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Tesla owners say they've been trapped inside their EVs after they lost power

businessinsider.com

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Re: Tesla owners say they've been trapped inside their EVs after they lost power

#41

Post by raesene9 »

Rygian wrote: post #27
helsinkiandrew wrote: post #7

It's quite alarming that a guest or child in the back that hasn't read the manual has no chance of opening the doors in the event of a power failure after a crash. That the Model 3 rear doors can't be opened manually on a power failure is truly alarming.

Most hoaxes are alarming indeed. EDIT: I misinterpreted the comment I was replying to.

When you say it's a hoax, what bit were you thinking of? Looking at Tesla's Website (https://www.tesla.com/ownersmanual/model3/en_au/GUID-7A32EC0...), it does say "Only the front doors are equipped with a manual door release."

Re: Tesla owners say they've been trapped inside their EVs after they lost power

#42

Post by lawn »

helsinkiandrew wrote: post #7

It's quite alarming that a guest or child in the back that hasn't read the manual has no chance of opening the doors in the event of a power failure after a crash. That the Model 3 rear doors can't be opened manually on a power failure is truly alarming.

Also quite alarming how many people defend this design.

Re: Tesla owners say they've been trapped inside their EVs after they lost power

#43

Post by lostlogin »

nelsonic wrote: post #25
darkwater wrote: post #17

Claim: it is difficult to find the manual release handle for the doors My reality: every single passenger who had never been on a Tesla before always uses the manual release handle instead of the right button, and I get a warning message on the screen and the risk of breaking the window glass. Source: Tesla M3 owner

Same experience for us. Every guest that rides in our Tesla M3 for the first time reaches for the manual release which works every time but gives a warning. I remember getting trapped in an ICE Jaguar as a kid because the battery died ... Central locking was electric and so were the windows that was scary; parents panicking ... we had to drive to a garage and someone hooked the car up to jump leads so we could get ou…

This sounds like British Leyland. I had a ‘68 Triumph 2000 Mark 1 with a horn that would sound sometimes when I turned left. Neither mechanic or auto-electricians could fix it. Death glares from pedestrians were a normal part of my life.

Re: Tesla owners say they've been trapped inside their EVs after they lost power

#44

Post by Turskarama »

expertentipp wrote: post #36
Turskarama wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Subarus have had frameless windows for decades and don't have this problem.

I don't think Tesla invented frameless car windows. I'm certain there are at least 50 years old car models with purely mechanical frameless car windows, but I'm too lazy to open wikipedia.

Nobody claimed they invented frameless windows, but I am going to claim (without doing due diligence) that they invented the frameless window that must be automatically wound down before the door can be opened.

Re: Tesla owners say they've been trapped inside their EVs after they lost power

#45

Post by mbreese »

darkwater wrote: post #17

Claim: it is difficult to find the manual release handle for the doors My reality: every single passenger who had never been on a Tesla before always uses the manual release handle instead of the right button, and I get a warning message on the screen and the risk of breaking the window glass. Source: Tesla M3 owner

I don’t think I’ve had anyone in my M3 ever find that release switch unless I pointed it out to them. Usually people who are in my car and haven’t been in a Tesla before are so freaked out about breaking something that they just ask what button to push.

Re: Tesla owners say they've been trapped inside their EVs after they lost power

#46

Post by csydas »

ZeKK14 wrote: post #8
IshKebab wrote: post #4

Why don't the door handles just open the door?

There is no frame around the window. The electrical door handle opens up a bit the window before unlocking the door to free it from the seal. Without power the manual handle needs to do that also, which is more complicated that a "normal" door handle.

I have very little understanding on the power requirements for a window, but couldn't Tesla have just reserved some battery off the main battery as an emergency fallback? Just enough power to lower the windows to a safe route, maybe illuminate some LEDs on the emergency latches or paths to the emergency latches? I'm not really interested in discussing Tesla's intended design, but more from just a mechanical/electrical standpoint if it would be expensive (power wise) to have a reserve like this.

Edit: Also, I guess weight also of such a battery, but I suppose maybe the weight can be understood by how much reserve it would need.

Re: Tesla owners say they've been trapped inside their EVs after they lost power

#47

Post by bob1029 »

IshKebab wrote: post #4

Why don't the door handles just open the door?

The term for this is "indexing windows".

I believe the original intention was to simply create a reliable, water-tight seal.

I've had this style of window on a sports car for about 10 years and never had any trouble. Many situations where battery was dead or winter weather would make it more difficult to open, but never panic-inducing or made me think it was about to shatter. More of a super sticky seal with the rubber.

Re: Tesla owners say they've been trapped inside their EVs after they lost power

#48

Post by phkahler »

lawn wrote: post #21
darkwater wrote: post #17

Claim: it is difficult to find the manual release handle for the doors My reality: every single passenger who had never been on a Tesla before always uses the manual release handle instead of the right button, and I get a warning message on the screen and the risk of breaking the window glass. Source: Tesla M3 owner

Sample size: Very few Type of evidence: Anecdotal Statistical relevance: Tiny

Type of evidence: first hand account.

That's better. The singular of data is not anecdote. People make this "mistake" in order to dismiss or minimize someone's experience.

Re: Tesla owners say they've been trapped inside their EVs after they lost power

#49

Post by earnestzombie2 »

darkwater wrote: post #40
lawn wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sample size: Very few Type of evidence: Anecdotal Statistical relevance: Tiny

Obviously, it was implied by " My reality". Anyway the only real safety issue I can see is that rear doors doesn't have such a system, but I guess the theory here is that there should never be a case when someone is left alone in the rear seat (i.e. Tesla's "dog mode" explicitly tells you that it's just for pet, not meant for humans)

[flagged]

Re: Tesla owners say they've been trapped inside their EVs after they lost power

#50

Post by wffurr »

jdiff wrote: post #10
IshKebab wrote: post #4

Why don't the door handles just open the door?

The windows have no frame. They slide up into the body of the car. If the door opens, the car needs to roll the window down a bit, then open the door. Without power, none of that happens. And if you use the emergency switch, the window showers you in shattered glass. Quite an elegant system.

Yet another reason to never buy a Tesla. Along with the rest of the awful in-car UX and the at-best mid-pack overhyped ADAS: https://www.consumerreports.org/cars/car-safety/active-drivi....

Once I get my NACS adapter for my Bolt, the main reason to buy a Tesla will be gone as well. I wonder if my 2017 model needs a software update to connect.

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