China is banning hidden door handles on all cars sold in the country, becoming the first country in the world to target the feature – which was popularized by Tesla but has for years drawn concern over safety risks.
The feature has previously come under heavy scrutiny, both in China and elsewhere.
Last September, Tesla said it was looking into redesigning the way to open its car doors in an emergency, after several accidents where passengers were reportedly killed or severely injured in burning vehicles because rescuers could not open them.
Other Tesla owners have reported having to break their own car windows after buckling their children in and then being unable to get in the car again, according to an investigation by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
An investigation by Bloomberg found 140 incidents of people being trapped in their Teslas due to problems with the door handles, including several that resulted in horrific injuries.
I love the Audi e-tron. Feels sturdy like an audi, no stupid gimmicks like disappearing handles.
But it’s an AUDI, so it will fall apart 11 seconds after the lease is up.
Do you own one?
I test drove one (Bolt Drive rental lol) and it was honestly a bit less smooth on the road than my 2007 A6 Allroad. The performance was amazing (even though it was the lower power version I believe), but due to the hefty weight it seems the suspension is compromised. But since it wasn’t brand new, I also don’t know how good a shape it was in. IIRC it was on air suspension, so it should’ve been better than steel springs.
Buuuuut with the prices they have dropped down to, they’re also god damn enticing these days! And 300 kilowatts is a ridiculous amount of power lol. The downside of course being that a brand new battery off Audi is twice the value of the car if it goes bad lol. But EV battery repair shops are starting to be a thing here, so that might make replacing single cells a very affordable option.