Four dead in fire as Tesla doors fail to open after crash

One thing to note is that the car doors in Teslas are electrically controlled and a different failsafe method of opening the doors is required when the electrical system isn't working. Here's the steps for manually opening the Model Y's rear doors (car in the story the post links to): https://www.tesla.com/ownersmanual/modely/en_us/GUID-AAD769C... and here's the steps for manually opening the Model S's rear doors (car in the story I linked to): https://www.tesla.com/ownersmanual/models/en_us/GUID-AAD769C... . Note that this involves removing the rear carpet in the Model S and the door pocket mat in the Model Y, and that the Model Y instructions note that some cars aren't even equipped with manual rear door releases. It seems like Tesla didn't account at all for what happens if passengers who aren't familiar with the car need to quickly exit in an emergency, especially if the driver's incapacitated and can't give them directions.

     * Remove the mat from the bottom of the rear door pocket.
     * Press the red tab to remove the access door.
     * Pull the mechanical release cable forward.

It’s due to the frameless windows. Opening the door requires the windows to roll down slightly to avoid damage to the outer trim.

The doors still have a mechanical release so there’s no cost savings involved. For the front door they’re right next to the electronic release. For the rear doors they’re hidden under the passenger door pocket.

Edit: to everyone replying I never said it was a necessity. I explained why they did it. I’m aware of alternate approaches.

I live techlnology but IMHO it is overdone in modern cars. Please bring back tactile and mechanical controls where possible.

Electronic door latches are fine, it’s the backup mechanism that is the problem. Some cars have the mechanical alternate forward of the electrical release such that if you are grabbing frantically you would eventually pull it. This still looks minimal if that is more important than safety.

Tesla might not have, but you can. Always have a glass breaker and seatbelt cutter in your vehicle. Doors get crumpled and can't open regardless of make/model.

Seriously? How many people would be capable of pulling this stunt off in a burning vehicle filled with smoke? Especially considering the fact that in this case the vehicle was packed (5 people in it)--it's hard enough to get your own feet out of the way.

If this passes the safety regulations, those regulations should be changed. Not just expecting car manufacturers to do it out of their good will because they won't.

My frameless-windows 2007 car uses a mechanical door latch and the window rolls down slightly as I pull the latch.

"at least they had pleasing windows."

Isn't this advice becoming dated now that most new cars have side windows with laminated glass?

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a28422725/car-windows-glas...

But it's actually listed on the Model Y page (https://www.tesla.com/ownersmanual/modely/en_us/GUID-AAD769C...): "Note Not all Model Y vehicles are equipped with a manual release for the rear doors."

Not sure what the distribution is or whether it's just an "old version" problem?

We can only hope that Canada and other countries takes the lead and forces the improvements to passenger safety.

Secondly, it is the coupling of electronic controls with unintuitive manual backups that create the danger.

For real though, I hope the relatives of the deceased take Elon personally and Tesla as a company for all they're worth.

I had to kick the rear door of the family car after an accident when I was about 11. The car blocking both doors on the other side was on fire, and I was later told our car was also on fire.

I wouldn't have known to lift the carpet and pull some release tag, and with the door badly damaged from a collision I also wouldn't have been able to kick it while pulling the tab. It was night, so finding and using a glass-smashing tool also seems unlikely.

[1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25941750

I wouldn't be surprised if it goes back even earlier and someone even tried it entirely mechanically without electric windows...

Update: it looks like it was first done on 1946 Buick convertibles.

Do you have a source? Genuinely interested. From the little reading I've done Tesla seem to have put quite a bit of thought in to making their cars perform well in crash tests so it seems surprising that they'd have a high fatality rate.

What's special about Tesla (or any of the other newer cars with full electrical door opening mechanisms) that makes this not an option?

Cost-cutting, mostly.

But otherwise I agree, the door opening mechanism should be improved.

  > Note: Not all Model Y vehicles are equipped with a manual release for the rear doors.

https://autos.yahoo.com/tesla-highest-fatal-accident-rate-16...

> The study's authors make clear that the results do not indicate Tesla vehicles are inherently unsafe or have design flaws. In fact, Tesla vehicles are loaded with safety technology; the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) named the 2024 Model Y as a Top Safety Pick+ award winner, for example. Many of the other cars that ranked highly on the list have also been given high ratings for safety by the likes of IIHS and the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, as well.

> So, why are Teslas — and many other ostensibly safe cars on the list — involved in so many fatal crashes? “The models on this list likely reflect a combination of driver behavior and driving conditions, leading to increased crashes and fatalities,” iSeeCars executive analyst Karl Brauer said in the report. “A focused, alert driver, traveling at a legal or prudent speed, without being under the influence of drugs or alcohol, is the most likely to arrive safely regardless of the vehicle they’re driving.”

You’d need to be able to prove that independent safety and crash testing organisations are pushing out faulty results, since Teslas are among the safest (if not the safest) cars by their standards.

> Double down on the crazy shit this time for real

If your Uber ride is a Model Y you may be SOL:

    Not all Model Y vehicles are equipped with a manual release for the rear doors.

With tempered glass, firefighters heading for a vehicle accident attach glass breakers on a string to their gloves. That way, they can pull a person out of a car in 20 seconds if the immediate danger is larger than the medical considerations, and the person isn't stuck.

With laminated windows, you need a Halligan bar or some other poking tool (sometimes forcefully moving a spike towards a patient) to make a hole, a Sawzall which needs 10 seconds alone to go through common glass, time to get all of that...

It's worrying how much faster vehicle safety is moving compared to emergency extraction capabilities.

It'd be on-par for them, or at least the MCAS designers.

I break laws every single day ...

I feel like this gonna become a real problem as (any brand of) electric cars fill out the world's fleet.