quality and transmission speed of important driving information. The system achieves maneuverable and confidence inspiring performance through precise judgment, by blocking out unnecessary vibrations from the tires and brakes, only relaying vital driving information such as road information to the driver.

When Lane Tracing Assist is activated, the wheels are controlled as needed, allowing for gentle steering and vehicle movement. Furthermore, in addition to the vehicle’s overall maneuverability, the system provides nimble and agile performance on winding roads and high-speed stability on the highways by optimizing the steering gear ratio according to vehicle condition.

 

[RZ-4-Me]

Here's a great look at how the yoke's steer by wire system compares to the normal steering wheel setup.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1519318441819320320

 

[RZ-4-Me]

The folks at Jalopnik seem to really like the RZ's steer by wire system.

https://jalopnik.com/how-lexus-got-the-yoke-right-unlike-tesla-1848854735

Ah, the yoke. Loved by carmakers, for unclear reasons, but loathed by car drivers for reasons that are all too obvious. We’ve discussed the flaws of the yoke before, but the question always comes up: Formula One cars have yokes, what makes street cars so different?

The answer, it turns out, is refreshingly simple: Fix the steering ratio. Implementing that, however, turns out to be a lot harder than it looks.

As pointed out by friend of the show, and occasional contributor for Jalopnik, Bozi Tatarevic on Twitter, the upcoming Lexus RZ uses fully electric steering to decouple the movements of the steering wheel from the movements of the wheels doing the steering. Through this setup, Lexus can change how much a driver needs to turn the yoke in order to fully lock the front wheels — in the case of the RZ, the company brought it down to less than one full turn.

Lexus isn’t the first to use fully electric steering, Infiniti introduced the technology way back in 2014. But fully decoupling the steering wheel from the steering rack is something even Tesla hasn’t done yet — the company seems content to iterate on power-assissted steering rather than disrupt the traditional linkage. Ironic, isn’t it?

The RZ rides on the same platform as the Toyota bZ4X and Subaru Solterra, but only the Lexus and ‘Yota will get the yoke. At Subaru’s recent press event for the Solterra, the company confirmed that the company had no plans to remove the traditional steering wheel — despite its interference with the crossover’s gauge cluster.

Toyota and Lexus, it seems, have adopted the yoke to avoid that specific flaw. Though, that begs the question: Was developing an entirely new steering system really easier than rearranging the interior?