Chinese authorities are reportedly considering a ban on fully retractable door handles, citing safety hazards and functional issues, reported Car News China.
Citing automaker personnel who spoke to news site Mingjing Pro, discussions are underway for new regulations to prohibit fully retractable door handles. Traditional and semi-retractable door handles would still be permitted, but they must incorporate mechanically redundant function for reliability, the report wrote.
A regulation draft for mandatory door handle standards is expected to be finalised this month, and this proposal suggests a ban on fully retractable door handles with a one-year transition period, according to the publication.
Enforcement is then to be carried out from July 2027, and thus new vehicles sold in China will not be permitted to feature such door handle designs after that date. Discussions on the matter also included automatic unlocking mechanisms for situations such as accident scenarios, it added.
While flush-fitted, fully retractable door handles offer perceived aerodynamic benefits and thus, energy efficiency improvements, the gains made and the safety compromises that result have been called into question, according to the report.
Car News China cited engineers calculations as having found that these handles offer a 0.01 Cd reduction in drag coefficient, translating to energy savings of approximately 0.6 kWh per 100 km, thus bringing negligible savings in home charging, the report wrote.
Meanwhile, the weight penalty of 7 to 8 kg from the motors and mechanisms required for the operation of the retractable door handles could also negate any gains made from aerodynamic improvements made.
The report also cited safety failures in the event of power loss or fire, resulting in the door handles becoming inoperable and preventing the vehicle’s doors from opening. Crash tests by the China Insurance Automotive Safety Index (C-IASI) showed that electrically operated door handles attained a door pop-out success rate of 67% in side collisions, compared with a 98% success rate for mechanical handles.
The National Accident In-depth Investigation System (NAIS) reported a 47% increase in accidents caused by door handle failures in 2024, of which hidden handles accounted for 82% of these incidents, the report added. Meanwhile, the Consumer Association in China noted a 132% increase in complaints of finger pinch incidents due to hidden door handles last year, with more extreme cases resulting in broken bones.
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It is just for the looks nothing significantly from aerodynamic.
Ok. Now please ban use of screens for critical functionalities such as HVAC or head lights
This. +1000 this
X50 interior got no aircon knobs & buttons. Epic fail.
hahahaaha..mana Sabri?
The problem is not only specific to LandRover vehicles; it refers to the “hidden” (retractable) door handles found on Tesla vehicles too, which can fail due to mechanical issues, wiring problems, or motor failure.
This is one of the stupidest features on modern cars. Tesla is the root of all stupid anti-safety features on modern cars today. From the loss of physical switchgears, the usage of attention-distracting large touchscreen displays, to these hidden door handles, we can trace it all to the car brand of choice of Rainbow People, Tesla.
tesla fanboys beg to differ, tesla is superior and the mother of all cars
It all started with Tesla. Elon made it looked cool and futuristic. Then it became a trend setter. Even Apple pun kalah teruk and gave up on making their own car. Today most cars have this stupid large touch screen and electronic doors. Best is pre-Tesla era cars which has physical buttons instead of Ipad with wheels.
But like Apple, create a problem then sell the solution. Remove the signal stalk then sell the signal stalk.
Don’t forget, Tesla also pioneered the use of the infotainment screen (and only the screen) to open the glove box which is the most trivial and unnecessary use of technology ever making what should be a very simple task more difficult and failure prone.
It started from Range Rover ahead of Tesla, both minimalist exterior and interior, that included retractable door handles and large touchscreen.
The fully retractable handle while futuristic, is not a practical idea. You need 2 hands to operate it and it’s slower than the current set up. Imagine trying to get into your car running away from robbers or wild dogs and you are delayed because of it
While in malaysia JPJ evaluate roadworthiness base on what.
Thank god…. just do like the one in BYD Dolphin enough already.
Actually if the handle is flipping up from the front end, instead of flipping up from the back end (like most of the Chinese car designed), you can easily open the door with one hand.
I don’t understand, until today there are still not many people realize that design flaw. Chinese car maker including Proton are making the flash handle the wrong way. It’s very unhuman-design.
All and all, I still think the tradition door handle is the best design, ergonomical. You know which one I’m saying, the type where you grip it with the whole hand.
Good. This is the most stupid “innovation” bar none. There’s hardly any aero advantage, adds significant weight, is unnecessarily complex, and for all the trouble to make them work they are still a safety risk.
the drawback from traditional door handle design, is that the small gap or space there creates a low air pressure vortex which then sucks in small particles of sand which will then scratch the paint in that area, especially if you drive at high speeds. if dont believe me go look closely at many cars they mostly have tiny scratches within the door handle scoop.
That’s from fingernail scratches, not from sand particles and what not ♂️♂️♂️♂️ even TPU protection films that are sold to prevent the scratches at that area are sometimes listed as anti fingernail scratch protection films.
that doesnt make sense because if i test by lightly rubbing my fingernails against any other part of the car it doesnt leave scratches. and no i dont wear rings.
next time u need a screen to unzip your pants amd a swipe to pull down underwear just to pee.