China bans hidden door handles in EVs

[thewayne]

GOOD! I've always thought this was a stupid idea. It probably started with Tesla, and they certainly popularized it. While it saves a few hundredths of a percent in streamlining, it is deadly. The handles are, by definition, electronic. And if your car suffers a complete loss of electric power in a severe crash, then the occupants have to engage emergency manual overrides.

Well, guess what? After a severe crash, the occupants are NOT going to be in a calm state of mind! Do you know where the manual overrides are in the back seat of some Teslas? UNDER THE FLOORMATS. The front ones can be kind of fiddly to find, and a lot of people have died while others have tried rescuing them while being unable to get the damn doors open! Including the sister in law of the former Senate Majority Leader when she accidentally backed her Tesla into a cow pond because you have to change gears on a damn touch screen?!

A friend of mine owned the first generation Tesla Roadster. He kept a five pound sledge hammer in the glove box for such a situation.

The new requirement becomes law on January 1, 2027.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp37g5nxe3lo

Comments

[murakozi]

Sadly, I suspect Tesla doesn't sell any cars in China, so they'll probably be unaffected. Even if they did, I imagine most car buyers there are going to buy another brand, because they're cheaper and better.

[thewayne]

They have/had a plant in China, and somehow most of their tech leaked to other Chinese manufacturers.  Also the Chinese gov't wouldn't allow Tesla cars within X distance of Chinese government buildings.  I don't know if they're still making Tesla cars there, it's entirely possible their sales there are now around zero.  Overall, they're not a very innovative brand: they just stopped making two of their five cars, they're very slow to refresh their lines compared to every other maker on the face of the planet.

[richardf8]

A five pound sledgehammer? The are spring loaded punches that will shatter safety glass in an instant.

[thewayne]

He was an old-fashioned engineer.

Yes ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

Same with electronic windows. Without power, the only way to open them is to break them. But a hand-cranked window could be rolled down manually even underwater.

[kaishin108]

I cringe at the thought of being trapped in a car not being able to find the handle to open the door!

[thewayne]

I've never ridden in a Tesla and frankly don't want to.  If someone were to give me one, I'd take possession and turn around and sell it at a steep discount.

[kaishin108]

I totally agree, ick ick ick.

[ranunculus]

Me Three.
I'm still slightly skeptical about having an automatic transmission. I grew up on a rural ranch with not terribly reliable vehicles. In a pinch one could always start the car by rolling downhill and popping the clutch!

[thewayne]

Heh.  Yeah, I did that a few times.  But that's pretty much in the past now, not many sticks these days.

[kaishin108]

That's a good point!

[armiphlage]

I use rideshares to get to and from work. Some of the drivers with Tesla vehicles have purchased carbon-fiber handles to replace the flush outer handles that need at least two hands to open (and which pinch my fingers if I'm not wearing gloves). Other drivers have taped big signs to the inner doors pointing to the tiny pushbutton that first rolls the window down a centimetre, then unlatches the door.

[disneydream06]

I was never going to buy a Tesla, but that really seals the deal. :o :o :o
Hugs Jon

[thewayne]

EVs always have a conventional 12 volt car battery, in addition to the monster big battery.  The 12 volt powers the radio and all the accessories in the car.  And if it dies, the car won't run.  And it catches a lot of people by surprise as they often don't know about this second battery!  But if the car suffers catastrophic damage, you never know what it'll do.  No, I've never cared for Tesla's design choices.

[disneydream06]

I sure didn't know they had a separate battery for all that.
I always thought it was so stupid that an EV was so full of electronic gadgets. :o

[thewayne]

Well, EVs are extremely computerized.  They have to be to regulate charge, regulate the drive motors, etc.  The simple gadgets: entertainment systems, heater/AC, lights: those are fairly dumb relatively.  Relegate those to the 12 volt circuit and save the load from the complicated stuff.  EVs are truly computers on wheels that move people around.

[disneydream06]

I know I should be Greener and support, but I am not ready. :o

[thewayne]

They don't do as well in super-cold climates, which clearly is such where you live.  It would restrict its range, but if you installed a level 2 charger at home, just plug it in when you get home in the morning and you'd probably never have a problem.  A decent EV is actually (pretty much) lower maintenance and more reliable than an internal combustion engine - fewer moving parts!  Tires and wiper blades, plus that 12v battery every few years for the most part, and, of course, software updates.

[disneydream06]

Heaven knows we get a wee bit chilly up here. :p :p :p

My big worry/thought is having to find a charging place whenever you go some place. :o

[thewayne]

They have good range, unless you buy one of the little commuter cars.  The cold doesn't suck up too much range, and like I said, install a charger at home and top it off at night and you won't have a problem during the day.  It requires a little trip planning, but it isn't that hard.

[disneydream06]

Partially mute as I hope my current car lasts the majority of the rest of my life. :o :o :o

Tesla vs the competition

[ionelv]

While Tesla FSD is not perfect, it beats the (non-Chinese) competition hands-down (in normal driving conditions). Here is Gemini AI's summary. Obviously, if you don't live in the greatest nation on Earth, you just buy a Chinese EV nowadays if you want the best autonomous driving capabilities.

Re: Tesla vs the competition

[thewayne]

I understand Cadillac's and Ford's FSD is quite good on well-mapped roads and behaves very well, as is Mercedes.  Mercedes also lights up a blue trim around their lights when its in FSD mode, but it only works in a couple of states in the USA, like CA and NV, IIRC.  And Waymo is pretty incredible, I see them all over the place in Phoenix when I'm there, like a couple/few dozen every day depending on the part of town that I'm in.  But they're super-loaded with sensors, and I respect that.  Don't have time at the mo to read the article but look forward to it later.

[arlie]

The Chinese sometimes manage to do things right that no capitalist country can manage. But if we're really lucky, the EU will follow suit. (There is, of course, no hope for the USA, where the owning class owns the political class.)

[thewayne]

I expect the EU will.  They're a little slow to the game, but frequently make good decisions.

Tesla safety

[ionelv]

Almost zero new cars sold in US have hand-cranked windows. BTW, all Teslas have mechanical door release. As to the danger of ending up in Tesla or any car underwater, I think it is a much smaller chance than being in a fatal road accident in which wearing seat belts and having a proper protective cage matters a lot more. Tesla model Y (their most popular model) is top rated on crash tests on par with (and even exceeds) top Mercedes models. I understand if people feel icky about owning or driving Tesla due to Elon factor, but to pretend that Tesla is less safe than other cars is something else.

Re: Tesla safety

[thewayne]

The problem is remembering how to open the door mechanically after a serious accident.  Your brain is never quite right.  If you haven't practiced it, you're probably in trouble.  And from the outside, if you don't have something that can physically get through the glass, it's very, very tough.

Re: Tesla safety

[conuly]

How is Tesla on pedestrian safety?

Re: Tesla safety

[thewayne]

That's a good question, and I don't know.  I would think that with the exception of the Cyber Truck, about average.  All trucks these days that are of ridiculous height are terrible for pedestrian safety.  My understanding is that Teslas do well for their occupant's safety, but because of the mass of EVs, the other cars tend to fare worse.  But that's true of probably all EV vs IC vehicle collisions: greater mass wins.

[conuly]

Jesus, that's a stupid design.

[silveradept]

That's sensible - you always want to make it easy for someone to exit the vehicle in an emergency, rather than having to remember something complicated about exiting the vehicle in an emergency. There should always be failsafes in place. And then, maybe, after that, make the vehicles always able to see small children easily.