Tesla’s design chief says the company is planning to redesign interior door handles on its vehicles to combine powered and manual releases. However, the designer, Franz von Holzhausen, stopped short of addressing a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigation into complaints that outside handles on some Tesla vehicles lose power and can trap occupants, particularly children, inside.
Holzhausen made remarks about the design change to Bloomberg for its Hot Pursuit podcast in an episode which has not yet been posted. In a news report, Bloomberg said Holzhausen remarked, “The idea of combining the electronic one and the manual one together into one button, I think, makes a lot of sense.”
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Currently, Tesla vehicles have an electronic door release button and a manual release in separate places. Holzhausen said that combining them may help when people are in a “panic situation.”
Holzhausen also said the company is considering a design change and has a solution in response to Chinese regulations that may ban concealed door handles.
Representatives for Tesla and the NHTSA did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Last week, Bloomberg published its own investigation into both Tesla’s exterior and interior door handles, which have been the subject of complaints and lawsuits. The NHTSA reportedly is investigating instances of Tesla Model Y vehicles losing power on rear door handles and trapping children inside back seats. The federal investigation may also cover previous reports of drivers trapped in burning vehicles due to door malfunctions.
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