“Trapped in your Tesla? Just grab your Tesammer.”
Posted on 08/01/2023 10:04:07 PM PDT by algore
An Arizona man says he was trapped in his Tesla in the extreme heat after the power died and he didn't know how to escape.
Investigators at Scripps News Phoenix found dozens of drivers have filed complaints with federal auto safety regulators who are urging car owners to learn how to manually get out in an emergency.
"It's definitely a safety concern; it was one of the hotter days," said 73-year-old Rick Meggison.
He said he was stuck in his Tesla Model Y in his garage back in June.
"I couldn't open the doors. I couldn't lower the windows. The computer was dead, so I couldn't open the glove box. I couldn't open anything." Meggison said his main lithium-ion battery, what's needed to propel his electric car, had plenty of range.
He later learned a separate 12-volt battery in his Tesla Model Y died after he opened the door, and he said he was trapped inside on a 100° day for 20 minutes. The low-voltage battery powers what's inside a Tesla including the doors, computer display, and windows.
"Being caught in there for a couple hours could be dangerous," he said.
Meggison said he eventually called his sister who somehow got the passenger door to open through the Tesla app, but it cracked his window. He said he had to call a tow truck to take his Tesla to the company's service center. His invoice reads, "Car won't power on… remove and replace 12v battery."
"I think that Tesla needs to address this," Meggison said.
"It's essentially a computer on wheels that's run on a battery," said car safety expert Norma Hubele.
Hubele is the founder of theautoprofessor.com, a data-based website that ranks how cars perform in crashes. She's also been an expert witness in over 120 consumer-related cases with the majority involving automotive safety.
"If that battery is not reliable or if for some reason the consumer isn't aware of how to override a problem with the battery, then you can have real safety problems," she said.
When the electric system fails, there is a way to get out of an electric car, which is clearly outlined in Tesla's manual, but experts believe many drivers, like Meggison, are unaware.
That oughta make Tesla shares rise another 5% and other EV shares with it.
ROFL!!!
If you guys don't stop posting funny stuff, my wife is going to sue you and FR when I die from aneuryshumoritis while reading this stuff here.
What bullshit. The manual door handle is right there on your armrest. He must be a blithering idiot.
The C7 and C8 CHEVROLET Corvette has a cable operated lever to open doors and hatch if power fails.
The AH-1G Cobra gunship had in the cockpit an extremely heavy knife like tool to be used to crash through the plexiglass in the event of a crash. I knew a captain/pilot that had to ditch his Cobra in the Pacific. The canopy would not open. He successfully used that tool to break out.
Back to the main subject - I never liked these automatic locking doors. It’s just one more little bit of freedom taken away from us, which is our own ability to decide when and when not to lock a door. No one needs to nanny our safety.
My POS F150 locks the tailgate and passenger door all the time. If I forget to hit the unlock button when offloading cargo I gotta go back to unlock it. It’s a real pain in the rear. And stupid as hell to lock a tailgate that has an open top, where anyone can just climb over the tailgate to steal whatever is in there. DUMB DUMB DUMB
High tech is great, except when it doesn’t work. I expect huge failures when AI is given control over our lives, and there is no “off” button.
Why? They all have a manual latch for the door. Problem is people don't read their freakin' manuals.
Available at your local hardware or automotive store for a few bucks. Keep one in the door pocket or visor, put the tip on the window and press. The window will shatter. Climb out. Or pull out your CCW and put a round through the window.
And every one of those electronic doodads eats electrons. Big touch screens, electric doors, heat pump air conditioners, power hood and deck releases. Some this stuff could stay manual and save a few yards of range, but then it wouldn’t be so whizbang cool would it.
I'm still incensed that my new Ford F150 has no mechanical way to lower the tailgate. I felt silly standing there trying to open it for the first time.
Plus, the (real, comprehensive) owner's manual? They don't give you a hard copy. It's only available on the console screen via computer software which is, you guessed it, also electronically operated.
Suddenly, I'm missing my high school 396 Impala with Julie D sitting so close to me she was almost in my lap.
Comes with everything you need.
“The manual door handle is right there on your armrest”
for some models.
If you got the wrong model you are out of luck.
Then you need to get on-line and read the manual—while you are freaking out at the time....
and if you are on a country road with no cell service then you might as well be in outer space....
nobody can hear you scream.
It is smart to have a window-breaking tool in modern cars, but one should try to keep it in a place where they know it will remain during a car crash or rollover.
Theory is placing it in the unused cup holder but that might not be reality when needed.
Do Tesla’s have air conditioning?
Actually a hammer isn’t the greatest option, especially if it has laminated glass.
Always store a pack of foam ear protectors with your firearm. My husband has a small capsule on his key-chain with a set of those in it. They do not take up much room and can actually be squished down in your gun holster. Those may not provide full ear protection but would be better than nothing at all.
Hubby and I will be watching a movie in which a shoot-out happens in an enclosed space and we are both noting that everyone’s hearing is now non-existent so there is no way they could be having a whispered conversation after such a round of gun-fire.
Didn’t some Texas guy die in his Corvette (2015) because he didn’t know how to manually open the door?
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