I guess it's a new feature, but my 2021 MY has manual door release right where you'd expect it to be. I even have to instruct new passengers not to use it as it can break the glass, since it doesn't lower the window down like the proper door opening button.
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[UPDATED] 2 die in Tesla crash - NHTSA reports driver seat occupied
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Daniel in SD
(supervised)
They've always had that. I wouldn't say it's right where you expect it though, it's just the first thing you find when looking for the door release. It often takes passengers a little bit of time to find it. I just think there should be a single door release for all situations. Other auto manufacturers have figured out how to do this even with auto lowering frameless windows.
I assume it has tradeoffs, or Tesla would have done it. I mean, why did they go to the electric poppers at all? I bet this was not cost driven.
Most people aren't comfortable about talking safety vs cost. How much would you pay for this? Tesla has sold 2M cars, so if this costs $10 per door, that's $80M per (possible) life saved. I bet Tesla could save more lives for $80M applied more intelligently.
What? This is the argument we're at? That we're gonna pretend that inflation doesn't exist and cars were safer in the past?
stopcrazypp
Well-Known Member
Most of the time it's because of frameless doors (XLR and Corvette had them for same reason). Electronic releases ensures that windows can drop before doors open.
There are however other cars with electronic releases even though they don't have frameless doors, it's mainly to use different handles (like Mach E).
stopcrazypp
Well-Known Member
It's highly relevant because it shows NHTSA won't be doing anything about this and it's up to the user to educate themselves on how to open the doors of their vehicles in an emergency (including exiting in other doors if necessary).
Note as discussed up thread, there are door designs where you can't even open the rear doors without opening the front, not to mention vehicle types like coupes. There are also child locks (as mentioned in article) that make it impossible to open the rear doors. I don't see NHTSA stepping into this, as it's too limiting on vehicle types.
Daniel in SD
(supervised)
$200 though I’m probably in the minority.
Maybe the solutions to this problem are patented?
I guess it probably doesn’t pencil out in cost per life saved.
How is it not relevant? Several car makers are going this route and appears to be the trend wether you like it or not. Certainly not just Tesla. So you better have a plan. If you are that concerned, you should always carry a glass breaker tool on your key chain. There’s a chance that the doors could be damaged during the accident and couldn’t be opened anyway. And you should always carry a small pocket knife so you can cut the seatbelt if needed.
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Sure about that? Could have sworn the manual door release lowers the glass on my wifes 2021 Y.
The ajar switch and maybe latch itself can sense the manual activation, but detection/ reaction is not fast enough to prevent damage.
I haven't tested it in over a year, so could be an update changed it, but that was the behavior early 2021. I'll never forget the cringe I had when a friend used it the first time.
The irony in all of this discussion is that it was started around a Model S fire. And in the model S, per the Tesla manual:
The estate here is arguing about the EXTERIOR handles not working, and we're all discussing the interior handles as if they would have saved this person even though they work exactly the way everyone wants yet they made no difference.
Of course, now the 2021+ Model S has gone to the supposedly inferior Model 3 design with a manual release located in a slightly different location.
$200 per door is crazy (so is $200 per car). All Teslas already have readily accessible mechanical releases on the front doors. You need to save a LOT of people in rear seats to make $400M-$1.6B worth it.
Have you ever tried it? Or have you ever had a passenger accidentally use it? In my 2018 Model 3, the window comes down when the manual release is used. I have compared both ways of opening the door. There is virtually no difference. It has been this way for 4 years. I might have expected a noticeable delay with the window coming down when the manual release is used. But I can't really tell. No trim has ever been damaged, despite the on-screen warning. I don't even bother telling passengers to use the button anymore.
Daniel in SD
(supervised)
I only said I would pay $200 (not per door!) since the current design is my least favorite part of the interior.
Interesting, I've never heard anything bad about the legacy Model S interior door handle design. I have heard that the exterior door handle design is garbage though with an extremely high failure rate (no one could have predicted this. haha). Sounds like they "fixed" the wrong one.
TunaBug
Member
It's certainly fast enough to prevent damage on my 3.
But the manual warns that damage can happen so if you test it and break the window it probably won't be covered by warranty.
Yes, I've had it happen twice when I first got the car. The first time it happened the door made an odd sound, like rubber popping. I assumed this noise was the door opening before the window was rolled down, so it had to force itself out of the rubber seals. The second time it happened, the passenger opened the door before I could say anything, and when I said "Oh s$$t!" the guy quickly closed the door. I heard a rubber rubbing noise, and small "pop" sound, which I assumed was the glass popping back into the seal.
Since then I always educate new passengers, so I haven't tested it again. I read that the window does come down, but some say that the window drop is delayed with the manual release vs the button. I guess I can test myself and see how it works.
Daniel in SD
(supervised)
And good luck getting robotaxi customers to pay for the damage. haha.
They made the window come down when using the emergency release in an early software update so I'm guessing they use the door open sensor which means it's probably dependent on how fast the person opens the door.
TunaBug
Member
Yes I figured that as well. My guess is that if somebody tries to test this while applying a lot of outward pressure so that the door opens fast then they might break the glass. To be honest, while I have experienced that it drops the windows so that they don't break, I also don't press my luck by trying to teach everybody how to use the manual release.
AlanSubie4Life
Efficiency Obsessed Member
They will automatically apply an extra fee if they detect that the wrong door handle was used.
Strange. a month into ownership (April 2018), a passenger used the "wrong" way to open the door. no issues, but the car chimed at me with a dialog on the screen with the warning. After that, I tested my side and found the windows came down. Never understood the purpose of the warning if the glass came immediately down upon unlatching. Countless other passengers have since made the same mistake with no ill consequence.
Maybe Tesla overlooked the window drop on the Y and fixed it last year?
Yeah I ended up going to my car after reading this thread to compare the two methods. If the window is slower to drop with the mechanical latch, it's pretty hard to tell.
CyberGus
Not Just a Member
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