Here is the 2020-2024 Model Y manual's instructions on opening the back door with power loss, doesn't seem that obvious to me (you have to "remove the mat from the bottom of the rear door pocket" !): https://www.tesla.com/ownersmanual/2020_2024_modely/en_us/GU...
I found it immediately (on a model 3) and the car started bitching at me for using the wrong door release. It took me longer to find the "correct", electronic door button.
I own a 2023 model 3. The rear door releases are behind the door panel, apparently used for production, and not accessible to rear passengers. The front doors are double paned but the rears aren't. So I can only open the front doors but not bash out the window and the reverse in the back. Fun little puzzle I have to deal with if I get in a bad accident with my child.
I could just punch a hole in the door and route it, as many have done, but it has no child lock integration which could be problematic.
And no one ever found it in a crash. The door release is also only accessible from the inside which means people on the outside cannot open the door to help unconscious passengers.
How is that different than any other car? Most modern cars lock their doors when you put them in gear, making breaking the glass the only option to get in during an emergency.
Most European brands I've tried only lock the cars when the speed exceeds 20 km/h.
In addition, most brands I'm aware of will unlock the car when the airbags are deployed (Kia/Hyundai, Renault, Volkswagen, Mercedes, BMW). Because these cars still have door handles, they can be opened by a bystander after a crash.
The issue is not that the doors are locked. The issue is that unlocked doors without door handles are still useless.
That may be so, but these are two very different things:
[has X]
[has X designed, built, and visible in the car such that it can be easily found and operated whilst panicking for your life, or rushing from outside while trying to save a trapped passenger's life]
There are people who would tell you that while Tesla may have the first, it does not have the latter, but they cannot because they are dead, and should not be.
The discovery of which is an exercise left for the participant in this exciting escape room on wheels.
https://vsp.virginia.gov/virginia-state-police-trooper-rescu...
And 14 others - that I'm aware of - to date.
Everyone who's ever ridden with me has thought the emergency release was the regular door handle. It's really that obvious.
Here is the 2020-2024 Model Y manual's instructions on opening the back door with power loss, doesn't seem that obvious to me (you have to "remove the mat from the bottom of the rear door pocket" !): https://www.tesla.com/ownersmanual/2020_2024_modely/en_us/GU...
At least on the newer ones it looks like it at least has signage and is less obstructed: https://www.tesla.com/ownersmanual/modely/en_us/GUID-A7A60DC...
in my Tesla the door release was a hidden ripcord under the seat / towards the floor. People have died to this design flaw.
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I found it immediately (on a model 3) and the car started bitching at me for using the wrong door release. It took me longer to find the "correct", electronic door button.
https://www.podfeet.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Tesl...
It does come with a manual.
It’s poor design if you have to read the manual to find a critical safety feature.
Which I'm sure you hand out to all of your passengers in pre-flight.
You shouldn't need to read a manual to figure out how to open the door of your car.
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Are there mandatory safety briefings when you climb in your Uber?
3 replies →
I'll be sure to request it from my Uber driver who I'm sure will let me study it before departing
I own a 2023 model 3. The rear door releases are behind the door panel, apparently used for production, and not accessible to rear passengers. The front doors are double paned but the rears aren't. So I can only open the front doors but not bash out the window and the reverse in the back. Fun little puzzle I have to deal with if I get in a bad accident with my child.
I could just punch a hole in the door and route it, as many have done, but it has no child lock integration which could be problematic.
Why take the risk?
Why drive at all?
Life is balancing risks. Do you drive an S-class? Why did you risk driving a less safe car?
And no one ever found it in a crash. The door release is also only accessible from the inside which means people on the outside cannot open the door to help unconscious passengers.
How is that different than any other car? Most modern cars lock their doors when you put them in gear, making breaking the glass the only option to get in during an emergency.
Most European brands I've tried only lock the cars when the speed exceeds 20 km/h.
In addition, most brands I'm aware of will unlock the car when the airbags are deployed (Kia/Hyundai, Renault, Volkswagen, Mercedes, BMW). Because these cars still have door handles, they can be opened by a bystander after a crash.
The issue is not that the doors are locked. The issue is that unlocked doors without door handles are still useless.
That may be so, but these are two very different things:
[has X]
[has X designed, built, and visible in the car such that it can be easily found and operated whilst panicking for your life, or rushing from outside while trying to save a trapped passenger's life]
There are people who would tell you that while Tesla may have the first, it does not have the latter, but they cannot because they are dead, and should not be.