U.S. regulators move to mandate safer car exits after Tesla door handle incidents

Federal safety regulators are taking the first steps toward requiring automakers to make it easier for drivers and passengers to get out of their vehicles in an emergency. The move follows a string of incidents, some deadly, where people were trapped inside cars equipped with flush, electronically operated door handles like those used by Tesla.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced the rulemaking process after reviewing a petition that demanded a defect investigation into the emergency mechanical release on 2022 Tesla Model 3s. The petition argued that the design fails to meet federal safety standards.

NHTSA declined to launch a formal defect probe, saying the problem is better tackled through new rules that would apply to every carmaker. But the agency cautioned that starting the rulemaking process doesn’t guarantee new standards will actually be written. The decision comes less than a year after NHTSA opened an investigation into Tesla’s door handles based on nine complaints from owners who couldn’t get into their cars, sometimes with children trapped inside.

That probe followed a Bloomberg investigation into multiple crashes where Tesla occupants were stuck in their vehicles.

Tesla vehicles do have manual releases, but they’re located only inside the car. In an initial review, NHTSA found the electronic locks may fail if the battery doesn’t supply enough voltage. Tesla designer Franz von Holzhausen said last year the company is working on a redesign.

Rivian has already announced it will move the manual release on its R2 SUV to a more visible spot, closer to the power-operated handles.