China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has imposed tough new standards that outlaw flush, electronically operated door handles on passenger vehicles.
The rules require mechanical external handles on all doors except tailgates, plus interior mechanical releases, for cars sold from 1 January 2027. This ends a design pioneered by Tesla and now widespread among electric vehicles in China’s huge market.
Global fears over entrapment have grown after deadly crashes left occupants unable to escape. Safety experts worldwide have raised alarms, but China acts first with a full ban.
A Bloomberg investigation last September exposed flaws in Tesla’s hidden handles. It cited cases where drained batteries disabled electronic locks, blocking rescuers and those inside.
The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration then launched probes into certain Model Y and Model 3 handles. Officials found interior manual releases hard for children to reach and unknown to many drivers. U.S. lawmakers have pushed bills for mandatory manual handles on all new cars.
In China, fatal accidents like one with a Xiaomi SU7 electric saloon spurred change. Starting May 2025, over 40 local makers, suppliers and testers joined more than 100 experts to draft the Safety Technical Requirements for Automobile Door Handles.
Chinese firms such as BYD, Geely Holdings, SAIC and Xiaomi took part, alongside foreign brands including General Motors, Ford, Hyundai, Nissan, Porsche, Toyota and Volkswagen. Tesla was not among the listed contributors.