China has decided that sleek, retractable door handles are no longer worth the risk, ordering carmakers to return to visible, mechanical latches that can be grabbed in an instant. The move directly targets the Tesla-style flush handles that have spread across the electric vehicle market, after regulators linked them to deadly delays in rescuing occupants from burning or powerless cars. It is a rare case of design fashion being rolled back by force of law, and it could reshape how new cars look and function far beyond China’s borders.
At its core, the policy is about a simple question: when a vehicle is on fire or its electronics have failed, can anyone, from a panicked child to an exhausted firefighter, open the door without thinking. Chinese authorities have concluded that the answer, for too many modern EVs, is no, and they are now using the world’s largest auto market to push the industry back toward old-fashioned hardware.
What exactly China is banning
Regulators in China have zeroed in on concealed and electrically powered handles that sit flush with the bodywork and extend only when sensors or motors tell them to. Officials describe these as “hidden” or “retractable” designs, a category that includes the pop-out grips popularized by Tesla and copied by a wave of domestic EV brands. Under the new rules, every passenger door on a vehicle sold in the country will need a mechanical release that can be operated directly by hand, without relying on the car’s battery or software to present the handle.
Earlier drafts of the policy framed it as a technical standard for door hardware, but the final version is much blunter, effectively outlawing the very feature that helped make Tesla’s minimalist styling famous. One detailed account notes that concealed handles on electric vehicles are now prohibited, with regulators insisting that doors must still open manually even after severe impacts or power loss. Another summary of the measure stresses that the ban covers electric retractable handles from 2027 onward, forcing manufacturers to redesign any model that currently hides its grips inside the door skin in order to keep selling into the market.
The safety failures that triggered the crackdown
Officials did not move against hidden handles in a vacuum, they did so after a series of high profile crashes in which rescuers struggled to reach people trapped inside modern EVs. Investigators have pointed to incidents where electric cars suffered catastrophic failures, including fires, and the flush handles either failed to deploy or were too unfamiliar for bystanders to operate quickly. In some of the most widely discussed cases, regulators linked the design to fatal outcomes, arguing that the extra seconds spent hunting for a grip on a smooth door panel can be the difference between life and death.
One detailed report on the new rules notes that regulators explicitly cited “fatal safety incidents” as they moved to outlaw Tesla-style electric handles, warning that electrically powered mechanisms can jam after a collision or short circuit. Another account of the policy highlights that the ban follows at least two fiery crashes involving Xiaomi Corp vehicles, with authorities arguing that hidden grips made it harder for rescuers to open the doors, a concern echoed in coverage that shows a door handle on Y as the emblem of the problem.
Inside the new technical rulebook
Behind the headline ban sits a dense set of engineering requirements that spell out exactly how future handles must behave. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has framed the change as part of a broader overhaul of crash and fire standards, with a draft titled Technical Requirements for laying out how handles must function in different crash zones relative to seating positions. The ministry’s message is blunt, mechanical door handles are obligatory, and they must still work even if the vehicle’s battery catches fire or its wiring is severed.
Public comment on the draft closed in Novembe, and the final rule now locks in a transition period that gives automakers time to reengineer their cars. One official summary explains that Mechanical door handles obligatory is now the baseline, with The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology insisting that every door must have a direct mechanical linkage to the latch. Another detailed breakdown notes that the ministry’s proposed mandate, later formalized, requires clear safety indicators and manual overrides that remain accessible even after a power cutoff, a point echoed in a separate account of how China officially bans handles on cars starting in 2027.
How carmakers from Tesla to Xiaomi are being forced to adapt
The most immediate impact will fall on brands that built their identity around flush handles, starting with Tesla and a cluster of Chinese EV startups that followed its lead. Analysts note that door handles Tesla are now effectively outlawed in the world’s biggest car market, which means any Model 3 or Model Y sold there will need visible, mechanical grips that work even after power failures. A separate overview of the policy points out that a new Chinese safety rule will require every vehicle sold in the country to have manual door releases, a shift that will ripple through design studios and supply chains from California to Shanghai.
Domestic manufacturers are also under pressure, particularly those that leaned into ultra-clean bodywork and electric pop-out handles as a marker of modernity. The ban arrives just as Xiaomi is trying to convince buyers that its first cars are safe, with company founder Lei Jun publicly insisting that Lei Jun Says EVs Are Built to the Industry’s Highest Safety Standards. Responding to criticism after high profile fires, Lei has framed the company’s cars as embodiments of Xiaomi’s safety-first design philosophy for its vehicles, but the new rules will still force hardware changes. Industry watchers expect a wave of mid cycle refreshes as brands quietly swap in conventional handles, a trend already flagged in coverage that notes how China Bans Electric 2027, a move that could influence some automakers in the US as well.
Why this world-first could spread beyond China
By moving first, Beijing has turned a niche design debate into a global regulatory test case. One detailed analysis notes that China banned concealed door handles on electric vehicles in what is described as a world first safety policy, making it the first country to issue a blanket ban on the design popularized by Tesla. Another account of the same decision underscores that China Bans Hidden in World First Safety Policy, a move that will be closely watched by regulators in Europe and North America who are already tightening EV fire standards.
Commentators have started to frame the decision as part of a broader shift away from “design for design’s sake” and back toward visible, tactile safety features. One observer, Kirsten Korosec, notes that One of the design features that became synonymous with modern EVs is now being rolled back, with China becoming the first country to issue a ban. Another analysis of the rule stresses that a new Chinese safety standard will require manual exits after power failures, a logic that could appeal to safety advocates elsewhere. If regulators in other major markets follow suit, the Tesla-style handle may end up as a brief, risky detour in automotive history rather than the future of car design.
More from Morning Overview