For years, people have been filing complaints about Tesla Inc. doors — to US regulators, on social media, in legal documents — after incidents ranging from the mundane to the truly horrific, Bloomberg reports, writes UNN.
Just this month, a Virginia State Trooper smashed the window of a burning Tesla Model Y when its doors wouldn't open and pulled the driver to safety. The dramatic rescue was captured by the officer's dashcam. Some aspects of this episode — the doors stopped functioning normally after the crash, leading to a dangerous situation involving rescuers — reflect the circumstances of the events, Bloomberg writes.
"As part of a broad investigation into the risks of electric door handles, Bloomberg for the first time attempted to quantify the number of fatal accidents in the US where door functionality played a role. This report identified at least 15 deaths in twelve incidents over the past decade where passengers or rescuers were unable to open the doors of a crashed and burning Tesla," the publication states.
As the publication writes, these figures represent a small fraction of the hundreds of fatal EV accidents during this period, but their number is growing. More than half of the deaths noted in Bloomberg's analysis occurred since November 2024, the publication writes.
There is no comprehensive, publicly available statistics from any state or federal agency in the US on how many people were trapped by inoperable doors and subsequently died, the publication notes. Collecting reliable data is difficult, partly because it can be hard to know exactly what happened in those frantic moments between a car crash and it being engulfed in flames, the publication writes.
"It's terrifying," said Kevin Klaus, a Georgia resident who was trapped in his Model 3 after a 2023 crash and was forced to kick out a window to escape. He recently filed a complaint with US regulators and sought to raise awareness of door-related jamming incidents on social media. "You're in a box that's on fire and you can't get out," he pointed out.
Tesla popularized futuristic doors, and its design and engineering solutions have spread throughout the automotive industry, with about 70 models now on US roads with electric handles. Other automakers have had problems with these doors, but Tesla accounts for the largest number of consumer complaints, Bloomberg reports.
The issue is now attracting regulatory attention, as the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has launched a defect investigation to determine whether door problems prevent people from getting into certain Tesla Model Y vehicles, and authorities in China and Europe are considering rule changes. As part of an investigation launched in September in the US, NHTSA asked the automaker to provide a detailed list of consumer complaints and reports regarding crashes, injuries, fatalities, or fires.
Tesla did not respond to requests for comment. Company chair Robyn Denholm previously stated that the board of directors takes any safety-related incidents seriously. The company said it complies with local and federal laws, that its vehicles receive high ratings in crash tests, and that its models are equipped with manual releases.
The automaker stated that any door safety issues are industry-wide and not unique to Tesla. Nevertheless, the company is considering changes, such as developing a way to automatically disable locks when battery voltage is low and unlock doors in the moments preceding battery discharge. Tesla's chief designer told Bloomberg in September that the company is working on redesigning its door handles to combine electric and manual door release mechanisms.
Last week, Tesla announced a new safety page on its website. Among other features and capabilities, the company stated that its car doors will automatically unlock for emergency access when a severe collision is detected. It was not immediately clear when this feature became available and for which models. In a note, the company states that some features may not be available in all regions or for all vehicles, or depending on the manufacturing date.
Tesla shares set new price record18.12.25, 07:37 • [views_15301]