As a person who is around cars a lot, I’m frequently exposed to opportunities that might seem dangerous to normies. Whether it’s leaning over a pit wall as a 900-horsepower race car comes barreling towards me, or it’s getting between other journalists and the shrimpbarrow, I really should be getting hazard pay.
It’s not that stuff that ever worries me. I’ve flown around in Marine helicopters loaded up with ammo, and that was probably less dangerous than just driving around in New York for a week. Modern cars bring modern problems, and the most unsettling is the idea that you could get trapped in your car and not be able to get out for a very dumb reason. The Morning Dump is nothing if not a trend-watcher, and the trend seems to be that people are starting to get that electromechanical doors are bad.
I feel like I’ve written about the EU rolling back its emissions ban a million times, and while it still hasn’t actually happened, there’s now a clearer idea of what the actual impact will be. What’s the outcome of GM’s C-Suite shuffling? Uncertain, but current CEO Mary Barra may have a favorite.
Ending on something fun, it looks like Foxconn finally bought a car company. Nope, it’s not the one you were thinking.
Bloomberg Puts Out A Big Piece On Tesla’s ‘Dangerous Doors’
I don’t seem to be able to embed the video from Bloomberg, so I’ll just link it here. It’s a sobering 20 minutes or so that explains why I check the doors in every new car I get in before I do anything else.
If you read the site regularly, this won’t surprise you. It’s just logical that replacing something as vital as opening a door with some complex system like Tesla has on its vehicles (as you can see in the graphic above, you have to remove a panel in the door pocket to get out if the vehicle loses power) is inviting danger. As Bloomberg editor Craig Trudell explains in a LinkedIn post about this:
Today, we’ve published a video that makes for difficult viewing. We spoke with a mother who, as she puts it, has a hole in her heart that will never heal.
We take you inside the garage of a repair shop owner who’s quipped to his substantial YouTube following that you’re not a “true” Tesla owner until one of your door handles prevents you from entering.
We show you, in this shop owner’s words, “the scary part” — that, if you’re in the back seat of a Tesla that’s lost battery power, your way out may be tucked under a rug, behind a speaker grille or under a plastic flap.
We take you to the scene of a fiery crash where a cluster of bodies were found in the front seat, suggesting to police there was a struggle to escape the burning vehicle.
The Feds are looking into this issue, and Chinese regulators are considering banning them outright. Tesla is apparently working on a way to fix this, and other automakers, like Toyota, already have more obvious release levers. You know works great? Just a mechanical door. While being able to make the door handles flush with the car does have aerodynamic benefits, I don’t think it’s worth it.
I agree with Sam Abuelsamid, who wrote yesterday that “consumers should refuse to buy any vehicle without clearly accessible mechanical door latches and regulators should ban them outright.”
Instead Of A Ban, 35% Of New Cars Sold In The EU Will Probably Have Some Sort Of Combustion Engine After 2035
We’re at over 300 comments on David’s EREV article, and I think it’s worth clarifying a little bit what my position on all of this is. While there’s no specific “Autopian” view on almost anything, in general, we drive electric cars all the time and understand the benefits. Electric cars, in an ideal world where they were cheaper and all apartment complexes had chargers, would make a ton of sense for most people, and the more commuter vehicles that can be transitioned into EVs, the better.
Personally, I’d have bought an electric car (well, cheaply leased a Lyriq or Mach-E) if I had the charging infrastructure around me to make that a possibility. But pretending like everyone would suddenly just buy EVs tomorrow seemed like it was overlooking the necessary transition technologies. If I could press a button and make it possible for people to switch to EVs in an affordable way with all the infrastructure in place, I’d press that button.
The EU tried pressing that button and then realized that, unless it wanted to flood the continent with cheap Chinese cars, an outright ban by 2035 wasn’t going to work. The proposed framework is now for mostly EVs by 2035, with credit given to various technologies, as Automotive News reports:
If the EU’s proposal wins approval from the European Parliament and Council of Europe next year, automakers will have to reduce tailpipe emissions 90 percent from a 2021 baseline, to about 11 grams of CO2 per km, rather than 100 percent.
“Tailpipe” is a critical word: For the first time, automakers can count external, carbon neutral sources toward their fleet emissions — 7 percent can be European-made low-carbon “green” steel, while 3 percent can be from biofuels, e-fuels or hydrogen powering ICE cars.
They would still be subject to fines of €95 per gram of CO2 over the 11 g/km target.
By the European Commission’s own analysis, up to 35 percent of new cars sold after Jan. 1, 2035, could have combustion engines.
Reducing emissions by 100% would be awesome, but reducing them by 90% is also pretty awesome.
Is Sterling Anderson Going To Be The Next GM CEO?
Not since Yul Brynner helmed Matra has a proud man with a shorn head run a major car company. Could that streak finally end with Sterling Anderson, who is reportedly in line for the top job at General Motors?
Anderson joined the company as chief product officer in June after working for Tesla and co-founding the autonomous trucking company Aurora Innovation Inc. The understanding when he was hired, according to people familiar with the matter, was that if Anderson can satisfy Barra’s demand for him to bring cutting-edge software and self-driving technology to GM cars, he has a good shot at succeeding her.
It’s a daunting challenge, but one that draws on the experience of the 42-year-old Anderson. Barra wants him to bring more computing power to every corner of GM’s vehicles, with software controlling more mechanical functions like steering and braking, and to create features that could generate long-term revenue from subscriptions. More broadly, he will also ride herd on a renewed push to make the company’s money-losing electric vehicles profitable.
Anderson’s ascension to the top job has been discussed but isn’t a done deal, and even it it happens, it may not be a quick journey. Barra, who turns 64 next week, isn’t obligated to retire at any age and may well decide to keep going, said the people familiar with her thinking, who asked not to be identified discussing private information. GM President Mark Reuss, 62, also has gas in the tank and could play a role in the succession plan.
I could see Reuss doing it for a short period of time while Anderson takes on the President role, and then transitioning into the job. Also, we’re the same age! A GM CEO my age would feel very strange.
Update: For… reasons, I was sent this comment from a GM spokesperson:
“Sterling came to General Motors in June 2025, and holds the position of Chief Product Officer. Any discussion of a future role is premature and speculative.”
Foxconn Buys Luxgen On The Cheap
Remember when the entire Japanese automotive industry had a minor meltdown over the idea that Taiwanese mega company Foxconn was going to buy Nissan? That didn’t happen. Or, well, it hasn’t happened yet.
In the meantime, Foxconn has looked a little closer to home, according to Nikkei Asia:
Foxtron Vehicle Technologies, a joint venture established by Foxconn and Yulon in 2020, currently focuses on research, development and design of electric vehicles. Following the deal, it will have full access to Luxgen’s assets, including staff, distribution channels, marketing resources and repair and maintenance capacity across the island.
The deal will need to be approved by Taiwan’s Fair Trade Commission and is likely to be reviewed in the first quarter of 2026, the two companies said.
Foxtron CEO Adam Chen said in a press conference on Friday evening that his company will buy a 100% stake in Luxgen and take charge of its operations, “creating a complete EV value chain from products, sales, to services.”
Trying to buy Nissan and ending up with Luxgen is a little like trying to buy the Giants and ending up with the Padres or, well, like trying to buy the Padres and ending up with the Hartford Yard Goats (Go Goats!).
What I’m Listening To While Writing TMD
Yo La Tengo is in the middle of its Hanukkah residency, in which it performs every night and brings out special guests like Matt Beringer or, last night, Norah Jones. I remember being in Austin for that first SXSW where she materialized and, you know what? “Don’t Know Why” still slaps.
The Big Question
What’s an absolute deal-killer when it comes to buying a car?
Top graphic image: Tesla
Foxconn buying Luxgen should genuinely be scarier mid/long-term than Foxconn buying Nissan.
There’ll be so little legacy to hold them back, and Foxconn is big enough they could buy any of their competition’s IP/product without actually needing the company.
It’ll be something to watch for the next 5-10 years.
“Not since Yul Brynner helmed Matra has a proud man with a shorn head run a major car company.”
I’m 99% certain that neither of these things is true, but I love that the one percent still exists. Well played, Hardigree.
Also, he was merely bald, not shorn. Wasn’t it his scrotum that was shorn?
No, you’re thinking of Dr. Evil…he had a Zoroastrian named Velma do that to him when he was 15….ritualistically, I believe, LOL
If the climate controls are only accessible through the infotainment then that vehicle is a non-starter for me. I cannot stand that shit and the tech apologists that insist you get used to it are lying.
I don’t even like the up/down buttons, relative to a knob for temp and fan speed. If I can’t operate it without looking, it needs to be redesigned. I will accept steering wheel controls as long as they are tactile.
I have been spoiled by my Fit which does just about everything correctly.
Honest question: how many vehicles do you regularly drive? I regularly drive both my daily (a Mach-E with HVAC in the screen, but always anchored in the same spot at the bottom) and my wife’s (A Mazda with physical HVAC buttons, but all buttons are the same size and feel).
I have to glance at both to make adjustments, though I find the Mach-E’s “auto” mode does a good job overall at keeping the car comfortable without needing driver input at all. It’s something Ford’s firmware team has been actively working to streamline, and it works well. The Mazda lines up seating heating/cooling, HVAC, and defrost all in the same line of physical buttons, and there isn’t enough tactile difference between them to adjust without looking.
There’s good and bad design in everything. Between the cars I regularly drive, I prefer the system I rarely need to adjust in the first place, and that just happens to be a screen.
That’s a valid question, and the answer is a fair amount. I’m the token sober in my family/friend groups so I get handed keys to stuff all the time. I have a lot of seat time with both set ups, and I inevitably wind up annoyed with the screen based controls. I can adjust knobs on the fly without looking and I can’t do that with the infotainment controls.
Unfortunately I also suck ass at regulating my body temperature. I’m a fairly bulky dude who perpetually runs hot. I try to leave the climate controls in my Kona N on auto, but there are always times that I need a little more or a little less and need to adjust. Screen based climate controls make that a real pain in the ass.
I will acknowledge that that’s a personal problem though. If you’re not someone who struggles to regulate your body temperature I’m sure the set and forget deal is just fine. Unfortunately it’s not great for me.
Totally fair. Running hot is also affected by the seat materials too, and the Alcantara seats I’ve had in several cars seem to strike a good balance between winter coziness and summer coolness. The canvas seats in my Jeep are also quite good at that.
I have alcantara seats in my Kona N and I love them. They do strike a great balance.
Thyroid issues?
Actually no! Health wise I’m in great shape, don’t let the dad bod fool you. But I do run ridiculously hot and need to hydrate constantly. My wife is a nurse practitioner so she’s made me get blood work done over the years and every time it’s come back as “you’re fine but very weird”.
Ford strikes a good balance. There is a physical button for the HVAC mode you care about when you’re not in auto. (Defrost)
Tech was made for people, not people for tech. But Silicon Valley is pushing the opposite mindset.
This is a great comment that I hope doesn’t get lost in the shuffle
Yep, that is one of the biggest reasons I haven’t made the jump to full EV–almost everything has too many controls on the screen. I use my heated/ventilated seats a lot, and I want to be able to heat them up for a couple minutes and cool them down while driving. I need to be able to adjust the temperature on the fly because I don’t always want the car to be shooting for 65. And I like to be able to switch drive modes when I get on the freeway or otherwise want a little different throttle response. Almost every single EV puts some of these things on a screen or capacitive button.
I drove an EV6 for a few weeks and it was alright–as long as I didn’t mind my media controls entirely on the steering wheel, I could leave the knobs on climate. It wasn’t my preference, but it was livable. If I hadn’t gotten so frustrated by warranty repair on my Niro, I’d probably be driving one now (though I think later models made the seat heat/ventilation buttons capacitive, which is a downgrade).
Matt, that first performance on KGSR back when it was cool was pure magic. Hearing her at like 8am or whatever seemed like witnessing history or the birth of a superstar. Like where the hell did she come from!? Damn I miss that era.
Fun fact, her dad is Ravi Shankar. Famous for his sitar chops and introducing the instrument/music to the Beatles.
The door handle thing on Teslas is the primary reason I wish there was a way to simply exclude them as an option on Uber and Lyft.
I think axing electric door systems entirely is overly reductive but there are definitely good and bad ways to implement it as seen by all the cars that have had it over the years. And, as others pointed out, there are many ways to implement flush handles mechanically if that’s the goal.
Tesla’s way is definitely on the bad end of that spectrum and they should feel bad about it. They combined cheap feeling flush handle that still has to be pressed and pulled with an electronic latch and basically hid the manual backups. The older models with the motorized pop-out handles are equally stupid but, at least, the interior release is mechanical.
Yeah, the Mach-E has electronic buttons for the outside, but ALL the levers inside are mechanical and obvious to passengers. There was a recent issue where low 12V battery voltage could make it hard to get in (I think the example was a small child locked in the car), but Ford just had an update that fixed that by maintaining a higher SOC with the DC-DC converter. That charges the 12V battery with the 400V traction battery pack in place of an alternator in EVs).
That is still such an avoidable self-own. Just use mechanical hardware. Like hundreds of millions of cars and stage coaches have done since their invention.
I guess, but if weird door openers are here to stay, at least that one isn’t offensive.
The one key benefit I saw was my young kids could open the Mach-E doors on their own, since the poppers opened the doors enough for the kids to get the door open the rest of the way. They struggled with standard door handles on doors about the same size/weight on other cars. This is a bit of a stretch, I know, but it was one unexpectedly useful perk.
Years back I recall having an absolutely infuriating conversation with some manager in design about how motorized flush door handles were a terrible idea. I’m still upset about it.
I recall sitting through a supplier presentation about some designs for flush door handles that weren’t electronic. They basically said “here are some options we’re working on since there’s no way in hell (insert Japanese automaker here) would let you do electric pop-out handles like Tesla”.
We were getting a tour of the studio as newer engineers and he took the time to vent that design wanted to do them for a long time but engineering always blocked it saying they would fail. He was upset that Tesla now put them into production, to which someone immediately pointed out that they were failing at an alarming rate. He then went on to say that a “real” automaker wouldn’t have that problem
The world will be a better place when the stereotypical image that appears in our mind when we hear “designer” goes back to being an older woman picking out drapes while wearing a pant suit that looks like it’s made out of some, rather than that of a pretentious young man who thought for too long about which sleeve cuts would make it look like he lifts while imagining he can plausibly deny it.
> What’s an absolute deal-killer when it comes to buying a car?
Forced anything.
Dealt with it a bunch, just kept walking.
They always reach back out when they can’t get anyone to play ball. Best part is telling them that you got the fair deal (for both parties) that you had asked for. Even better part is when you find out who the buyer was, who spent less still, and that their greed blew up in their face.
Everyone *thinks* they’re clever…
Absolute deal-killer when buying a car?
Let’s refer back to what Barra apparently wants from GM:
“software controlling more mechanical functions like steering and braking, and to create features that could generate long-term revenue from subscriptions.”
This sounds like hell.
“Now that you’ve bought the car, what credit card will you be using for the $99.99 monthly brake subscription?”
Office Worker 1: Did you hear? Bob died because he reported his credit card stolen, and he forgot to update GM, so of course his brakes stopped working.
Office Worker 2: Well… What can ya do, right? It’s just one of those things… Unavoidable accident I guess.
Poor Bob. You would have thought that, seeing as he’s a former GM exec, they’d at least have reached out to give him a courtesy warning.
Deal killers: Headroom, if buying used: not running (been there, done that, not again) Litter and garbage in the interior, puddles inside or outside.
As a tall person I second this.
Electric door handles (unless the doors are easily removable and I intend on driving without doors).
Factory tinted windows: I hate them, if I want tinted vision I put on sunglasses, in the dark I can take off my sunglasses, unlike tinted windows.
A lack of available snow tires for the car.
1WD (AKA open diff 2WD): If the car is 2WD I need at minimum an aftermarket LSD option, if AWD or 4WD I can accept open diffs.
(This list used to be longer, but beggars can’t be choosers, and irrespective of budget the car market is a rough place for someone with preferences rn)
Yeah but sunglasses don’t obscure your face to everyone around you, like for example the pedestrians that are trying to figure out if you can see them, or the teacher in the car line that’s trying to determine if your kid needs help getting out of the car or not.
That’s their problem.
#TheWorldIsForME!
I don’t understand why they can’t be flush and mechanical. Take the Tesla’s design for example. Push the thick end in with your thumb and the skinny end pops out and becomes a lever. If icing is a problem, it doesn’t take much juice to heat the area to 35f or so, just enough to melt the ice. It could be done on demand from an app or just always on. Didn’t BMW have heated locks back in the day? We’re rolling around with absolutely massive battery packs in EV’s.
Also, do flush door handles actually save enough fuel to warrant all of this? I feel like you could probably get 90% there with a well designed protruding handle and all this motorized stuff is theatrics. And this is coming from someone who is very tech-forward. Take my volume knob, I don’t care. Replace every button with a touchscreen, I’ll adapt, whatever. But if the car is on fire I don’t want to have to disassemble the door panel to get out.
They can be, they just won’t make them anymore, see the Subaru XT for further details.
A flush door handle doesn’t have to be motorized. It could be mechanical
> Also, do flush door handles actually save enough fuel to warrant all of this?
I assume it’s not the savings, but the most savings for the least cost. It’s not the only solution, but it’s so comparatively cheap it’s the one they go with.
They’re out there:
https://www.classicindustries.com/product/KD789286.html
EVs absolutely need that 0.1% improvement in energy reduction from flush door handles to offset the 15% increase in energy consumption caused by unnecessary 20+ inch wheels being forced on seemingly every model.
I miss sidewall.
That’s basically how the handles on my Equinox EV are. They pop out when I approach the car, but if they don’t for whatever reason, I can just push on the end and grab it. However, I borrowed a Blazer EV from the dealership recently, and the traditional handles were so much less frustrating to work with.
Have the aero engineers modernize the design of the exterior door handles used on the 1970 Pontiac Grand Prix.
While the aero benefits of flush door handles are fairly mild since they’re so small, I think part of their benefit is that it reduces a source of wind noise immediately adjacent to the passengers. Another reason is ‘cool factor’, because every automaker thinks that Teslas being weird and different is why they sold well.
Mr. Torchinsky will love me for this, but I won’t buy a vehicle that doesn’t have amber rear turn signals.
I’m with you on that one, it seems so much safer. If I’m slowing or stopping to make a turn, I want the likely inattentive driver behind me to have as much visual warning as possible!
I’m strongly biased in favour of amber rear turn signals as well. And happily my C-Max has them.
Now having said that, if the deal is good enough, I’ll still buy a vehicle with the substandard red turn signals.
That one’s not a dealbreaker for me, but amber turn signals is definitely something that bumps a car up the list. And bumper-mounted turn signals drops it down the list. Red bumper turn signals might be a dealbreaker. Too many jacked up pickups that follow too close and it’s not necessarily where people look for indicators, anyway.
The Big Question:
My initial take on the salesperson.
If they don’t pass a sniff test, I’m out.
I hesitate to ask a follow-up question…
But, you are the Crimedog. You probably know what you are sniffing for.
My deal-breaker is when they won’t give you the full purchase cost.
Even worse: my wife was shopping for a new car after hers was totaled by someone running a stop. The salesman wouldn’t give her a price until after she told them how much her insurance payout was. She just upped and left while he was mid sentence.
AMC had the solution to aero door handles back in the 1970s.
https://cdn-fastly.thetruthaboutcars.com/media/2022/07/19/9219741/junkyard-find-1971-amc-gremlin.jpg?size=720×845&nocrop=1
This was exactly my thought. Also, those handles didn’t crumble in your hands like the handles from various GM’s of that era.
I’ve pointed it out before but there is zero engineering reason why you can’t have flush, mechanical door handles. You can keep the same exterior appearance and aero benefits, it’s just crappy product design that says we need an electronic circuit in the mix and a nonsense emergency release.
QOTD: Quite a lot of things. Obvious glaring safety issues like the door handles are a big one. Another one I consider a safety issue is the lack of steering feedback that seems to be the norm for modern steering setups. Not only does this take away from the enjoyment of driving, but when you can’t feel what your tires are doing you can get into some real trouble. Also, using touchscreens for a) HVAC and b) radio. Fuck that, I change those settings all the time by feel only, I do not want to have to take my eyes off the road to do it.
In 2008 when I was trying to buy a nice 2006 Scion xB, and I walked in with 6% approved by my bank, and the finance guy kept trying to convince me that Toyota 8% was better, was almost a dealbreaker.
I had a stack of printed out cars for sale and started thumbing through them, I was getting ready to see the next car in my stack of 6.
First car I ever bought on my own, the salesman asked about financing and payment and all. to set the scene, absolutely picture the stereotypical used car guy: early 50s, gray slicked back hair that was just above shoulder length, and a horrible plaid sport coat. It was all there.
I straight up told him where I expected the payment to be on a 4 year note. He came back $40/month more than that, and when I balked, he literally threw his hands in the air, leaned back and practically shouted “I thought this was a done deal! You said if I get the out the door price to [$X], you’d buy the car!” I was stunned, and all I could do was tell him I can do better on the financing.
I went out and called my girlfriend of barely 6 months so she could get me the number to my bank. Called them and got their rate. In the end, what do you know, the salesman came back with the number I was expecting..
Epilogue: I learned that day to trust the damn fuel gauge on that car. Leaving the dealership, I filled the tank to 16-ish gallons. Listed capacity was… 16 gallons!
Also, I married that girl! 🙂
Deal killer for me buying a car? With damned few exceptions, having been built in the past decade. So much stupid in them today, I’m out.
Arriving at dealer to see and test a specific vehicle that was just told was there, but then presented a different one because there was an “inventory error”. The different one always costs more too, never less. Bye bye.
As someone with a reservation on a Slate I think the lack of heated seats might be the killer for me.
To me the best design the simplest one that gets the job done effectively and reliably.
There is absolutely no reason that flush door handle can’t be 100% mechanical. Been done MANY times before in myriad ways. This nonsense absolutely needs to be banned.
No kidding, tons of cars in the 80’s had them! Just a small plastic pop-in piece that moves away when pressed, then a normal mechanical latch. It’s not hard! Also would make it easy to integrate a touch sensor for keyless entry.
Fancy door handles suck. The ones on my mazda is similar to the ones on most cars, an aerodynamic handle that can be easily grabbed and pull. No thought required. If I have to think to use them, I dont want it.
Why does the top shot look like the Wii Fit trainer is opening the door?
Failed court room sketch artists work for food.