HONG KONG: China will ban hidden door handles on cars, commonly used on Tesla’s electric vehicles and many other EV models, starting next year.
All car doors must include a mechanical release function for handles, except for the tailgate, according to details released by China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology on Monday.
Officials said the policy aims to address safety concerns after fatal EV accidents where electronic doors reportedly failed to operate and trapped passengers inside vehicles.
The new requirement for both internal and external door handles will take effect on Jan. 1, 2027. For car models that were already approved, carmakers will have until Jan. 1, 2029, to make design changes to match the regulations.
Vehicles including Tesla’s Model Y and Model 3, BMW’s iX3, and other models by many Chinese brands feature retractable car door handles that could be subject to the new rules.
Chris Liu, a Shanghai-based senior analyst at technology research and advisory group Omdia, said the global impact of China’s new rules could be substantial and other jurisdictions may follow suit on retractable door handles. Carmakers will be facing potentially costly redesigns or retrofits.
“China is the first major automotive market to explicitly ban electrical pop-out and press-to-release hidden door handles,” he said. “While other regions have flagged safety concerns, China is the first to formalize this into a national safety standard.”
It’s likely that regulators in Europe and elsewhere will reference or align with China’s approach, Liu said. The new requirements would impact premium EVs more as retractable door handles “are treated as a design and aerodynamic statement,” he added.
A draft of the proposed rules was published by China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in September for public comment.
Last year, the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened an investigation into cases where Tesla’s electronic door handles reportedly failed to work.
China to ban hidden door handles on cars starting 2027
https://arab.news/nzcbc
China to ban hidden door handles on cars starting 2027
- All car doors must include a mechanical release function for handles, except for the tailgate
- New policy aims to address safety concerns after fatal EV accidents
Pakistan says 34 militants killed in counterterror operations in Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa this week
- Security forces carried out a series of ‘high tempo intelligence-driven operations’ this week in the two provinces
- The counterterror operations take place amid surging tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani security forces killed 34 militants this week in the southwestern Balochistan and northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) provinces bordering Afghanistan, the military’s media wing said on Wednesday amid a surge in militant attacks in the country.
The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military’s media wing, said security forces carried out a series of “high tempo intelligence-driven operations” this week in the two provinces. It said 26 militants belonging to the Pakistani Taliban or the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) outfit were killed while eight militants were killed in Balochistan in the operations.
In the first counterterror operation on Tuesday, Pakistani forces targeted a TTP militant who was trying to enter the country in North Waziristan through the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, the ISPR said. Three TTP militants were killed in a second counterterror operation in Lakki Marwat district, the military added.
In the third counterterror operation, 10 TTP militants were killed in Bannu district while 12 others were gunned down in North Waziristan in another separate operation, the ISPR said.
“During the fifth engagement, own troops conducted an intelligence-based operation in the general area of Sambaza, Zhob District,” the military’s media wing said in a statement.
“After an intense fire exchange, eight terrorists belonging to Fitna Al Hindustan were successfully neutralized.”
Pakistan’s military uses the terms “Fitna Al-Khwarij” for the TTP and “Fitna Al Hindustan” for separatist militants in Balochistan. Islamabad alleges these militant groups are supported by India, a charge New Delhi has always denied.
The ISPR said security forces retrieved weapons and ammunition from the militants in Balochistan’s Zhob district, adding that they were involved in “terrorist activities” in the area.
“The security forces of Pakistan remain resolute and unwavering in their commitment to defend the nation’s frontiers,” the ISPR said.
Four police personnel killed
Separately, four police personnel were killed in KP’s district Bajaur on Wednesday after they were ambushed by unidentified gunmen.
The police personnel were on patrol duty when the gunmen opened fire on them, a statement from the chief minister’s office said.
“Such cowardly acts of terrorism cannot shake the resolve and morale of the police force,” Chief Minister Sohail Afridi was quoted as saying.
The counterterror operations take place amid surging tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Islamabad said it carried out strikes on alleged militant camps in Afghanistan on Saturday night, killing over 100 militants.
Afghanistan said the attacks violated its territorial sovereignty, accusing Islamabad of killing and wounding dozens of civilians.
Islamabad alleges militants based in Afghanistan are responsible for surging militant attacks inside Pakistani territory. Afghanistan rejects these allegations and urges Pakistan to focus on its security challenges instead of blaming Kabul.
