Fancy features in a vehicle might attract many at first but the limit of their practicality only comes to light in the case of an emergency. A sad incident that took place recently shines a similar light on Tesla¡¯s much appreciated retractable door handles. Fancy, of course, but what happens when they fail to open during crisis.
Due to this, the driver trapped inside the crashed car could not be rescued by the help at the spot.
Omar Awan, identified as the victim in the report, was driving a leased Tesla in South Florida when he lost control of the vehicle and crashed his car into a palm tree. Witnesses at the spot claimed the speed of the vehicle to be north of 110 kmph at the time. The car caught fire post the crash and was soon filled with smoke from the inside.
Omar Awan's Model S caught fire after crashing into palm trees. (Image Local 10 News)
As per the complaint filed by Awan¡¯s family after the February incident, a police officer who responded to the accident as well as the bystanders were unable to get Awan out of the car. The reason was cited as broken door handles on the Model S, which did not pop out and made it impossible for anyone to open the car door and rescue Awan.
For those unaware of the mechanism of retractable door handles, know that such door handles disappear inside the car door and only pop out when they detect a key fob. Complaints of the Model S¡¯ door handles are not unheard of in the past.
Awan died trapped inside the flaming car due to smoke inhalation. ¡°Fire engulfed the car and burned Dr. Awan beyond recognition ¡ª all because the Model S has inaccessible door handles, no other way to open the doors, and an unreasonably dangerous fire risk,¡± the complaint mentions.?
Omar Awan (Image: bpfamilycare.com)
Post the crash in February, his family of five children and a wife is seeking $15,000 in damages.
While similar instances have taken place in the past, most of them were blamed at the vehicle¡¯s Autopilot (autonomous driving) feature. A few reports of the car¡¯s battery catching fire also surfaced. Even in this case, rescuers at the spot confirmed that the crashed car was erupting in flames repeatedly due to constant fires in the battery, till the time it did not drain out completely. The car even caught battery in the tow yard after it was towed away from the crash zone.?
In this wake, one tends to wonder, are all of these new features necessary in today's vehicles? Or are they just there for adding glam to it and might not have as much practicality as the conventional ones.
(Source)