Tesla Reimagined How Door Handles Work. Now It's Everybody's Problem

"Tesla isn't just a car company. It's kind of a whole vibe. For two decades, engineers and designersunder Elon Musk's infamously micro-managing eye, of coursehave reimagined entire car components to be cheaper, sleeker or simply more futuristic-looking. The rest of the car industry quickly followed suit by adding Tesla-style electric door handles to their own cars, especially their EVs. But now that's become a safety problem that all of them have to deal with."

"Call Tesla's electric door handles a lesson in unintended consequences, then. At the touch of a button, they're meant to trigger an electronic lock that makes a traditional door handle feel ugly and clunky by comparison. They're cheaper than those old-school handles as well. And since they're flush against the door, they do a lot to help a Tesla's aerodynamic profile and overall EV range."

"But then Hyundai, Ford, Rivian, the Chinese automakers and countless others followed suit. Now, led by Tesla, the whole industry is having to rethink the way it once rethought door handles. For months, Bloomberg has been covering the numerous safety complaints around electronic door handles. In the event of a crash or a power loss, the doors could fail to open. And their discrete, flush nature makes them hard for first responders to access easily in the event of a fire or something similarly life-threatening."

Tesla shifted automotive design toward cheaper, sleeker, and more futuristic components under Elon Musk's tight oversight, influencing widespread adoption of Tesla-style features. Flush electronic door handles improve aerodynamics and EV range while lowering part costs, prompting many automakers to copy the approach. Numerous safety complaints have emerged about electronic handles failing to open after crashes or power loss and becoming difficult for first responders to access during fires. Tesla has acknowledged the problem and initiated design reassessments, and the broader industry is now reevaluating prior choices. Other noted trends include rising dislike of large expensive trucks and German pushback on a 2035 combustion ban.

Read at insideevs.com