Opinion: Is China Right to Ban Hidden Door Handles?

The impetus comes from a spate of fatal crashes, where power has failed and electronically activated door handles have ceased to function – trapping occupants in burning infernos. Mechanical door releases do exist, but they’re concealed so well that they’re virtually inaccessible in emergencies.

Chinese authorities have been the first to act, by issuing a ban that will take effect next year. Other countries may follow suit, but they may not need to, since China is the world's largest car market. Automakers are likely to comply, and it’s unlikely anyone will develop a separate set of door handles exclusively for one market.

I asked Ivan Espinosa, the Global CEO of Nissan, for his opinion and, as you would expect, he took quite a pragmatic view. Naturally, Nissan would follow regulations; however, he sees the value of flush door handles from a design and aerodynamic standpoint and believes they can be made safe and foolproof. As an automaker, I can see why he would prefer fewer rules for his engineers and designers to follow – especially those that appear heavy-handed on the surface.

Except, in this case, I don’t think it is heavy-handed. It really is a question of safety. In the mad rush for minimalism and aping the smartphone aesthetic, automakers have rushed to remove any and all buttons and physical controls from their cars. But when that takes a straightforward task like adjusting the AC temperature and changes it from being as intuitive as reaching for a physical button or knob to navigating through menus on a touchscreen, while attempting to also look at the road ahead, then you know we’ve gone from form follows function to something more sinister – and eventually more dangerous! In my mind, beauty is purity of function, and that applies as much to tactile controls in the cabin as it does to physical door handles on the sheet metal.

If you ask me, the current crop of BMWs have it just right. On the outside, the door handles are flush, with a neat cutaway for your hand, while the cabin door panels have solid handles integrated into the overall design. It’s not fussy, doesn’t require electrical power, doesn’t pinch your fingers or attempt to amputate your hand – it just works. The beauty stems from the purity of purpose and ergonomic design. If designers prioritised utility over ornamentation, self-regulation would negate the need for overregulation.

Of course, if carmakers put their minds to it, I’m certain they could find a way to make flush door handles completely safe and usable. The question is whether that’s an ideal that’s worthy of pursuit. Good design does more than just appeal to the eye. Excellent design, in fact, is conspicuous by its absence – it’s so good that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts – it’s a door handle that not only fits aesthetically but is also one that you can find with your eyes closed; it’s a knurled knob that clicks with each turn; it’s a stalk that’s tactile and damped; it’s a control that’s falls perfectly to hand and doesn’t require you to fumble to operate it. The ideal design should make all extraneous activities, other than driving, so intuitive that the driver never has to take his or her eyes off the road, and people can get in and out of the car without needing an engineering degree.

So, coming back to the original question – it’s not an overreaction. It's about time someone gave a rap on the knuckles and brought the industry back to the long-held ideal of 'form follows function,' rather than the other way around.