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Tesla is looking to redesign its door handles following trapped-passenger report

cnn.com

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Re: Tesla is looking to redesign its door handles following trapped-passenger report

#51

Post by dylan604 »

kstrauser wrote: post #31
3D30497420 wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apparently non-retractable door handles have only a very minor impact on drag/efficiency: https://arstechnica.com/cars/2025/09/flush-door-handles-are-... So, yes, I think you're right that they are largely just a gimmick.

If you're driving in a competitive, sanctioned high-speed race, sure, fine. Save every bit of drag possible. At highway speeds in a normal-person shaped vehicle, they cannot possibly make a measurable difference.

Wouldn't that depend on the accuracy of the tool doing the measuring?

Re: Tesla is looking to redesign its door handles following trapped-passenger report

#52

Post by jp191919 »

mediaman wrote: post #38
kennywinker wrote: post #11

This is a failure of regulation. Companies come and go. The idea is that we have simple, efficient, long lasting gov orgs that can make sure each new company doesn’t repeat moronic mistakes like this in the name of design.

The funny thing is that Elon has been very critical of regulation in car design, such as the rules around the side-view mirrors (he wanted to get rid of them and replace with cameras). But then they find something unregulated and manage to flub it so badly it makes a strong case for regulation. I'm not sure if Elon was involved in these door handles on the interior, though I do recall he was very involved in the earl…

Many countries (EU, Japan) allow cameras instead of side mirrors, but not the US.

Re: Tesla is looking to redesign its door handles following trapped-passenger report

#53

Post by tartuffe78 »

vkou wrote: post #45
rightbyte wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I couldn't believe I was actually understanding it correctly and that this could be legal I think laws are usually reactive. Why would there be a ban on such a silly thing.

It's not about banning a particular design, it's about mandating that emergency egress is possible. If you're ever trapped in a burning car and can't open the fucking doors you might find that requirement to be a little bit less silly than you think it to be.

No other car company has screwed it up this badly before. Tesla may force it to happen if enough deaths occur.

Re: Tesla is looking to redesign its door handles following trapped-passenger report

#54

Post by Animats »

China is preparing to require obvious manual handles for car doors. China's own vehicle manufacturers have been copying Tesla in this, so it affects far more cars in China than Tesla products.[1]

[1] https://carnewschina.com/2025/09/05/chinas-auto-regulators-e...

Re: Tesla is looking to redesign its door handles following trapped-passenger report

#55

Post by rale00 »

ptmcc wrote: post #21
3D30497420 wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apparently non-retractable door handles have only a very minor impact on drag/efficiency: https://arstechnica.com/cars/2025/09/flush-door-handles-are-... So, yes, I think you're right that they are largely just a gimmick.

If manufacturers in general were serious about improving efficiency they'd stop putting huge heavy wheels on everything, instead of chasing fractions of a percent with overcomplicated and failure-prone door handles. Side bonus, smaller wheels with taller sidewall tires are more comfortable, less prone to damage, and the tires are cheaper and easier to replace, too!

Alloy wheels are pretty light, and the weight mostly affects acceleration.

At speed, most of your power is going to fight drag, so aerodynamics make a much bigger difference in efficiency.

Re: Tesla is looking to redesign its door handles following trapped-passenger report

#56

Post by Grazester »

3D30497420 wrote: post #15
pengaru wrote: post #7

Electric retractable door handles is such a stupid gimmick. I once pulled over to help a stranded Model S driver with a flat tire in the Mojave desert. Every door handle had a zip tie hanging off it because they _all_ had failed present mechanisms. Junk

Apparently non-retractable door handles have only a very minor impact on drag/efficiency: https://arstechnica.com/cars/2025/09/flush-door-handles-are-... So, yes, I think you're right that they are largely just a gimmick.

Nissan GT-R manual flush handles.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UK0MxfPE4N0&pp=ygUWbmlzc2FuI...

Re: Tesla is looking to redesign its door handles following trapped-passenger report

#57

Post by mikestew »

cfeduke wrote: post #48

I bought a Model 3 in 2018, a Y in 2020, and another 3 in 2024. The end user design has only continued to get worse on various aspects of the car. Regarding non-safety issues, living in the northeast and mid-Atlantic, the door handles freeze shut during the winter and become impossible to open from outside of the car. But why continue to buy these poor end-user design experiences, you think? My car maintenance costs…

My car maintenance costs since 2018 has been a gallon of windshield wiper fluid and new tires.

If you're buying a new car every two years, you could get the same low level of maintenance with an ICE Toyota. Or, you know, you can buy an EV from a company that knows how to make a door handle, and still get that low maintenance of an EV. There are many to choose from.

Re: Tesla is looking to redesign its door handles following trapped-passenger report

#58

Post by mikestew »

jp191919 wrote: post #50
cfeduke wrote: post #48

I bought a Model 3 in 2018, a Y in 2020, and another 3 in 2024. The end user design has only continued to get worse on various aspects of the car. Regarding non-safety issues, living in the northeast and mid-Atlantic, the door handles freeze shut during the winter and become impossible to open from outside of the car. But why continue to buy these poor end-user design experiences, you think? My car maintenance costs…

You can use the app to open the door if the handle is frozen. Still not a great design, might as well have a button instead.

The peak of tech jackassery: "We can fix it in software."

Re: Tesla is looking to redesign its door handles following trapped-passenger report

#59

Post by fullshark »

bangaladore wrote: post #34
fullshark wrote: post #26

Ever since reading this story I decided I wasn't buying a Tesla: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-68622898 Just so stupid, how many unnecessary deaths in Teslas have there been because of the overengineered crap door handles? Really tragic and pointless.

She was highly intoxicated and driving under the influence, reversed the car into a pond and died because of it. Whether or not the doors contributed to her death is a guess at best. When a car is submerged, you aren't able to open a door generally due to the weight of the water pushing in on the car. That car has a completely standard gear stalk as well, so blaming it on that make no sense. I don't have sympathy for…

She drowned in a glass coffin surrounded by her loved ones unable to figure out how to get her out. You are able to open a normal car door when the interior is fully submerged due to the water pressure equalizing. It's very clear to me she would have survived with normal door handles and your "anyone who DWIs deserves to die and doesn't receive sympathy cause I worship Elon Musk/Tesla" position is truly contemptible.

Re: Tesla is looking to redesign its door handles following trapped-passenger report

#60

Post by kypro »

mediaman wrote: post #38
kennywinker wrote: post #11

This is a failure of regulation. Companies come and go. The idea is that we have simple, efficient, long lasting gov orgs that can make sure each new company doesn’t repeat moronic mistakes like this in the name of design.

The funny thing is that Elon has been very critical of regulation in car design, such as the rules around the side-view mirrors (he wanted to get rid of them and replace with cameras). But then they find something unregulated and manage to flub it so badly it makes a strong case for regulation. I'm not sure if Elon was involved in these door handles on the interior, though I do recall he was very involved in the earl…

I always found what we regulate and don't regulate when it comes to motor vehicles interesting...

Demanding Tesla's need door handle regulation because of safety concerns lacks perspective given how relatively safe Teslas are, and that current regulation allows people to buy vehicles which go 60MPH+ on just two wheels, no airbags, and no doors at all.

It would be cool if Tesla can come up with something a bit safer if there are problems with their door handles, but ultimately I think the only regulation required would be transparency of safety data. If Tesla's are really dangerous people should know that and decide if they want to buy one anyway. Although two-wheeled motor vehicles are death traps, I don't think we should introduce regulation requiring all motor vehicles have four wheels. If people want to buy a vehicle with two-wheels, that's up to them.

I disagree that something as insignificant as a car door handle needs to be regulated to save at best a handful of lives a year – lives which probably could have been saved more effectively with other safety changes (perhaps many of which Teslas already have). Ultimately if you're in a car where your life depends on the design of a door handle, that's a problem already, and not one door handle regulation will necessarily be best suited to address.

Just let manufacturers innovate... If a car is extremely unsafe so long as consumers know that then manufacturers will have a strong incentive to improve safety in innovative ways.

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