Microsoft Corp. just announced that it is taking a precautionary measure and voluntarily providing customers with a free retrofit to the Xbox 360 Wireless Racing Wheel.

Not to cause a panic, Microsoft assures us that the recall/refit action is being taken after Microsoft was informed of "a very small number" of incidents of a malfunction in the Xbox 360 Wireless Racing Wheel, in which a component in the wheel chassis may overheat and "release smoke" when the AC/DC power supply is used to energize the wheel.

Yes, that says "release smoke," and one might infer that the thing was engineered with smoke built in; designed to "release" said smoke should something be amiss, like bad wiring or poorly designed components, and rather than red lights or blaring alarms, the Racing Wheel will gently and benignly "release smoke" as a sure sign of modest strife. As it happens, Microsoft asserts, there have been no reported incidences of fire, personal injury or property damage resulting from the component failure in the wheel.

To stop the spread of leaking smoke, Microsoft suggests that owners of the Xbox 360 Wireless Racing Wheel should stop using the AC/DC power supply (ya think?) until they have obtained their smokeless retrofit, but that they may continue to operate the wheel using battery power, which is not powerful enough to unlock the embedded smoke.

Xbox 360 Wireless Racing Wheel owners should visit www.xbox.com/support or call Microsoft at (800) 469-9269 (4MY-XBOX) to register for the free retrofit and protect against the potential hazard of smoke blow.