Tesla exec says the company will redesign door handles that reportedly pose safety risks<p style="text-align:left;"><span style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Arial, sans-serif;">Yesterday, the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened an </span><a target="_blank" class="link" href="
https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/nhtsa-is-investigating-tesla-over-its-electronic-door-handles-203605393.html"><span style="color:rgb(17, 85, 204);font-family:Arial, sans-serif;">investigation</span>[/url]<span style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Arial, sans-serif;"> into Tesla following a report by
Bloomberg that its electric door handles could stop working when a vehicle's low-voltage battery fails. That created a safety hazard that the publication found could trap passengers when a Tesla car was in an emergency situation, such as a crash. Now,
Bloomberg is back with the news that Tesla plans to </span><a target="_blank" class="link" href="
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-09-17/tesla-is-redesigning-door-handles-that-drew-scrutiny-over-safety?embedded-checkout=true"><span style="color:rgb(17, 85, 204);font-family:Arial, sans-serif;">redesign</span>[/url]<span style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Arial, sans-serif;"> those problematic handles. </span></p><p style="text-align:left;"><span style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Arial, sans-serif;">Tesla design head Franz von Holzhausen appeared on
Bloomberg's
Hot Pursuit! podcast and said the company is considering a new approach that combines the electric and manual release mechanisms. "The idea of combining the electronic one and the manual one together into one button, I think, makes a lot of sense," he said. "That’s something that we’re working on." He didn't specify why Tesla was working on a redesign, but it's hard to imagine the timing of the federal probe isn't relevant. </span></p><p style="text-align:left;"><span style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Arial, sans-serif;">The company has already been in the NHTSA's sights this year. Last month, the regulator opened an </span><a target="_blank" class="link" href="
https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/feds-investigate-tesla-over-inaccurate-autopilot-and-fsd-crash-reports-175837772.html"><span style="color:rgb(17, 85, 204);font-family:Arial, sans-serif;">investigation</span>[/url]<span style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Arial, sans-serif;"> into how Tesla was reporting crashes with its Autopilot and Full Self-Driving systems. Although Tesla claimed the inconsistencies in reports were due to a system error that it has fixed, the NHTSA said it would continue the probe.</span></p><p style="text-align:left;"></p>This article originally appeared on Engadget at
https://www.engadget.com/tesla-exec-says-the-company-will-redesign-door-handles-that-reportedly-pose-safety-risks-225500245.html?src=rssSource:
Tesla exec says the company will redesign door handles that reportedly pose safety risks
