Picture this: You buckle your toddler into your Tesla Model Y, step outside, and suddenly can’t get back in. Your child is trapped, and you’re reaching for a rock.

Tesla is redesigning its vehicle door handles following a federal safety investigation into the 2021 Model Y, where electronic handle failures have reportedly trapped occupants, including children, inside the vehicles. The redesign, confirmed by Tesla’s chief designer, aims to combine the electronic and manual releases into a single, more intuitive mechanism as the Administración Nacional de Seguridad del Tráfico por Carretera (NHTSA) scrutinizes the potential safety risk.

This move addresses a growing number of complaints and incidents that have put a spotlight on the design of Tesla’s electronic door systems. The NHTSA probe, which covers approximately 174,000 vehicles, was prompted by reports of parents being locked out of their cars with children inside, sometimes forcing them to break windows to gain access. The investigation and subsequent redesign come as Tesla faces increased competition and slowing sales in the EV market.

Parents Smash Tesla Windows To Save Trapped Children As Nhtsa Investigates

NHTSA Investigates Model Y Door Handle Failures

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened a preliminary evaluation into the 2021 Tesla Model Y after receiving at least nine official complaints from owners. According to a Reuters report, these incidents involved the exterior electronic door handles becoming inoperative, preventing access to the vehicle. In four of these cases, parents resorted to smashing a window to retrieve their children.

The agency’s initial review suggests the failures may be linked to the vehicle’s 12-volt battery system supplying insufficient voltage to the door lock mechanism. While Tesla vehicles are equipped with a manual interior door release, the NHTSA noted that children may not be able to locate or operate these releases, especially in a stressful situation. This issue is not isolated, as NHTSA data shows over 140 complaints about various Tesla models’ doors malfunctioning since 2018.

Tesla’s Redesign Aims for Intuitive Emergency Access

In response to the safety concerns, Tesla’s chief designer, Franz von Holzhausen, confirmed the company is developing a new, unified door handle mechanism. Speaking on a Bloomberg podcast, von Holzhausen explained the goal is to merge the separate electronic and manual releases into a single, easier-to-use system.

“The idea of combining the electronic one and the manual one together into one button, I think, makes a lot of sense,” von Holzhausen stated. “That’s something that we’re working on.”

He added that the redesign is intended to help occupants in “a panic situation.” This approach mirrors designs already implemented by other automakers, such as the Ford Mustang Mach-E, where a single handle serves both electronic and mechanical functions.

Broader Industry Implications and Safety Context

The focus on Tesla’s door handles is part of a wider pattern of scrutiny for the automaker, which includes ongoing NHTSA probes into its Autopilot system. In 2023, Tesla also recalled over 120,000 Model S and Model X vehicles because doors could potentially unlock and open during a crash. The redesign announcement highlights a critical challenge for automakers integrating advanced electronic features: ensuring that they remain safe and intuitive for all users, under all conditions.

EVXL’s Take

While Tesla has long been praised for its minimalist design and technological innovation, this episode serves as a crucial reminder that core safety functions must be foolproof and intuitive. Combining the electronic and manual door releases seems like a logical and necessary evolution, moving away from a design that, in critical moments, proved confusing and potentially dangerous. The key questions now are how quickly Tesla can implement this change in new production models and whether a retrofit solution will be offered to the nearly 200,000 existing Model Y owners affected by this investigation.

For the EV industry as a whole, this is a lesson in prioritizing human factors and fail-safe mechanical backups over purely aesthetic or electronic solutions. What are your thoughts on electronic door handles? Share your perspective in the comments below.