Overview

• Tesla’s flush-mounted, power-operated door handles include a manual emergency lever hidden under unlabeled flaps that many owners find hard to locate.
• In multiple incidents, occupants were trapped when doors failed to open after accidents disabled the vehicle’s electric system.
• Owners are installing aftermarket “Ripcord” kits that attach cable pulls to the hidden levers and provide visible markers for quicker access.
• Europe-based supplier EV Dynamics offers these retrofit kits for about €22, fueling a small but growing market.
• Competing EV brands such as Audi, Ford and Fisker employ simpler mechanical release mechanisms that work independently of the vehicle’s electronics.