Discuss: Tesla May Abandon Iconic Door Handles Under China’s New Safety Standards

K.I.T.T.

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Mar 26, 2024
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Fully agree with the reasons behind, but Model 3 and Y are already "compliant", at least on the design side.
They do minimize air friction while avoiding the self-presentation gimmick of models M and S (and many other manufacturers' cars).
At most, they should make them mechanic rather than electronic, or couple the two things in a way that doesn't prevent a safe extraction, as in automatically releasing locks in an accident. So, M and S designs won't be missed...
 

PrescottAZRichard

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Oct 28, 2022
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I'm guessing having a mechanical door handle on the outside increases the likelihood of someone defeating it and getting into the vehicle to commit a crime, so this is another safety vs security issue.
That said- I agree with K.I.T.T.
Here's an opportunity to design and engineer a great solution for the team. I hope and EXPECT Tesla do come up with something innovative to solve this. Instead of just half a$$ing it :) .
 
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K.I.T.T.

Well-known member
Mar 26, 2024
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Well I guess it's a matter of compromising safety and security. One might argue that also self-unlocking doors might expose the occupants to malicious attacks starting with a pretend accident. It will never be perfect. But I see the point in banning self-presenting door handles, there was no reason for them in the first place and - driven by economic reasons - Tesla already solved it with the 3/Y door handles. They could do self-presenting "hinge" door handles on the same design, which can be depressed as well when lacking power. But then... how to open the car without power?
And from inside, it's a fact the lack of mechanical rear handles is a safety issue for rear passengers - although I can see the point, a mechanical door handle could be activated by kids, rendering the electronic kids lock useless.
Guess it's hard to make everyone happy... but the consequences of a car accident should be prioritized over the rest.
 

Procal

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Jun 12, 2024
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I fully agree that self presenting electronic door handles are cool tech, but completely unnecessary, and pose a very high risk when the car lacks power to open them in the event of a collision. My main gripe is most definitely the rear doors on both the Model 3 and Y. It is something that I hope gets a recall in the future, because it is very difficult to open them in emergency scenarios.