China will require car doors to be mechanically openable from both outside and inside, becoming the first country to mandate the change to help rescuers reach occupants after crashes. The new regulation, which takes effect in 2027, addresses safety concerns about flush, electrically actuated door handles that sit flush with a vehicle’s body and extend only when they detect a user. Popularized by Tesla and adopted by many automakers for styling and better aerodynamics, these designs can fail after collisions or during battery outages, potentially trapping people inside.
An investigative report by Bloomberg documented incidents where Tesla’s exterior electronic handles did not deploy, forcing rescuers to break windows to free occupants. Bloomberg identified at least 15 deaths tied to crashes in which Tesla doors would not open, including cases where people could not open doors from inside. The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened inquiries into reports that 2021 Tesla Model Y exterior handles failed to open and is also probing complaints about hard-to-find interior door-release mechanisms in some Model 3s. The agency has previously spurred recalls over electronic-handle defects on other makes and is investigating an electronic or battery-related door-handle issue on the Dodge Journey.
Many other brands use electronic or retractable handles — including Audi, BMW, Chevrolet, Fiat, Ford, Genesis, Lexus, Lincoln, Maserati and Volvo — and in China almost all major EV makers offer models with retractable handles. A fatal crash in a Xiaomi vehicle last year, in which the driver was trapped by doors that would not operate, renewed concern about the risk.
China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said the new rules will require exterior handles to permit mechanical opening even in extreme situations such as battery fires. Interior handles must have visible mechanical releases that are not obstructed by other components. Regulators pointed out examples in which manual releases are hidden or hard to access — for instance, some Tesla models place a manual rear-door release behind a speaker cover that must be pulled to operate.
The regulation will affect global automakers that sell vehicles in China and will require design changes for cars offered there, but it does not directly change the U.S. market. Most cars sold in China are produced there, and trade policies and technology restrictions largely separate the two markets. Still, pressure to address electronic-handle safety is growing in the United States: alongside NHTSA’s inquiries, House legislation has been introduced that would mandate fail-safe manual interior releases and a way for rescuers to enter vehicles from the outside.
NPR’s Huo Jingnan contributed to this report.