NHTSA Complaint #11691293 — 2024 TESLA MODEL S

The design of the emergency opening (No power to normal opening system) of the rear passenger doors is flawed, unsafe and should never have been approved for production. This rear door emergency opening requires an occupant to reach below the seat, remove carpet and pull a manual release cable. During a fire with smoke in the passenger compartment, an occupant may not be able to visually locate the release cable, and has a much higher chance of becoming incapacitated and dying from smoke inhalation, as demonstrated in a Tesla Cybertruck accident with multiple smoke inhalation deaths in California Thanksgiving 2024. Another potential scenario is a frontal impact causing a front seat to move rearward, reducing the floorboard space between the front seat and access to the carpet and release cable. This system needs to be redesigned for this vehicle. If I had known about this system prior to purchase, it would have negatively impacted my buying decision.