Driver dies after being trapped inside burning Tesla

Meanwhile Musk became 500 billionaires

Rest in peace.

Just keeps happening. For the bagholding trolls I've been blocking in this thread: [First responder recounts harrowing incident with malfunctioning Tesla: 'I could have gotten them both out'](https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/first-responder-recounts-harrowing-incident-233500730.html) At least a few other stories just like that one if you Google "bystander Tesla fire door handles" or something.

Like musk hugging you to death

Death trap vehicle

Those emergency releases sure are useful when the driver is incapacitated and the car is equally incapacitated. Edit: it is wild this comment triggered OP so much they blocked me. 🤔

At this point, if you keep driving this pos car you’ve gotta allow for the fact you might be incinerated. Duh.

CK would be proud

Yeah, the National Fire Protection Association [estimated](https://pfpinc.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/osfireloss.pdf) 610 deaths in US vehicle fires in 2022.

No one could get him out without breaking in even if they wanted.....

And literally nothing is being done about this, so frequent, and not even a single question to the ceo or a hearing about how to address it Totally believable in completely unregulated late stage capitalism, and it does not have to be like this at all, regulated capitalism with some guard rails is the best version of capitalism by far

+5% gains on this news

Hits a little different with video attached, huh Elon?

And by incapacitated you mean “a raging inferno.”

What a horrendous way to die? Why would people even sit in this crap ?

Have you ever read Gateway by Frederick Pohl?

With safety glass side windows and traditional door handles and door lock, that breaking in usually requires only a fist sized rock. Laminated side windows and full electric door locks should be forbidden.

I really believe NHTSA needs to review what is going on here: 1. The flammable fuel source for the car is placed under the passengers, often with no barrier whatsoever 2. I think all models now come with laminated glass to keep down road noise 3. The door handles are electrical switches that become useless if power is lost IMHO, this is a deadly combo. I recall in the past there had been plans for fire retarding foam or gell between the battery cells...and compartmentalization of cells into smaller units to prevent instantaneous fires in the entire pack. I have no idea why these measures haven't been fully implemented.

Because most EVs still have mechanical door handles, not just releases. These are special, like an iphone or a trip to an urban center in Rome, London, or Iceland.

There is a reason Tesla has a fatality rate twice that of cars in their class. If you value the life of your family, Tesla should not be the car of choice.

For $15 you can and probably should buy a glass breaker/seatbelt cutter to keep in your car. We carry these in our cars' door side consoles. This will work on any car (except cyber truck), you're in or you come across with a trapped person inside. It's worth knowing that these don't work on Cybertrucks, which have laminated glass that is hard to break even with a firefighter's axe. So unless you have the specialty laminated glass breaker (and aren't too injured to use it), the laminated glass is effectively a death trap. BTW, ICE cars are more likely to catch fire, percentage-wise, and door latches working after a crash is a crapshoot. EV owner or not, having one of these that you'd hopefully never use would at least give you the peace of mind that you would have the best shot at saving someone if the situation were to occur.

I am far from defending Musk but vehicle deaths just yesterday in the US, 9,337 according to Accident Data Center. It's truly unfortunate but it makes no sense for people to say Tesla specifically but all other vehicles are referred to as car or EV accident. Adding link that breaks down deaths by manufacturer: [Driver death rates by make and model](https://www.iihs.org/ratings/driver-death-rates-by-make-and-model)

How many ford pinto’s went up in flames before it was investigated?

The difference is if this was a modern gas car, it'd probably have mechanical door handles that readily allow bystanders to attempt to rescue the passengers. It may even have a crash safety system that unlocks the doors in case you're incapacitated. Instead, you have a car that requires the passengers to know the emergency exit procedures for the different doors like you're on an unfamiliar airliner. In case of electrical failure, the outside handles (if it has them), are useless. Also, you have Tesla proudly showing how rare their fires are when compared to the automotive landscape at large which on average is a much, much older fleet so fires are going to be more common.

Modern car from experienced manufacturers *

Wow another person died in a Tesla death trap.

I will never drive a car without a seatbelt cutter/windshield smasher in a place where I can quickly find it. Teslas are shitboxes and Musk is a horrendous person but let's not pretend ICE vehicles don't catch fire when flammable liquids/fuel start spraying on hot metal and electronics.

What a fucking nightmare.

No.3 is your biggest problem and 100% avoidable if only manufacturers didn't all feel like they've become too good for normal handles. It would result in the same deadly situation regardless of a battery or gasoline fire. China is actually implementing law making electronic handles illegal for this very concern.

Because musk insisted on certain inane design choices that have doomed many people to burn to death or drown after being in relatively minor, survivable accidents. This wouldn’t happen in another car or another EV where safety comes before the whims of a ridiculous CEO.

Telsa front doors have an easy-to-reach mechanical option (usually new passengers will pull that instead of pushing the door open button); the back doors have a string you can pull but it's hidden in the door pocket.

Perfectly normal. If you get knocked out in a accident and can't use the emergency release, the warranty is voided.😫😫😱😱💀💀

even if pintos caught fire, the people inside were likely able to escape instead of being trapped inside.

So what? You compare oranges to oranges, not oranges to apples. Any other car when the door is not damaged and the passenger/ driver is conscious, will open. Just because there are cases when having a door handle will not help you, does not mean you houldn't.

"still love the car!"

I too would prefer more trains but I also do not want people to continue dying in a burning coffins no one can save them from.

Many cars, especially premium or luxury has laminated glass on all windows. Good luck with your fist sized rock.

Go to AAA they list vehicles that have laminated windows. There are many vehicles on that list to satisfy our creature comforts.

So counterintuitive? That’s bad design

This has nothing to do with Gas vs EV, it's rather a problem with Tesla being a software company, not a car company. Cars just happen to be the best platform for them to "sell" their software to consumers. The sooner you understand this, the easier it is to see why Tesla has so many shortcomings with their cars. Customer service, quality control, spare parts, etc are severely lacking with Tesla when compared to experienced automakers as a result. All of Teslas service centers and dealerships feel like a front. If you ever step inside a Tesla service center, you'll immediately notice how bare bones it is. They simply have too many cars on the road to deny basic services like a body shop for Tesla owners. I'm under the impression that if they could get away with not offering any post purchase support for their cars, they absolutely would. For some higher speced Tesla models, they're priced similarly to a solid German car. The only difference is that German manufacturers will treat you like an actual customer if you ever have an issue, whereas Tesla just views you as a number. There are a bunch of EVs with mechanical door handles btw. Take the BMW i4 for example, which shares the same mechanical door handle as their gas powered equivalent (4 series). BMW has enough experience in the industry to make a decision like that, Tesla simply does not because at the end of the day they're not a car company.

And even if unconscious first responders could get them out.

well, yeah, there should be one door opener, not two.

And so? Notice I didn’t mention any specific brand. They are dangerous, no matter what car they are in.

Don’t buy cars like that then. After learning how dangerous they are I always ask from the dealer. I do admit I once bought them as extra option before knowing better.

The fire isn’t the major problem. It’s the electric door handles.

The thing is, in most cars, professionals have a chance of saving you.

“One of the more comprehensive studies comes from Sweden's Civil Contingencies Agency (the MSB), which in 2022 cited 23 fires from a pool of 611,000 EVs in service. That compares to 3,400 fires in 4.4 million fuel-burning cars. Do the math, and 0.004 percent of EVs caught fire that year, compared to 0.08 percent of ICE cars.”

There is no such thing as extra option for laminated glass 🤣.

How about in 2024 when the doctor tried to kill his family in a Tesla off a cliff - everyone survived off 250 ft. Just saying...it can be a luck of the draw.

At least some cars will let firemen rescue you??? Why is everyone acting like their jobs are useless in these situations.

Are you seriously trying to pick a fight under an article about someone’s death? Yes they were in VW Passat 2014 Highline trim, at least here in Europe. Cost was 120€ or something.

I’m saying when I hear reports of accidents - if a Tesla is involved, they report Tesla. They should just say EV.

Notice I didn’t mention brand, many Chinese car makers also got into that idiotic fashion of electric locks, and laminated side windows are sadly common.

Some cars unlock the doors when air bags are deployed (although this is not mandated). This is helpful, in the event the driver is knocked out - bystanders can open the door. This feature is impossible/useless with electric switch door handles. I'm also not a huge fan of the Model X doors - you're fighting gravity with a heavy door. I think it would be very difficult for a child yonger than 10 to push that door open at all, even if they did find the string. Doors were "solved" a long time ago. All this re-inventing just leads to new problems.

Because it takes time for firemen to arrive, bystanders rescuing people is common. And at least here included in first aid training. Although being in SAR I probably got a bit more extensive training than required minimum.

That is a TRIM, not an OPTION. There are a lot of misinformation out there, don't need another one.

I don’t know freedom talk. In here the things you tick on top of some trim package are called options. Optional extras in long form.

This post is about an incident in the US. Take your garbage EU elsewhere.

A fraction of percentage of the relative numbers when compared to all other cars. Look, I hate Musk as much as the next guy. But fuck you and your gaslighting bullshit. Leave that crap to people like Musk.

By smashing your window. and cutting your belts. Which is still possible in a Tesla, no? My car is about as mechanical as it gets nowadays, and I don't think you're getting the windows or doors open without the electronics being functional.

It takes time but there is still always a chance... There are way too many accounts of bystanders and professionals, even off-duty firemen trying to open the doors but not being able to...

It doesn’t matter if there is a hidden mechanical option inside. How are fire fighters supposed to reach in, find it, and use that during a fire while wearing gear etc?

You can lol. Its mechanical because it doesn't need electricity...

Yeah this is totally fine and not preventable.

Most car doors unlock when they detect an accident...

>This feature is impossible/useless with electric switch door handles. ? I can unlock my Tesla doors from the app I agree the funky door prongs are one Tesla's weakest departures from legacy designs

Yeah. Just make a law that everyone in any car must don a fire suit. Just like a seat belt.

Yeah. Or make the car accessible by firemen or bystanders in case of an emergency... or able to detect accidents and unlock its doors. But this is 1958, and that tech sounds more like 21st century scifi bs.

It took them a really long time to be able to make doors the WOULDN'T open due to an accident.

regular people could get them out. because they had DOOR HANDLES

If you have a car with keyless entry, which is basically every car for \~5 years now, how are you getting the doors or windows open without power?

When it’s your time to go, it’s your time to go and we can’t do anything about it.

[deleted]

[Dude why...](https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQKfHrqeSvHVg_sNDy0gIzxFDc8MQgAvngaUD0K1nPSxx6ppzapbETCaVA&s=10)

How do you unlock a door in a keyless entry vehicle without electricity? I can do it from the outside on the driver's side because there's a hidden keyhole and a key buried inside my keyfob, but EMT's aren't going to be like "hey we're smashing your window, can you toss us your key" or fiddling around with slimjimming the lock open, they're going to smash the window and cut your belts. People should have one of those window smashing/belt cutting devices in their safety kits in their cars, they cost basically nothing and you can shove them in a glovebox or center console or wherever to have access to them in an emergency.

Cars have had laminated glass for decades

Flame on! Hot air rises! Stonk go uppity!

On the ioniq 5, you just push the opposing side in opposite of the little square. That exposes the keyhole. Either way, the doors unlock when it detects a serious enough accident... Keyless doors usually have a mechanical component to them. Thats why you can pull a key out of the fob socket...

3 steps to normally open the door versus one step in a normal car....

He put his neck on the line for it

Alright im joining this sub.

You can unlock the doors from inside an Ioniq 5 without electricity? I mean, if so that's a great safety feature, I've never seen that in any car I've owned with power locks.

It is faster to literally just open the door. To just have the door open using the regular door handle. How is everything becoming idiocracy so quickly...

Send in the hacker guy to get the black box data!

Correct. Hyundai Ioniq 5 also has mechanical door locks.

Yes. It is a mechanical door, mechanical handle, and unique design. The motor is there to cover the keyhole. It's also opened then disabled by a very bad collision. And it does this without eyes.

Its the combo of all these factors that's the problem.

2025 Pinto

I guess he was brain dead pretty quickly. Sad for his love ones, but a small consolation that he probably never had time to feel pain. The concentration of carbon monoxide rises very quickly because the space inside a car is small. About fire and carbon monoxide. Carbon monoxide is colorless and You can’t smell it. •Only 0,02 % make you dizzy. •At 0.5 percent, a person becomes unconscious and dies within minutes.  Carbon monoxide poisoning is the most common cause of death in fires.

There’s no need for this video to exist and be shared.

Those cars still have manual door levers which usually unlock after a major accident.

Have you driven most newer cars. I’ve been test driving many recently bc I need a new car. MANY have the electric door locks. I hate them bc of the fire risk. Lincoln’s. Cadillacs. Audis. Lexus.

well if we only had independent govt agencies that would act on such allegations and mandate change if needed…. well in a different world so I guess c ya!

I think it's important for visual learners to have access to forms of media that are accessible to their disability. Video also creates longer lasting memory for those who consume it. Important in this day and age, to not repeat the past... Thankfully, it isn't anymore graphic than "another human being died for the cool factor of a name brand", written in text.

GM or Ford would be down 10% on this. But, hey, it's TSLA

Again?!

The Tesla driver was Car-b-cued

The same day musk became first half trillionaire. A tale of our times…

Tesla's power windows drive themselves snug into the doorframe when closed. This has to reversed when opened.

I have electronic door locks with hide away handles on my Kia EV6. Guess what if the power fails the same door handles are the mechanical door handle that can be used without power. I know after dealing with a flat battery. Most car makers have worked out how to combine the two u like Tesla. Read the manual on those vehicles and it will have a section on how they work without power. Internally on the EV6 the mechanical powerless door release is the door handle itself if you pull slightly harder. From thw outside if you push the back of the handle the front pops out and you pull that all without power needed

Your glass punch wont work on Tesla windows because Musk had to use different glass.....

Oh my god?? Did they try to save on that part of the car too?...

Number 1 isnt the problem you make out as EV batteries burn slower than fuel fires. 2 is rank stupidity on Teslas part 3 has been solved by other car makers but not Tesla for some reason....

I have the Kia EV6 with similar hide away handles. Said electronic handles serve double duty as mechanical door handles if there is no power. Tesla is just too special to do the same....

>This feature is impossible/useless with electric switch door handles. No just for Tesla. Kia solved the problem for example. The same handle acts as a mechanical handle if there is no power.

My door handles act as mechanical ones in the case there is no power if you pull just a bit harder. I drive a 2023 Kia EV6 with hide away handles. Turns out its quite possible to do it without changing even the looks.

Also worth noting comparing gasoline to EV fires is not an apples to apples comparison because while it is true that gasoline is flammable and stores more energy than an EV's battery pack, EV batteries have the capacity to self-ignite through thermal runaway and are positioned under the passenger compartment (most gasoline fires start under the hood). This is not to say that EVs are too dangerous for the road, but it is a fact that our fire services will need to come up with new ways to fight EV fires. Especially for Teslas because, for some reason, Teslas are the only EVs you ever hear about spontaneously bursting into flames.

Kia EV6 is similar I have used the mechanical override function when I had a flat 12V battery. Both inside and outside.

Thanks for the information. I will look into this with the cars I have looked at and liked. This was a sticking point with me.

Every frameless car door does this

Son of a bitch you’re right. Going to delete my post. Thanks for saving me

It was something I looked into before buying the Kia too. Two years later the 12V battery died and to jump start it i had to get into the car first so I was glad I had already found out how it worked. Electronic systems should always have mechanical backups IMO. At least on anything safety critical. Especially in the day and age where the manuals are often electronic ask the stealership to demonstrate how things like that work as you dont want to try and find out after things have gone wrong.

I figured lol. But i forgot they drop whenever the door opens. Why is Tesla frameless?

*Internally on the EV6 the mechanical powerless door release is the door handle itself if you pull slightly harder.* This should be the only way that the safety authorities allow the usage of electronic door handles. If a "nice to have" conflicts with safety, it should NOT be allowed by law. What Tesla and other car manufacturers are recently doing (eliminating the buttons, door handles etc.) is dangerous. I should not try to hit a very small area on the screen while going 120 kph to adjust the temperature of the cabin. That is plain stupid! Luckily, I think by 2026, EU will mandate physical controls for essential features. You will not be allowed to dig into menus to do basic stuff, like adjusting the airflow.

They'll get it one day... I know Tesla is Everyman's First EV, but they'll get it one day...

Also coz stubborn choices lead by the ceo

I don't know if there are any specific advantages to frameless doors apart from their distinct look and I'd guess that's why Tesla chose them

I would say all electric doors from proper car manufacturers (this means all except Tesla) can be open manually using the same door handles when electricity fails. Some even unlock the doors when an accident is detected.

What good is a glass breaker on laminated glass? More and more cars have laminated glass, and it's not only the cyber truck. So it becomes more important nowadays, to check if the car you want to drive has the word 'laminated' imprinted on the windows.

Maybe already asked but can't the software of the car be upgraded in a way that the door unlocks when the airbags deploy?

I wonder if the doors on the Tesla remained locked from being accessed from the outside? The Mercedes pre-safe feature ensures all the doors to be unlocked whenever the car sense that there has be an accident or impact. I wonder if this could have helped the poor driver in this case?

Im glad when your knocked senseless and your Teslas on fire, you feel confident that your app will work. 🙄

AFAIK, it's useless for laminated glass. I guess Tesla makes one that works on the cybertruck windows. I imagine it's an order of magnitude more expensive, but I'm not easily finding info on it. I didn't know others were going this route. That kinda raises the question, WTF do we need laminated glass for? Is the tradeoff for a potential horrible death worth whatever that is?

It's not just that they treat themselves as a software company, but also they have convinced themselves that they do it better than anyone else. In some cases like battery technology and battery management software, it makes sense. But they keep finding idiotic hills to die on because they don't want to accept that they got it wrong. Another example is the lack of physical buttons to control things. It looks very sleek and flashy but it's annoying and unsafe to put all controls on to the main touchscreen. Other car companies tried to ape it, understood why it was bad and walked it back. Like Volkswagen - https://share.google/LcrZGIVHx0YgsIk9j Tesla on the other hand just never admits that they got it wrong and this arrogance is literally killing people.

They should not just have a mechanical alternative, the alternative should also be in a spot that is intuitive to identify. In moments of emergency, the last thing I want to do is fumble around to find the mechanical handle.

The keyless entry is irrelevant, it's just central locking but with proximity so without having to press a button. My car has keyless entry to unlock the doors, but the door handles themselves are still mechanical.

Turns out you literally have to read the instruction manually to know how to open the doors of a Tesla in event of an emergency. Also how the front vs back varies as does how opens from model to model. You know, the usual Musk genius level shortcuts he loves to employ.

Can't think of a worse way to die Definitely worth another $100 billion of market cap though

My old BMW E36 coupe had it so that even when the battery was dead the frameless window would then mechanically lower itself a little when you pulled the door handle.

Framless is fine, it looks sleeker. It's just that other brands have figured it out to have mechanical backups.

tesla is not a car company, but an AI company. Nobody care the car.

I dislike Elon Musk and I’m not a fan of Teslas. That said, I’ve driven a Tesla Model 3 as a rental and been a passenger in one several times. In every Model 3 I’ve used, the front doors had an obvious, mechanical door handle in addition to the electronic release, so I don’t understand how conscious, mobile front-seat occupants get trapped when the car loses power. The rear doors are different.... their release is less accessible, so I can see how someone who’s panicking or has reduced mobility (children, elderly, etc.) could have trouble getting out. That isn’t entirely unlike cars with rear child locks engaged, though. My biggest concern is this: if a Tesla has no power, there isn’t an obvious or easy way to open the doors from the outside. That creates a real risk if someone inside is incapacitated and the vehicle is on fire as any first responders may struggle to get them out. Solution - just use fucking traditional mechanical door mechanisms both inside and out and make electronic door opening illegal.

It’s quite possible to make Tesla door handles functional without installing any electrical devices, and far cheaper. This industry is rife with over complicated bullshit and cars have become less reliable as a result

👆

Grim. Very very grim. Would not want to die from a fire as I could not get out of my car.

Didn't the Chevy Bolt, before the recalls, randomly catch fire?

How often do drivers die “trapped” in non-teslas?

Yes, Bolts caught fire pre-recall. But they don't \*still\* catch fire, it was some defect in the battery pack that they fixed. Teslas \*still\* trap you when they catch fire, and they ignite at the drop of a hat.

On new ways to fight EV fires - we had a local fire department come to one of our community picnics to do a presentation on fire safety, and at the end when they asked "any questions?" I asked how the rise of EVs have affected their firefighting services. They said they had to buy a new piece of equipment that can slide under a car and pierce the battery compartment and flood it with something that will extinguish the fire (at the time of the Q&A they hadn't had to use it yet).

Good to know since I have a Bolt with a replaced battery!

Aside from the doorhandles.. I can see it is a model 3 and, from what I can see, the damage isn't that bad. So what I'm thinking is primarily; why the F did it burn??? I mean, I get the F tesla and all that sentiment. But from an engineering standpoint - giving the amount of these cars on the road, there are likely tesla crashes every single day. If they always burned we would know by now. Which brings me back to - why did this one burn, especially with seemingly limited damage??? I would like to know more about the dangerous doorhandles though.

I agree that having two is a redundant (part, not safety) - I’m surprised Tesla would allow such an inefficiency for so long When I first rode in or drove Tesla’s I’d automatically go for the manual release (unknowingly) because it’s was more prominent/visible than the electric release

Another tragic senseless death - if any other product killed so many of it’s customers it would have been fixed or withdrawn from the market by now :(

You mean ANOTHER died  This is the 4th case in a month and uh...I think 5-7 ppl total? Single guy. Single guy. Parent and 2 kids and uhhhmmm another family idk? Something like that. But don't worry. They consider to might change the handles in future cars! The problem is therefore solved.

Tell us why.

>But fuck you and your gaslighting bullshit. Dude posts a objective news post, about a objective thing that occured. Yet for some reason you are butthurt beyond repair. Will you complain about the same thing when some news are done about a Volvo burning? I have a feeling, no

And the cars should NOT open in an accident...why..? Thats quite literally the immediate thing you want, if you can move. To get out.

Go to their website

(In DJ Khalid voice) Another one!

I hope so. They do everything else through updates.

Is this deadly design specific to certain models or years or what?

I dont know but whatever tech prevents cars from burning after an accident will be cool.

>Number 1 isnt the problem you make out as EV batteries burn slower than fuel fires. I'll keep that in mind, as I burn to death. I neglected to mention a 4th issue here - Teslas are catching fire after moderate speed front end collisions. It doesn't matter how much "faster" gas burns, the odds of an ICE car igniting after hitting a utility pole at moderate speeds are slim to none. Its the combination of factors in how these cars are designed that is very dangerous.

>There are a bunch of EVs with mechanical door handles btw. Take the BMW i4 for example, which shares the same mechanical door handle as their gas powered equivalent (4 series). >BMW has enough experience in the industry to make a decision like that, Tesla simply does not because at the end of the day they're not a car company. The fat etron has electronic door latches that are actuated by completely normal door handles. Pulling the same handle a second time (the natural reaction to "I pulled the handle and it didn't open") actuates the mechanical release. It's seamless enough that I'd had the car for a year before I learned this. My i3, for all it's 2012-era "we sold a concept car to the public as an engineering exercise" design is actually a super basic, regular car aside from the electric powertrain and construction methods.

A picture conveys the same message. We don’t need to see someone’s death pot in video form. Only degenerates would hit play.

>It's not just that they treat themselves as a software company, but also they have convinced themselves that they do it better than anyone else. >In some cases like battery technology and battery management software, it makes sense. But they keep finding idiotic hills to die on because they don't want to accept that they got it wrong. If you look at something and see basically everyone in the entire industry is doing it the same way, there are two possible interpretations: * You're more clever than everybody else, so doing things differently makes you better than "legacy" engineers who don't have any new ideas. * Over the last century a bunch of ideas have been tried/explored across multiple companies, and they all kinda settled on the thing that works well with minimal downsides.

Paying for the privilege of being a lab rat in Elon’s experiment

Model 3 doesn’t have that in the rear ☠️

Yes, other EV makers mostly have better door handle designs. I simplified it a bit b/c I was considering the claims that Tesla's made about their fire safety relative to other vehicles.

like I said it does, but it's literally hidden so kids don't find it.

Should be a recall to correct the manual door opening access. Why has the DOT or whomever not made this Happen yet ?

Companies have loved the idea of screens well before the technology was close to ready (see 1986 Buick Regal). The fewer dedicated/physical buttons they have to build into a car, the cheaper it is to produce, and the more features they can throw at it. The byproduct of looking sleek and expensive for marketing was certainly a bonus.

Original model 3 doesn’t. The highland does.

*Another example is the lack of physical buttons to control things. It looks very sleek and flashy but it's annoying and unsafe to put all controls on to the main touchscreen. Other car companies tried to ape it, understood why it was bad and walked it back.* I'll occasionally have a rental car with too many features on a touch screen. It's such an obvious un-safe bad idea I'm surprised designers ever went that way in the first place.

Im not going to defend Teslas many design defects. If its any consolation the chances of your average EV burning even after an accident are also incredibly low. Tesla just has to be different for the sake of difference and many of their design choices haven't been done by other car makers for good reasons.

Govt should stop sales of all teslas.

“ I have no idea why these measures haven't been fully implemented.” time, money

>If its any consolation the chances of your average EV burning even after an accident are also incredibly low. Cars catch on fire primarily because chewing gum and duct tape fails to hold together the fuel line on that 78 Fairmont...ie 44% mechanical failure and 20% electrical problems, hell 5% arson - but mostly not after a collision. So the odds of ANY car catching fire ***after an accident*** is incredibly low. > Collisions and overturns were only responsible for **3% of the fire** but caused 57% of the deaths. Source: [https://autoaccident.com/automobile-fires-safety-and-escape/](https://autoaccident.com/automobile-fires-safety-and-escape/) ...but what happens in the rare event that is does: This is from an admittedly TSLAQ heavy site, but they do show their sources: hthttps://autoaccident.com/automobile-fires-safety-and-escape/tps://www.tesla-fire.com/ They've logged 232 fires and 83 fatalities up to Feb 2024 - they would have had an accumlated 4.5 million cars on the road at that time. The Ford Pinto had 27 deaths, in a fleet of 3 million cars. Given those numbers, I am ***not*** comforted.

And the EV3 is actually fully mechanical on the inside and the outside handle is also mechanical in nature, just the hide away part is electrified, but can be manually popped out easily. There is even a keyhole there.

Reminds me of that episode of Always Sunny

Interesting word choice.

Ban electric door handles. See how easy this is? All door handles should be connected to a mechanism that can operate without electricity. Because power often fails in crashes. If you want a soft touch electric release you can add one by allowing a partial pull of the handle to electrically actuate the release. That needs less effort from your spoiled princess ass.

Lmao imagine dying in a shitty tesla.

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As ways to go…go, it has to be right up there with the worst options available. Especially if you’re still conscious.

Right, present tense vs. past tense

Its weird how people are convinced they have the best tech because of software... what happened to tech being, idk, physical... everything people like about this car was a result of profiteering.

What? This is just providing corrected information.

Like wiper and turn signal stalks, door handles were a solved problem before Elon showed up.

I’ve heard that in Teslas, and some other modern cars, the use of laminated glass makes a typical hand held glass smasher difficult to use from inside the car.

Again. Anyone else see a pattern here. The door should unlock after a crash not lock.

But Elon is now "worth" $500 billion so thank you for our sacrifice

I agree - let's do the stats. First, let's cull out the big truck accidents. Then only measure 4 door cars from the last 7 or 8 years (vast percentage of Teslas are newer than that. Then study the particular situations - "car fires where others have been present and/or the occupants would have usually escaped". If Tesla is no different than other car makes in this regard, it is what it is. But if a single person had to burn to death while alive and concious due to poor engineering decisions and or construction of a car, that's one too many. FYI, famous historical case of the Ford Pinto "The Ford Pinto is linked to 27 officially documented deaths due to its design defect, which made the fuel tank vulnerable to rupture and fire in low-speed rear-end collisions" 27 deaths worldwide. Tesla, as of a year or two ago, "documented 83 deaths in fires" - likely there are many more than are documented. It appears at first glance to be....speaking simply....that many people are bring roasted alive WHICH COULD BE AVOIDED. If that is the case, something must be done immediately. If it is not at all outside the typical range (and studying the situations), then it's just the nature of the beast.

"Mind you, I love my Tesla - best decision I ever made, but I am still sad that my BF was burnt in his" When I drive mine I always wonder how anyone can ever go back to a ICE or Hybrid car /s

27 total - about 1/3 or 1/4 the Teslas recorded fire deaths.

No, it cannot be. A study must be done on the stats and on the particular situations and if it a death trap things must be recalled and changed as quickly as possible.

Tall about terrible regret.

You are making a statement which seems to mislead. I'm sure you want to know - like anyone who values humans - if the approx. 100 or so (estimate) Tesla fire deaths are statistically relevant (you have to compare against newer 4 door passenger vehicles in similar crashes). If they are like every other car...NOT in fires, but in deaths from fires, then there is little reason to critique their setup. But, if as I suspect, there are people being roasted to death which could easily be avoided and does not happen on similar vehicles (a Camry, for instance), then the cars should be recalled and changed to something which is much safer.

>Vehicle fires are among the leading causes of death in the United States. Um... 490 deaths in 2006, vs. an estimated [8,430 deaths from melanoma](https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/melanoma-skin-cancer/about/key-statistics.html#:~:text=About%208%2C430%20people%20are%20expected,5%2C470%20men%20and%202%2C960%20women) in 2025. I'm not questioning their numbers, but their scare tactics are a little much.

Well, we obviously have to look at 4 door passenger vehicles of newer vintage and then by the numbers (miles driven) and so on to determine that.

Thats crazy. Thanks.

Ok - a little bit hyperbolic.

No. That's 'after' an accident.

2 people die in burning cars every day in the usa. Teslas burn a lot less often than the average car so it’s news when it happens.

Yeah let's minimize it that'll help people who cant escape them.

Yeah, it's definitely happening, there are blankets and other technologies that fire services are rolling out, but I think if we woke up tomorrow morning with every car being an EV using current battery tech we'd be in big trouble. Like imagine if you had a huge pileup of EVs in a tunnel, how would you put that out? Thankfully we're not going to magically all switch to EVs overnight, but things need to meet in the middle as we transition. We encounter the same problem with scaling the power grid, if we waved a magic wand and replaced every car with an EV tomorrow we'd have rolling blackouts. We need to develop these things as the transition happens, ideally on fire safety we'd meet in the middle with both safer batteries and new firefighting systems.

Your corrected information was incorrect

Could explosive bolts be integrated on the door somehow. When a Tesla crashes the doors blow out so occupants can get out.

There can be a lot of unforeseen consequences with this type of stuff. I have now doubt that the doors and door latches add to the vehicle's overall ability to protect the passengers. I think that's why NHTSA has been so reluctant to force auto-unlocking on manufacturers - some aniquated notion that a locked door will stay shut better than an open door. So I don't think anything that blows the latching mechanism would be wanted.

I have never read a story about a person being trapped in a burning car after a traffic accident on a populated roadway that would have been easily survivable until Teslas!

Hmmm, the driver has easy access to the mechanical door lever for the front door. The shitty Tesla design is for the back seats not the front.

Outside as well. If you're incapacitated, the lever on the 3/y doesn't work if there's no power as there's no mechanical connection. Most other cars auto unlock and have a mechanical latch when there's a crash but on the Tesla, the outside lever is just an electronic switch. X/CT don't have handles at all now and the CT has reinforced/laminated glass on top of that. If you're able to get out on your own, the front doors aren't that bad as long as you know the lever. Back is either under the door pocket liner, speaker grille, or non-existent on the early 3s.

True but most cars if they are locked, the door wont open from outside if the driver does not unlock it.

Tesla also compares their relatively new cars to a fleet average that is 2-3x older than their cars. Average fleet in the US is over 12 meaning ~140M cars are older than that. Tesla sold like 20k 2013s. They also haven't updated numbers since 2023.

Most brands including Tesla are supposed to unlock when a crash involving airbags occurs. Tesla actually had a software update recall because their doors would unlock and open during some crashes. My last 3 cars all had that feature.

Stock at new highs Nothing, and I mean nothing, can stop this idiotic meme stock It should be trading at about $12 like Ford But nope, his hopium-addled minions will never give up Sick cult behavior

Does a fire start so quickly that the driver cannot open the doors from inside?

I was there. I witnessed this crash. The driver was unconscious after the impact on the utility pole. He couldn’t get himself out cause he was not awake. Horrific thing to see first hand and the bystanders tried with fire extinguishers etc but the car eventually exploded and was too dangerous for anyone to approach without safety equipment or gear. Tragic accident. Oh and the driver ran. Yep he ran off and left his own two passengers severely injured inside the SUV.

Eh, sorry for a question that might seem untimely. How do y'all find courage to drive cars like these? Not only range anxiety, sitting at chargers for idontknowhowlong (maybe not, but I see people sitting there all the time), Teslas driving like by themselves as in "I will drive how I want, not how YOU want" (I mean the numerous incidents when Teslas decided to stop in the middle of a traffic e.g. on Yerba Buena Island in San Francisco causing a muti-car pile-up), and the prospect of hitting something, anything hard enough on the road, for the car to turn into a gas chamber. I mean, do you really love this guy so much you're willing to put up will ALL of this?

I can not map my mind around how Tesla is not shit talked to hell, every other manufacturer would be fuuuuuucked. Maybe it’s \*\*Get Selfdriving or Die Tryin\*\*

Wtf! Did they catch him?

No and I’m not sure. He was gone when police and fire arrived. In the news it didn’t mention the fact that he was not on scene on their arrive and fled that’s what has me perplexed. Maybe he fainted blocks away or something. I do have my own videos of the ordeal and it shows him on scene and then not on scene.

When the car is on fire, nobody remembers anything but the bare basics of what they're used to.

Most other EVs use a system where you pull the door handle harder than usual to engage the mechanical lock and then pull again to open the door. Anyone in a panic can easily get out

ayup, plus getting blasted in the face with the airbag isn't going to help you remember to pull the manual release, after panicking and pressing the release button over & over. There's no reason the car couldn't have a normal door release that also popped the window for you if 12V was available. Or hell, make it self-contained with a door batter, and/or put the 12V battery somewhere in the middle where it's survivable in a front-end crash.

Nothing to worry about. It’s not new that there are difficulties to open the door during a crash with Tesla. There have been cases before. It will not harm the stock.

Full Self Cremation. Congrats from Elon.

DOGE defunded and laid off something, like, half of the folks NHTSA, so good luck with that.

What is their software that other cars can't do, though? It's software sold as a car, but aside from partially function FSD for $12k more, it's the same as other cars. Dog mode? All I can think of

At what point is common sense going to kick in for you? You have one life to live…..!

I've stumbled across this subreddit as I am trying to learn about Teslas and their safety profile, as well as any potential cover-ups by the company to project a better safety than they actually have. That said I just caught this comment that you are actively blocking people responding to this thread. Would you mind to clarify if you blocking people because they are trolling or something, or because they are presenting different opinion or other information than yours? Thanks, hopefully I'm not misintereretting that part of your post entirely.

I wish those two criteria were mutually exclusive in the 2 specific cases im referring to.

No es un tesla es un BYD

Teslas have mechanical releases on the door when there is no power. This is false information.

The issue is the owners not knowing how to open the manual release or knowing where it is located. There is a manual, mechanical release. Literally one of the first things I figured out how to do in the case of an emergency.

No one said they didn't. Its just not as intuitive as pulling the usual door handle.

They should make it intuitive.

Even Lexus full electric calls that have a push button electric exit also have mechanical systems to open the door. The exit button is on the door as normal and the button is simply a tab. Push it and if there’s no traffic, it will open. Even without electricity, you put your finger behind the front of the tab and pull it to mechanically open the door. Easy peasy and it’s a slick design.

I know the girl who died in this Tesla. She was only 24. A beautiful soul, inside and out. The whole community in north Miami Beach and nearby sunny isles beach (where her family lives) is in mourning. I truly believe that car went on fire because of the battery underneath it. The other 2 cars involved were just as smashed in but they did not go ablaze instantly (or at all) like her car did. It was an instant death. Secondly, even if there wasn’t an instant fire, she’d be stuck in there and die. There’s no way she knew where that stupidly designed manual lever was to open the door. NOBODY at Tesla shows you where the manual lever is and how to use it. Worse than that, it’s dumb hard to get to , especially for the back doors. When this goes to court, and it will, Tesla is going to have a lot of explaining to do.

Hopefully that’s some consolation to his loved ones. I’m glad to know it (thanks). It’s horrific to imagine being fully conscious and trapped in an inferno.

I grew up with her and this is just devastating… She is truly one of the best people I know, always smiling and making everyone laugh. I hope her family is able to find peace

How does this address the common Tesla situation that the car catches fire without the air bags deploying?

I am so deeply sorry for your loss.

If anything Musk will go down in history as least successful serial killer. He tried to kill people with the hyper loop, mission to Mars, and in taking credit for once fantastic cars

Teslas sound like tinder boxes. Talk about a shitty way to go. After hearing the screams of someone burning alive it’s been one of my deepest fears.

Common

You’re really misinterpreting the fatality rate of Teslas. It comes down to the people that drive them and the false sense of security they get when using auto pilot. It also comes from giving 500 horsepower vehicles to inexperienced drivers. Teslas are incredibly safe and make great family cars. I do think something should be done about how confident people are in self driving when it’s not nearly as safe as you think. But then again, I think any confident and safe driver would realize FSD and autopilot aren’t very safe. So it purely comes down to inexperienced and bad drivers.

Good!!! One less annoying Tesla in Miami.

People don't work that way. People forget. People get tired. People freak in an emergency. When people get tired and startled, they fall back on what's habitual, i.e. how they normally open the door. The victim could easily have known about the emergency release but, having not drilled its use regularly, simply have forgotten.

Usually when people are trapped is the frame or badly is bent such and the doors are pinched closed and certain ones won’t open. Mechanical release won’t help you there always When occupants are unconscious the (often laminated) glass has to be broken Looking at it a single release with dual function seems the safest bet

That must be one a week on average. Total death traps! They shouldn't be allowed on the roads.

On dead bodies as well!

Anyone heard of glass breakers? Heck a $5 tool from the local hardware store will have saved this person. Perhaps those driving EVs might wanna invest in one? Just a thought

Regardless of the reason the fatality rate is so high, (and it is very likely your reasons have some merit), I suspect every person that bought one and died in one believed they would would be better than the average driver and beat those odds. Something is making them far from being as safe as cars in their class and a good car for a family. And if part of the reason is as you say, it matters not because you can say that about any car.

At this point. You get what you pay for.

I dont like it when i place my kid in his seat and as i walk to the drivers door the car locks the doors. Its rare that it happens but it does. What i do is lower the window so incase i need to get him out i can. I also carry a window breaker on my key chain just in case.

Scared.

Oh wow. Didn't see that coming. Gee. I thought the soaring stock price meant that this wouldn't ever happen. Ketamine!

Tesla 3/Y have very obvious and easy to find front mechanic emergency handles. Back - very hard to find or even absent!

But you still love the car

Because I’m rich and can afford a car that’s seen as “green” and yet is dirtier to build than a gasoline car. All the hassles are worth being seen as virtuous by total strangers.

Apparently was unconscious.

The tech required to prevent fires is called “no battery.”

My car got a recall notice because the air bag had metal shavings that would turn it into a claymore. They only recalled it after 27 people were killed.

i dont even understand the benefit of electric door handles. I understand electric windows. Having to crank them up and down is annoying. But electric handles? What's problem is it solving there?

Drag. They fold in allowing the car to be smoother and use less fuel. Its a minor saving but they look for everything these days. Obviously it also looks "cool" and every reduction in protrusions also makes the vehicle more "pedestrian friendly". I doubt Musk considered the last point at all though.

Was the driver conscious after the crash? I didn’t hear the brought up in the story?

For our ID.4, all you do is pull a little harder on the normal door handle. It's not hard, Tesla.

Very well said.

Its FSD. The more cars on the road, the "better" FSD can become. They use the telemetry from the cars to further develop FSD so they can implement it into other products (like the Robotaxi or Optimus for example), albeit very poorly.

Large amounts of telemetry data is certainly useful for training purposes, like if you can pull up the final 30 seconds of 10,000 collisions to identify mistakes to avoid, but it's not really a function that other cars *can't* perform, and it's not clear what or how much difference it's actually made. Tesla FSD's driving is often praised as more human-like and comfortable than competitors, which I think is a fair assessment, and maybe that's the result of the advantage of more telemetry data to train from. But maybe it's not, and it's instead due to running more or better sims, or training larger models on more powerful computation clusters.

So sad. I won't be buying a Tesla anytime soon. Even if I were rich, I would get a Jaguar, Maserati or something. We should be treating this as severely as the Pinto had it.