China has banned concealed car door handles – as Tesla’s trend-setting design turns into a safety nightmare

• China bans concealed door handles with new rules starting January 1, 2027
• All cars will require a mechanical release on the exterior
• Several fatal accidents have forced investigations

A design that was first popularized by Tesla and then copied by numerous automotive manufacturers has been banned in China, after several deadly incidents forced the country to rethink modern car design.

Concealed door handles, or pop-out handles, were first introduced by Tesla on the Model S in 2012 and caused a stir among the car community at the time. Not only did they help improve aerodynamics – and therefore increase electric range – they also delivered a clean surface that made the Model S look even more space-age.

But a number of high profile accidents that caused occupants to become trapped inside their vehicles shifted focus on Tesla and the safety of such a device. According to Bloomberg, the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) opened a defect investigation into a number of Tesla Model Y and Model 3 door handles.

Similarly, several fatal accidents in China, including a crash involving a Xiaomi SU7, prompted the country to rethink its regulations.

New rules announced on Monday by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology explicitly state that cars sold in China as of January 1 next year will have to provide a hand-operable space (measuring at least 6cm x 2cm x 2.5cm) in order to manually release the door. There also needs to be signage in the cabin about how to open the doors from the inside.

Where Tesla’s original design differs is that the door handle remains flush with the body work, requiring the driver or passenger to press on an area to first expose the handle, while pulling on one end sends an electrical signal to open the door.

Having taken much inspiration from Tesla, around 60% of the top 100 bestselling new energy vehicles in China feature the same or similar technology, according to The Guardian.

Despite Tesla including a manual release mechanism inside their vehicles, it has been argued that these are difficult to operate unless owners and occupants are taught how to do so.

A flawed design

Tesla is currently under fire for its once-innovative door designs, with the NHTSA claiming it had received nine complaints about the handles in Tesla's 2021 Model Y cars, according to the BBC.

But alongside the court cases and investigations, pop-out door handles have also been met with disdain by a section of the car-owning public. The mechanisms can be difficult to operate for the uninitiated, while freezing temperatures easily freeze the handles in place, often requiring defrosting before they start working.

This isn’t just a Tesla problem either, as numerous manufacturers have opted to adopt the design given the aerodynamic gains and the clean surfaces they provide for exterior designers.

As a result, the BBC claims that safety bodies in both the US and Europe could also follow China’s lead and implement their own rules on the divisive door handles.

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