Xiaomi SU7 Ultra crash prompts renewed scrutiny of flush door handles and first responder access

Xiaomi recently recalled more than 100,000 of its electric vehicles for an OTA update to fix its self-driving software. Xiaomi's driver-assist system needed to be updated for certain edge cases after a deadly highway crash earlier this year, with an SU7 that may have been driven autonomously at the time.

This forced Xiaomi to recall its vehicles and address the scenario under which the crash occurred, but now a second incident has sent its shares tumbling again. Xiaomi's fastest SU7 Ultra sedan crashed with high speed, resulting in a blaze of fire despite its durable battery coating.

Those who stopped to help tried to get the occupants out, but the car doors or their flush handles didn't work, while they couldn't smash the windows with kicks or elbows either. Unfortunately, the driver couldn't make it, while the authorities and Xiaomi are yet to comment on the investigation and the potential reasons for the crash.

What has left a lasting impression, however, is the inability of the people who arrived at the scene first to open the doors. The Xiaomi SU7 Ultra comes with hidden door handles, just like Teslas, which may fail to pop when power is cut out.

Ostensibly, the handles sit flush with the surface of the door to improve aerodynamics and increase the cool and modern factor. In China, however, they may soon be history, as the government is at the stage of public hearings before a ban on hidden door handles is implemented.

In the US, the NHTSA is also investigating Tesla over its flush door handle design. According to the Chinese regulators, the powered hidden handles are more complex, fail way more often than mechanical ones, and can restrict access for first responders in the case of failure, just as the video below shows. Tesla is now preparing to preempt regulatory scrutiny and nix hidden door handles, as well as merge the current emergency lever into a single button for opening the door from the inside in any situation.

Tesla is not a stranger to such moves, either, as regulatory pressure forced it to bring back the turn signal stalk in new Model 3 batches, and offer it in the form of a $595 retrofit for owners of older Model 3 units. Xiaomi might now be forced to follow a similar path and dispense with flush door handles after the fiery SU7 Ultra incident.