When are you going fully electric?

A good post.. I only know about the Model Y because it's stupidly got electronic door releases, so wanted to know how to get out in an emergency, and that happened to also mention holding Park down has a secondary method of removing drive power and applying the brakes..

Mind you, I don't brief all my passengers (especially those in the rear) that to get out in an emergency with no power, they have to lift out the (two!) door bin inserts and they'll find a little red lever!..

I think in a panic, people may forget even if they'd read it many moons ago..

And it seems all manufacturers have differing methods!
This is a problem with anything like this when instead of a universal setup the manufacturers are allowed free reign to come up with what ever they please
 
I doubt my wife knows how to do it in our Tesla and she’s not stupid by any stretch of the imagination, quite the opposite in fact.


In the Tesla it’s fairly easy. To put the car in neutral, you just hold the gear selector stalk down for a few seconds.

If you want to apply the emergency brake, you hold the P button in for a few seconds (I’ve not tried it mind). I’m pretty sure that it also cuts all power if you hit the brakes.

Yeh the manual door release in the back is well hidden, I guess that’s to stop children ‘accidentally’ pulling it like adults tend to do in the front.

Apologies I should have added a sarcasm emoji. It took me a few months of I-Pace ownership to finally figure out pressing P is not the emergency brake.

Our Volvo C40 is a simple press and hold of the P button on the central console.
 
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I’m sad enough to have RTFM’d when I got the car, I doubt many do.
mine didn't come with one. I have looked online for some odds and sods but given I can't even get wireless android auto to work I am beginning to think I have officially become my parents like back in the 80s when they could not program the VCR
 
I'm surprised no one mentioned the 'run away' I-Pace last week, it seems the driver has now been arrested:


Original story:

Geoff Buys Cars had a 45min 'interview' with the driver shortly after the incident:

It will be interesting to see if he is eventually charged.

Geoff Buys cars is a place where Flat Earther's and Tin Foil hat wearing peeps gather and discuss the next EV conspiracy theory !
He calls himself a 'Writer' but basically downloads the latest clickbait DailyMail EV BS article and reads it out to the audience, who then pat him on the back in the comment section. What has the world come to ! :rolleyes:
 
Geoff Buys cars is a place where Flat Earther's and Tin Foil hat wearing peeps gather and discuss the next EV conspiracy theory !
He calls himself a 'Writer' but basically downloads the latest clickbait DailyMail EV BS article and reads it out to the audience, who then pat him on the back in the comment section. What has the world come to ! :rolleyes:
I’m well aware and I don’t make a habbit of straying to that channel.

The above video is slightly different in that he got the guy on the phone and just let him run his mouth for the most part.

I was listening on double speed so I may well have missed a few bits but story had more holes than Swiss cheese.
 
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This is a problem with anything like this when instead of a universal setup the manufacturers are allowed free reign to come up with what ever they please

Indeed. The fact Tesla rear passengers have no easy access physical door release in an emergency is shocking. Every other car has the door handles as a mechanical handle that will work even in an electrical failure.

There was some billionaire in the US who died recently when she reversed her Tesla into a pond. She did not know how to open the doors with the mechanical backup and the electrics had failed due to water damage. This meant the normal Tesla electrical door button didn’t work.

I would never even contemplate owning any car that effectively locked my child in the back in such a scenario. I watched a video where some Tesla owner tried to wave this lack of rear mechanical door release issue away with a, “just climb in to the front to get out”.
 
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Indeed. The fact Tesla rear passengers have no easy access physical door release in an emergency is shocking. Every other car has the door handles as a mechanical handle that will work even in an electrical failure.
Not anymore they don’t, even fairly ‘basic’ cars are now coming with electronic releases.

Also 3 door cars are/were a thing likewise child locks used to be mechanical disconnects so it’s not an issue which is ‘new’ per say.

There was some billionaire in the US who died recently when she reversed her Tesla into a pond. She did not know how to open the doors with the mechanical backup and the electrics had failed due to water damage. This meant the normal Tesla electrical door button didn’t work.

I would never even contemplate owning any car that effectively locked my child in the back in such a scenario. I watched a video where some Tesla owner tried to wave this issue away with a “just climb in to the front to get out”.
This story is really weird, I’m speculating she died because she panicked above anything else.

Escaping submerged cars is one of those things that has been well tested by experts and even mythbusters over the years.

Cars don’t actually sink that quickly, but you have to move FAST if you want to live. She had enough time to get her phone and call emergency services but by that time, Im guessing it was too late.

The only real way out if your car is submerged is to drop the windows immediately and escape before the power goes. You have to drop the windows immediately as you’ll only have a matter of seconds before the power goes.

If the water is high enough for the power to go, you’ll not be able to open the door, mechanical or otherwise, because of the pressure differential between the inside and outside of the car.

Once you are in that situation, you basically have to wait for the whole car to fill up with water and you have about 10 seconds once your air pocket is gone to get out or you are done. Most people panic and are unable to get out at this point, even when testing in controlled conditions.

Source: mythbusters tested it a few time across various scenarios and series.
 
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Indeed. The fact Tesla rear passengers have no easy access physical door release in an emergency is shocking. Every other car has the door handles as a mechanical handle that will work even in an electrical failure.

There was some billionaire in the US who died recently when she reversed her Tesla into a pond. She did not know how to open the doors with the mechanical backup and the electrics had failed due to water damage. This meant the normal Tesla electrical door button didn’t work.

I would never even contemplate owning any car that effectively locked my child in the back in such a scenario. I watched a video where some Tesla owner tried to wave this lack of rear mechanical door release issue away with a, “just climb in to the front to get out”.
sadly that isnt just a tesla issue. Years ago - i cant remember exact details and its too depressing to google - a car with full family, husband, wife, and iirc 2 teenagers and a baby... they accidentally lost control of the car and drove down a dock sliproad into the sea. the electrics failed and they could not get out. the only survivor was the baby as a rear window was partly open and they were able to get it out (they passed the baby out to bystanders).

in an accident doors are designed to auto unlock, but with the water ingress the opposite happened and they all locked. a damn shame. Also there is the pressure problem, really hard to open a door in water apparently until it is full of water.

edit here you go

edit, thinking about it, perhaps that is an argument for scissor doors (not gull wing) or sliding doors. should be a lot less pressure to get those open.
 
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Not anymore they don’t, even fairly ‘basic’ cars are now coming with electronic releases.

Also 3 door cars are/were a thing likewise child locks used to be mechanical disconnects so it’s not an issue which is ‘new’ per say.


This story is really weird, I’m speculating she died because she panicked above anything else.

Escaping submerged cars is one of those things that has been well tested by experts and even mythbusters over the years.

Cars don’t actually sink that quickly, but you have to move FAST if you want to live. She had enough time to get her phone and call emergency services but by that time, Im guessing it was too late.

The only real way out if your car is submerged is to drop the windows immediately and escape before the power goes. You have to drop the windows immediately as you’ll only have a matter of seconds before the power goes.

If the water is high enough for the power to go, you’ll not be able to open the door, mechanical or otherwise, because of the pressure differential between the inside and outside of the car.

Once you are in that situation, you basically have to wait for the whole car to fill up with water and you have about 10 seconds once your air pocket is gone to get out or you are done. Most people panic and are unable to get out at this point, even when testing in controlled conditions.

Source: mythbusters tested it a few time across various scenarios and series.

I know the ins annd out of this and that two door cars are a thing and have been since cars were a thing. It’s also why no rational parent would consider a two door car as a family car.

The fact that Tesla have all these cost saving crap like no dash display, no easy access mechanical rear door release and now no indicators, is why I will never consider owning one. Well that and Musk is a dick.
 
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sadly that isnt just a tesla issue. Years ago - i cant remember exact details and its too depressing to google - a car with full family, husband, wife, and iirc 2 teenagers and a baby... they accidentally lost control of the car and drove down a dock sliproad into the sea. the electrics failed and they could not get out. the only survivor was the baby as a rear window was partly open and they were able to get it out (they passed the baby out to bystanders).

in an accident doors are designed to auto unlock, but with the water ingress the opposite happened and they all locked. a damn shame.

edit here you go

I remember reading about that tragic case. It’s easy to type out the windows down and get out as soon as you realise your in trouble but I expect panic fully sets in almost immediately and once that happens, well we know the rest of the story.

I know the ins annd out of this and that two door cars are a thing and have been since cars were a thing. It’s also why no rational parent would consider a two door car as a family car.

The fact that Tesla have all these cost saving crap like no dash display, no easy access mechanical rear door release and now no indicators, is why I will never consider owning one. Well that and Musk is a dick.
Wouldn’t electronic releases be more expensive - not sure it’s a cost saving measure at all.

The mechanical release for the door in the Y is not that hard to use, it’s in the door pocket under the piece of flappy plastic lining which itself has a pull tab on it. If it was easy to reach to say a kid in a car seat, it kind of negates the point of having a door said child can’t usually open on their own. The latter generally being considered undesirable.

The other two points are merely preferences and I get it, you don’t like the car. That doesn’t make this story something that would only happen to someone driving a Tesla.
 
I remember reading about that tragic case. It’s easy to type out the windows down and get out as soon as you realise your in trouble but I expect panic fully sets in almost immediately and once that happens, well we know the rest of the story.


Wouldn’t electronic releases be more expensive - not sure it’s a cost saving measure at all.

The mechanical release for the door in the Y is not that hard to use, it’s in the door pocket under the piece of flappy plastic lining which itself has a pull tab on it. If it was easy to reach to say a kid in a car seat, it kind of negates the point of having a door said child can’t usually open on their own. The latter generally being considered undesirable.

The other two points are merely preferences and I get it, you don’t like the car. That doesn’t make this story something that would only happen to someone driving a Tesla.

No mechanical release is not cheaper as it has more working parts. I also refuse to buy a Zoe as it has no rear side impact air bags. My point is I have options and will very quickly rule out any car that compromises the safety of my family. No matter how remote the actual likelihood of such an event occurring.

Actually the Model Y rear door mechanical release is under the door bin rubber base, then you need to use a screwdriver to pry open the plastic flap to now access the exposed door release tab. Hardly an easy to do thing in the event you’ve been in a crash and the electrics have failed.

In the model 3 early models there is no manual release in the rear doors. In later models you need to remove the door speaker trim cover to access the door release tab.
 
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so if the run-away had just trusted in the automatic braking and headed towards a piece of infrastructure ... indeed, do the police still need stingers some sheets of cardboard(metallized maybe ?)

( always carry a glass hammer .. if they still work on double layer glass. )
 
Not anymore they don’t, even fairly ‘basic’ cars are now coming with electronic releases.

Also 3 door cars are/were a thing likewise child locks used to be mechanical disconnects so it’s not an issue which is ‘new’ per say.


This story is really weird, I’m speculating she died because she panicked above anything else.

Escaping submerged cars is one of those things that has been well tested by experts and even mythbusters over the years.

Cars don’t actually sink that quickly, but you have to move FAST if you want to live. She had enough time to get her phone and call emergency services but by that time, Im guessing it was too late.

The only real way out if your car is submerged is to drop the windows immediately and escape before the power goes. You have to drop the windows immediately as you’ll only have a matter of seconds before the power goes.

If the water is high enough for the power to go, you’ll not be able to open the door, mechanical or otherwise, because of the pressure differential between the inside and outside of the car.

Once you are in that situation, you basically have to wait for the whole car to fill up with water and you have about 10 seconds once your air pocket is gone to get out or you are done. Most people panic and are unable to get out at this point, even when testing in controlled conditions.

Source: mythbusters tested it a few time across various scenarios and series.
well if nothing else comes from this thread.... thinking of this just made me order these.... one for my car, one for the mrs.

 
so if the run-away had just trusted in the automatic braking and headed towards a piece of infrastructure ... indeed, do the police still need stingers some sheets of cardboard(metallized maybe ?)

( always carry a glass hammer .. if they still work on double layer glass. )

And if you dont then in most cars the headrest is designed to break windows,

I carry one of these on my car keys. useful if i ever get trapped under water in my car or I see a dog or child locked in a car on a hot sunny day.

 
well if nothing else comes from this thread.... thinking of this just made me order these.... one for my car, one for the mrs.

Yeah, it made me realise that I now don't have one in the car anymore and will be getting another one for each car... well... not the MX5 because that has a paper roof.

Things like electric door releases, I must admit, I just don't get it. I mean it's not like an electric boot that can be opened with your hands full, you still need to physically pull the door open.
 
Yeah, it made me realise that I now don't have one in the car anymore and will be getting another one for each car... well... not the MX5 because that has a paper roof.

Things like electric door releases, I must admit, I just don't get it. I mean it's not like an electric boot that can be opened with your hands full, you still need to physically pull the door open.
They should fail-safe in the event of power loss, just in this sort of scenario
 
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