Flush door handles to be banned amid China crackdown
A popular feature of many Chinese-made cars is set to be banned over serious safety concerns.
Power-operated retractable car door handles could soon face a production ban if China prohibits their use due to safety concerns.
Power-operated handles that sit flush with car doors have become a growing feature of modern vehicles thanks to electric vehicle designers seeking to chase aerodynamic efficiency and improved driving range.
However, concerns have been growing around their safety and their ability to perform under extreme conditions.
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According to the Chinese media outlet Mingjing Pro, an anonymous source from a local automaker’s R & D department has revealed that Chinese regulators are considering a ban that would outlaw both fully concealed mechanical lever-type handles and electronic retractable units in new cars starting in July 2027.
Semi-concealed and traditional door handles would still be allowed, provided they have a mechanical lever connected to the door frame.
This follows several incidents in China last year.
In one case, an electric door handle motor froze, preventing passengers from escaping and causing them to miss a critical rescue opportunity.
And in the same year, during Guangdong’s rainy season, heavy storms short-circuited door handles on some vehicles, forcing passengers to break their car windows to escape.
China hasn’t been the only country to see issues with electric door handles.
Over in the US, power-operated doors are thought to have contributed to several deaths, and with the technology becoming more and more popular in modern-day vehicles, there’s a strong push for the US government to investigate.
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Chinese manufacturers, such as Zeekr, Xpeng, Geely, and Deepal, opt to use electronic retractable units in their models, while global manufacturers like Mercedes, Tesla, and Land Rover employ this technology to enhance aerodynamics and efficiency.
But the supposed aerodynamic gains are also being questioned.
As ArsTechnica points out, flush handles reduce drag by around 0.01 Cd, far less than the 0.03 figure claimed by some brands.
On top of that, Mingjing Pro claims electronic door handles cost three times as much to manufacture and have a failure rate up to eight times higher than mechanical units.
If China does opt for a ban on fully retractable door handles, there’s a chance it could have significant repercussions across the automotive industry.
Which could mean good news for those who haven’t gone all-in on the hidden handles.
At the IAA Mobility show in Munich, Volkswagen brand CEO Thomas Schäfer admitted the German automaker had received considerable backlash regarding flush-mounted door handles on some of its models.
In an interview with Deutsche Welle, Schäfer said flush door handles are “nice” to look at, but “they are terrible to operate”.
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The Volkswagen brand boss said the company’s job is to “give the people what they are asking for”, and having “proper door handles” on future vehicles is part of that.
Schäfer also pointed out that hidden handles have been mainly pushed by the Chinese market, where car buyers are often in their early 20s, compared to Europe and the US, where the average age of new car customers is much higher.
Here in Australia, the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) already considers how power-operated latches perform in safety testing. Cars must allow passengers to exit within two minutes, even if the 12-volt system fails, using a clearly accessible secondary release.
Chinese regulators have yet to impose an official ban on retractable door handles.
Originally published as Flush door handles to be banned amid China crackdown
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