YSK: it's not just Tesla, 1/3 of cars in built in the last ten years have passenger/rear windows that are almost impossible to break in an emergency.
aaa.com
In the past, laminated glass was usually installed in the windshield, with side and rear windows being tempered only.
The difference is that tempered glass is per-stressed so that when it cracks, it shatters into many tiny and dull pieces. Laminated is the same thing, but with layers of plastic sandwiched with layers of tempered glass. Laminated glass will still shatter, but will be held together by the plastic layers.
In an emergency, small improvised, or purpose built tools meant to shatter tempered glass will be useless if the glass is laminated.
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There is apparently a manual lever hidden underneath the button, but that sure does seem like a bad design idea in an emergency.
I hate Tesla and traded mine in after only two months of ownership, but in no way is the lever hidden or not extremely obvious. In fact it is more obvious than the button. Several times I had passengers try to use the manual lever, which doesn't lower the window when used. After the second person did it, moving forward I told every person who hadn't been in my car before to use the button before getting out. Was one of the many reasons I traded it in.
But that's because they were used to other cars. If you're used to pressing the button, that's where you're gonna go in a panic. Fear basically shuts down higher thought processes so you act fast rather than carefully. So the same reflexive action you use to exit in normal circumstances would be the only thing you can conceive of if you're on fire or drowning.
Another detail is that she was on the phone with people as she was sinking
So what happened with this woman dying, could she not pull the lever?
I have no idea. I wasn’t there and didn’t even know about it until right now. Door could have been jammed shut after the accident like any other door that firefighters keep their jaws of life for.
Yeah it likely sunk into mud thus rendering all the debate over water pressure and lever location mute.
"hidden"
It doesnt look marked to me. If someone saw a door like that they would have absolutely no idea that was a lever/button unless they read through the entire owner's manual. Which let's be honest, nobody does that these days.
Its not the best picture, but it also has finger holds underneath. For someone looking to pull something, this gets pulled.
Is a door handle ever marked?
Usually manual release safety levers or buttons have red or yellow markings on them, yes. Sometimes they have a logo or icon to denote what they open, and sometimes they are marked with "PULL TO OPEN" or some other similar phrase.
Interesting, I didn't know that, I'll have a look in my car next time I get in it.
Does that only apply to doors than normally have an electronic way of opening them?
Eh, I've seen plenty of internal trunk releases that are just an unmarked handle that pulls a cable...
I am a professional mechanic, worked at several dealers. Nearly every car had a safety mechanism that was at least one or several of those. The only ones I didnt mention are ones that glow in the dark for trunk releases. But outside of cars that were built before mechanical safety releases were commonly incorporated in design, its not common to see mechanical safety releases that are completely unmarked. Some have a plastic cover, like the transmission neutral release, but they still generally have red/yellow/orange markings, text on them, or they glow in the dark.
It could be a massive red lever with "EMERGENCY OPEN" text on it and the Tesla haters would still find something to complain about.
This is about the rear door. The rear door manual override is under the carpet here:
https://images.app.goo.gl/MTFkjk8JPUu4iK7n7
The most recent update added a red latch. It's still in the bottom of the door pocket.
Now imagine you’ve been driving the Tesla for a long time and don’t ever use the manual release because you’re not supposed to so you don’t mess up the window. And then imagine you’re in a high-stress situation. That’s how having an unmarked backup can fail.
Plus, that handle doesn’t even look like a normal handle - I have never see a car where you pull up to exit instead of sideways away from the door.
That's the front. This is about the rear window. Show the rear door manual override.
Why would the driver of this car, which drowned, be sitting in the rear?
The title of the article is about passenger/rear seats being hard to break.
Fair point, and no the rear does not have manual release. I wish it it.
shouldn't emergency switch and latched be colored different.