this post was submitted on 15 Oct 2025
487 points (96.7% liked)

Technology

76361 readers
2821 users here now

This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.


Our Rules


  1. Follow the lemmy.world rules.
  2. Only tech related news or articles.
  3. Be excellent to each other!
  4. Mod approved content bots can post up to 10 articles per day.
  5. Threads asking for personal tech support may be deleted.
  6. Politics threads may be removed.
  7. No memes allowed as posts, OK to post as comments.
  8. Only approved bots from the list below, this includes using AI responses and summaries. To ask if your bot can be added please contact a mod.
  9. Check for duplicates before posting, duplicates may be removed
  10. Accounts 7 days and younger will have their posts automatically removed.

Approved Bots


founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
top 50 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] Zak@lemmy.world 186 points 1 week ago (4 children)

After renting a couple cars with electronic door poppers, I find them plainly worse than mechanical door latches. They're a solution in search of a problem, and some implementations are hazardous.

[–] magic_smoke@lemmy.blahaj.zone 29 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

I think having an electric popper on top of an mechanical door latch (actual door handles are standard mechanic, but there's solenoid that can actuate them independently) is okay if you can find an actual usecase.

I mean sure still stupid but at least it isn't dangerous.

Same way electric locks have worked for the past 30 years on cars.

An old civic might be able to unlock from a key fob, but that's only an electronically controlled solenoid controlling a lock which is mechanical in nature, and who's main user-accessible interaction point is mechanically linked to the lock.

[–] artyom@piefed.social 14 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (7 children)

I think having an electric popper on top of an mechanical door latch is okay

The problem with having both is that the electronic one is always the primary one, and the one people will use daily. In particular Tesla hides the mechanical ones really well. So in an emergency situation, people panic and have no idea where it is or how to use it.

Same way electric locks have worked

Electric locks actually serve a purpose though. And they're not a danger to passengers inside. What purpose do electric door handles serve? Other than being more prone to failure, more expensive, and dangerous?

load more comments (7 replies)
[–] artyom@piefed.social 7 points 1 week ago (2 children)

They were hazardous when they were on Corvettes too. They should have banned them back then.

load more comments (2 replies)
[–] SkyNTP@lemmy.ml 7 points 1 week ago (4 children)

I hear they are a solution to the problem of increasing mileage/efficiency. I am no fan of Tesla, but we have to admit, there is some merit to that argument, however debatable the efficiency benefits are.

That's not to say safety isn't a serious issue. The biggest problem is the reliance on electronics. Now if someone can reinvent the design with a highly reliable mechanical system, with multiple redundancy.

[–] Humanius@lemmy.world 17 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

To my knowledge, there are designs which allow you to pop out the latch without the need for electronics.

However, if I'm reading the article correctly those wouldn't be allowed either because in their default state they don't have "enough room for a hand to grip behind them". That wording alone explicitely bans flush doorhandles, and not just electronic doorhandles

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone 14 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Yeah I'm sorry, I'll take normal door handles over a 0.01% increase in efficiency

load more comments (1 replies)
load more comments (2 replies)
load more comments (1 replies)
[–] rafoix@lemmy.zip 160 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Tesla disregarded all knowledge about automotive door safety to make a more expensive and much more dangerous door handle.

[–] prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone 46 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (13 children)

This is what libertarians do for literally everything.

[–] rafoix@lemmy.zip 23 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Libertarians are just people too dumb to understand code requirements in every industry and profession.

The only thing libertarians understand is that they can make more money if they charge a full price for a half-ass job.

load more comments (1 replies)
load more comments (11 replies)
[–] klobuerschtler@lemmy.world 11 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Audi is following in all their new models...

[–] rafoix@lemmy.zip 9 points 1 week ago
[–] NutWrench@lemmy.world 92 points 1 week ago (16 children)

"That's harder than it sounds."

Is it, though? Is it really? We've been making manual car door latches for 100 years.

It's only hard for Musk, and only because he just doesn't want to do it.

[–] BombOmOm@lemmy.world 16 points 1 week ago

Seriously. Every other car maker has figured out how to make normal door handles. You can even buy the parts directly from them if you find it too hard to design yourself.

load more comments (15 replies)
[–] MigratingApe@lemmy.dbzer0.com 90 points 1 week ago (3 children)

Opel Corsa 1993 presents:

Flat aerodynamic door handles.

[–] echodot@feddit.uk 24 points 1 week ago (12 children)

Unless you're planning to drive your car around at about 150 miles per hour I don't imagine that the aerodynamicism of door handles really comes into account. Especially since you've still got wing mirrors, wipers, and aerials on the car.

load more comments (12 replies)
[–] Hule@lemmy.world 8 points 1 week ago

With two doors, half the problem is already solved!

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] Demonmariner@lemmy.world 84 points 1 week ago (2 children)

I read the article. It sounds like the auto makers concern is that they don't think they have been given enough time to solve the problem (the problem being one which may kill people while we wait for a solution).

I think we should give them all the time they want, as long as they stop selling cars without safe door handles RIGHT NOW.

[–] iloveDigit@sh.itjust.works 21 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Your comment is giga based because it doesn't let the overton window get shifted by being too suggestible.

Your brain still went where logic goes, not where was suggested. So important at times like this.

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] Soup@lemmy.world 19 points 1 week ago

“We meed more time even though door handles are a solved problem.”

[–] AwesomeLowlander@sh.itjust.works 80 points 1 week ago (3 children)

The issues could cascade beyond the design. The auto manufacturing industry operates on strict production schedules. Though it builds in time to validate and test whatever new features come in each new model, the sudden intro of a design change late in the process could throw off the delicate timetable.

FFS, it's a bloody door handle, not full self driving tech. Author is full of BS.

[–] porcoesphino@mander.xyz 34 points 1 week ago (1 children)

A lot of upvotes here, and I think they're ignoring how much is involved in production pipelines and the overhead of sourcing suppliers. That said, Musk has a habit of throwing in last minute changes and the company manages to handle those but much like self driving they ship late

[–] filcuk@lemmy.zip 13 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Yeah let's see, if the handle would have to be a different shape, they may need a different cutout for the door, different handle moulds, different mechanical parts, updated electronics... does anyone have a fucking clue how difficult it is to program one of those robotic arms? How expensive new moulds are? Any other potential knock-on effects this may have on the internal design?

People with the mentality of 'it's just a small plug at the bottom of the pool, how bad could it possibly be if we removed it'

load more comments (2 replies)
[–] Treczoks@lemmy.world 15 points 1 week ago (1 children)

You do not know or believe how much shit has to be pipelined to get a simple change on a car design going on the market. If you have knowledge about computers, you quickly notice that the hardware and software running in a car are OLD. I've seen cars sold as new with processors so old, they are "no longer recommended for new designs". This is because every single thing has to be tested and approved to death in a car. Sometimes several times over.

[–] AwesomeLowlander@sh.itjust.works 17 points 1 week ago (1 children)

This is because every single thing has to be tested and approved to death in a car.

This is tesla though, how much testing do they actually do before passing it to customers for free QA?

load more comments (1 replies)
load more comments (1 replies)
[–] Dyskolos@lemmy.zip 66 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (5 children)

Great. Next please: no more touch-controls. I want back haptic buttons for the most important stuff.

EDIT: Instead of silly downvotes, an opinion on why touchscreens/-buttons are superior would be preferable. I'm curious.

load more comments (5 replies)
[–] skisnow@lemmy.ca 62 points 1 week ago (28 children)

I’m calling corpo lobbied bullshit. 2 years is enough time to put a normal door handle on your car.

[–] Tollana1234567@lemmy.today 11 points 1 week ago

they got lazy, they fully adopted the electronic one, and dint want to "waste money" bringing back the old one, in thier recent and future models.

load more comments (27 replies)
[–] echodot@feddit.uk 49 points 1 week ago (3 children)

Is this because the door handle is some complicated electronic mechanism rather than a latch? Gee who could have possibly predicted that would be a problem.

My neighbour has a Tesla and last year I had great fun watching her trying to defrost her car enough to get the door handle to even come out.

[–] BombOmOm@lemmy.world 8 points 1 week ago (3 children)

I have had to put quite a bit of force into a car door to get it to open on many an occasion. (Ice is a bitch) A normal door handle just works, stop trying to fix it!

load more comments (3 replies)
load more comments (2 replies)
[–] sramder@lemmy.world 36 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Load of uninformed B.S. from the supply chain expert. There’s not a door out there that isn’t full of empty space.

load more comments (2 replies)
[–] pyre@lemmy.world 34 points 1 week ago (4 children)

harder than it sounds... yeah the technology isn't there yet! we need research and scientific breakthrough to invent a door handle that you can actually handle. no one's even thought of the concept before.

load more comments (4 replies)
[–] aesthelete@lemmy.world 30 points 1 week ago (5 children)

I hate fucking "flush handles". Good riddance to terrible garbage.

load more comments (5 replies)
[–] AnUnusualRelic@lemmy.world 24 points 1 week ago

Big government is oppressing small businesses again! Thanks Obama!

[–] phutatorius@lemmy.zip 23 points 1 week ago

Cry me a river.

[–] EndlessNightmare@reddthat.com 20 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Could they just use regular fucking door handles?

I remember when people kept trying to assert that Tesla is a "luxury" brand, though it seems that this pretense has finally been dropped. Even so, surely they can figure out something that doesn't seem to be an issue for even the cheapest tier of vehicles available in USDM.

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] Crashumbc@lemmy.world 11 points 1 week ago

The problem is this bullshit was allowed on the road in the first place.

load more comments
view more: next ›