Not to state the obvious, but it should not be challenging to know how to get into a car, truck or SUV. For decades, the design of door handles made this very clear, with either a button to press or a handle to lift. But for some designers, that isn’t enough — and presumably, that’s how you get things like Tesla’s flush door handles, which have left numerous passengers trying to figure out why one automaker decided to reinvent a perfectly good (metaphorical) wheel.
A big change could be coming to this design approach in one of the world’s largest automotive markets. As CNN’s Jessie Yeung reports, China’s government is set to ban flush car door handles, which would make the nation the first in the world to push back against the design. The new requirements for car door handles are scheduled to go into effect on January 1, 2027.
CNN cites a government statement saying these changes are going into effect because of “the inconvenience with operating the exterior door handles and their inability to open after an accident.” Tesla is not the only automaker with a presence in China to take this approach to their existing handles. CNN notes that some vehicles manufactured by Aion and Xiaomi have similar designs.
Tesla Is Rethinking Its Door Handle Design
Regulators in multiple countries have raised concernsThere are very understandable reasons behind this decision, including some well-publicized safety concerns related to Tesla’s door handles. What is less clear at the moment is whether other governments will take similar measures.
In an article for MotorTrend, Justin Banner cited proposed legislation in the United States, a bill called the Securing Accessible Functional Emergency Exit Act. It’s the work of Illinois Representative Robin Kelly, and last month, it was referred to the House Energy and Commerce committee. The law wouldn’t necessarily change the design of handles, but it would “require each new motor vehicle to be equipped with a manual door release allowing timely exit regardless of failure of any electrical system.” Whether or not the bill will advance out of committee, however, remains to be seen.
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