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After putting an end to failure-prone hidden and motorised door handles, Chinese regulators have turned their attention to irregular steering controls.
Chinese regulators have drafted a new safety standard that could see ‘yoke’ style steering wheels banned on future vehicles.
In a bid to reduce injuries caused by irregularly shaped wheels, or those with open ends, the new regulation includes impact tests at ten specific points around the steering wheel rim.
The new test criteria, which call for impact tests at the "midpoint of the weakest area" and the "midpoint of the shortest unsupported area" on the steering wheel rim mean that ‘half-spoke’ or yoke-style steering wheels without a complete outer rim would not physically be able to comply with these tests.
The new regulations, published by the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), are set to come into force from the first of January, 2027.
The draft regulations currently published are open for consultation, but like recently changed regulations that impact the design and operation of door handles, automakers can base upcoming vehicle designs on the proposed changes.
Other points under the revised regulations align Chinese regulations more closely with those used overseas.
China’s existing regulations differ in terms of upward and backward column movement during a collision, and impact force limits for occupants.
These compliance differences only affect Chinese domestic market cars, with automakers already required to comply with applicable local standards for cars sold outside of China.
The so-called ‘human impact test’ requirement for steering wheels, which was previously exempted in some situations, will now also move to mandatory.
Hook-risk evaluations will also be included, checking to see how likely any part of a steering wheel is catch on a drivers clothing, jewelry, or accessories, further reducing the possibility for open-top or sharp cornered yoke steering wheels to comply.
Airbag operation will also come under scrutiny, with tighter controls for protruding parts of an airbag cover as it deploys.
As with similar regulatory changes in China, Chinese brands will have 13 months to bring models into line with the regulations, provided they make it through without further changes before the proposed January 2027 adoption date.
Kez Casey migrated from behind spare parts counters to writing about cars over ten years ago. Raised by a family of automotive workers, Kez grew up in workshops and panel shops before making the switch to reviews and road tests for The Motor Report, Drive and CarAdvice.
