Retractable Door Handles
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: May 2005
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From: Philadelphia, PA (USA)
2025 E53 Hybrid
I have the soft close doors on my W214 E53. But frankly, the feature is seldom used since unlike my EQS SUV the W214 doors easily close. The EQS SUV could have benefited from soft close doors.
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From: NH
2024 AMG GLE53
yah, I love my soft close doors too. I just wish others getting in/out of my car would learn how to close them w/o slamming....
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Don't you ever open the door for someone and wish that you didn't have to get out of the car to do so?
I encounter that situation almost daily when I need to open the rear door as a courtesy for a guest.
I encounter that situation almost daily when I need to open the rear door as a courtesy for a guest.
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From: New York, NY
2026 E53 wagon
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From: DFW
SL63
Exactly right according to common courtesy, etiquette, manners, politeness, and chivalry.
Part of the process of the courtesy of opening a door for someone, is to put in the effort to get to the door as they arrive at the door, so you can hold it open for them, and be there to steady them or assist if need be.
How far have we strayed from those type of niceties?
Is it just a shadow of the past now?
If so, are we better off without it?
Part of the process of the courtesy of opening a door for someone, is to put in the effort to get to the door as they arrive at the door, so you can hold it open for them, and be there to steady them or assist if need be.
How far have we strayed from those type of niceties?
Is it just a shadow of the past now?
If so, are we better off without it?
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Senior Member
Joined: Apr 2018
Posts: 420
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From: Austin, TX / Munich, DE
E 53 Wagon
I tend to agree that it's pointless (the BMW solution). I remember years ago when my smug neighbor took delivery of one of the first Tesla Model X sold in Germany. He was showing off the "falcon wing" doors when they failed to recognize the sprinkler pipes and concrete beam above his parking slot. The glass shattered, and there was a huge dent in the sheet metal. He was so embarrassed. I secretly giggled. I get the convenience factor, but I don't trust the tech enough not to misjudge something and damage the car.
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Joined: Oct 2022
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X214
What has soft close doors got to do with the pop-out handles ? I had the soft-close doors in my 2022 E450 All-Terrain, which did not have the pop-out situation, and it worked like a charm. I have the soft-close in the 2025 All-Terrain too.
Last edited by Roweraay; Sep 24, 2025 at 11:34 PM.
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Guess they were trying to compare how more things mean more things might potentially break.
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Soft close doors introduced into the topic in post 23 by Hicksra.
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Joined: Mar 2002
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From: Nappanee Indiana
2026 E450
I keep thinking there’s a trick to get them to pop out that I don’t know. It’s great when they proactively present when you walk to the car, but on the times they don’t I’ve taken to just pushing the unlock button on the remote because it takes about a dozen swipes to get them to pop out otherwise.
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you DO NOT have to swipe them to open the door. that lie was perpetuated by numerous car reviews. all you have to do is touch the indent just like with all previous entry systems on numerous car manufacturers [they probably source the same vendor anyway] and it opens. did on my gle 450 and gls43 and audi s3, and s5 sportback. same on the Infiniti ex 35 and ex 60 I leased and before that the lexus is 350. its exactly the same. touch the button to lock, touch the button to unlock. if the door handles have popped out then you just pull the door. this has NEVER failed on my car.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Aug 2014
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From: Tennessee
W214 E450
They work with a swipe or a touch on the dimple a.k.a. the button. It's more reliable pressing the button than swiping, but the swipe works too. My default is to use the button to lock the car since the key fob is in my pocket and it's always unlocked automatically as I approach. My guess for owners having issues is that multiple keys are confusing the car or they are doing something else that is confusing the car. It's hard to say without seeing what's happening. Some may be over exaggerating the issues as well. Maybe some have defective cars. Who knows. It's odd that some of us have little or no issues while others are quite frustrated. I'm not using the digital key and only have one physical key when using the car. I have no issues and I happen to like the retracting handles even if they are unnecessary. I think they are cool. I also like the soft closing doors, the touch screen, the super screen, the ambient lights, and the leather accent panels over hard wood. Maybe I'm not refined enough to dislike these things. There is not much I don't like about this car. The double visor is truly missed and it would be nice to have a button or touch screen option to drop the rear seat backs from inside the car rather than only in the trunk. The missing ILS+ is criminal, but that is more the stupid US regulations rather than MB. I have driven just over 23K miles on this platform with two different cars and I'm still glad I bought it. I just hope it lasts 200K and at least 15 years with minimal issues. One year and 17K down, 14 years and 183K to go.
Last edited by L1Wolf; Sep 25, 2025 at 10:07 PM.
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X214
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Last edited by ua549; Sep 26, 2025 at 03:05 PM.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Aug 2014
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From: Tennessee
W214 E450
Is that the real reason? Link to the story with details would be helpful. The occupants couldn't open the doors from inside. The windows couldn't be broken? I don't know about Tesla, but the MB handles are supposed to force out in an accident to facilitate rescue. Even without retractable handles locked doors would prevent a person from opening the door from outside. I suspect there is more to this story than 3 people died because retractable handles failed.
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Is that the real reason? Link to the story with details would be helpful. The occupants couldn't open the doors from inside. The windows couldn't be broken? I don't know about Tesla, but the MB handles are supposed to force out in an accident to facilitate rescue. Even without retractable handles locked doors would prevent a person from opening the door from outside. I suspect there is more to this story than 3 people died because retractable handles failed.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Aug 2014
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From: Tennessee
W214 E450
In a MB, and I hope all cars, the doors should unlock in an accident. That requires electricity since the locks operate electronically. The handles should retract when that happens. If any part of that fails, you cannot open the door from the outside. They guy had a fire extinguisher. He could have smashed a window to help. The fire was likely too hot to do that.
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From: DFW
SL63
Yes, because Lithium Ion fires burn very hot, and very quickly. Almost explosively.
It can happen. It has happened.
It will likely happen again.
The retractable electronic handles certainly didn’t help.
Electronic upgrades to formerly mechanical controls have their advantages.
That’s until the chips are down, and you need a mechanism to work properly, and without any delay.
That to my mind is one of the biggest advantages to mechanical mechanisms.
It can happen. It has happened.
It will likely happen again.
The retractable electronic handles certainly didn’t help.
Electronic upgrades to formerly mechanical controls have their advantages.
That’s until the chips are down, and you need a mechanism to work properly, and without any delay.
That to my mind is one of the biggest advantages to mechanical mechanisms.
Last edited by MB2timer; Sep 26, 2025 at 04:38 PM. Reason: -p
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Aug 2014
Posts: 1,924
Likes: 672
From: Tennessee
W214 E450
Yes, because Lithium Ion fires burn very hot, and very quickly. Almost explosively.
It can happen. It has happened.
It will likely happen again.
The retractable electronic handle ps certainly didn’t help.
Electronic upgrades to formerly mechanical controls have their advantages.
That’s until the chips are down, and you need a mechanism to work properly, and without any delay.
That to my mind is one of the biggest advantages to mechanical mechanisms.
It can happen. It has happened.
It will likely happen again.
The retractable electronic handle ps certainly didn’t help.
Electronic upgrades to formerly mechanical controls have their advantages.
That’s until the chips are down, and you need a mechanism to work properly, and without any delay.
That to my mind is one of the biggest advantages to mechanical mechanisms.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Aug 2014
Posts: 1,924
Likes: 672
From: Tennessee
W214 E450
By the way, the Tesla door handles work very differently than a MB retractable handle. On the Tesla, a motor does not push them out. You have to push the handle in on one side to push the other side out like a lever. Then you can pull the side that is out or push in further to open the door. I would call them hidden and not actually retractable but that's just semantics. If you don't own a Tesla or haven't been in one, it can be very confusing how to open the door even when it's unlocked. Mercedes on the other hand has handles that automatically retract flush, but will present themselves when the car is unlocked. It's less confusing since when out, they look and operate like a regular door handle. The two are very different.
Here's what Gemini has the say about this.
Here's what Gemini has the say about this.
The most critical difference lies in the backup safety mechanism and physical intuition.
- Mercedes: Uses electric motors to extend the handle for aesthetics and access. Once extended, pulling it often incorporates a direct mechanical or a highly intuitive electronic/mechanical override into the handle itself (the pull-past-a-pressure-point mechanism) to ensure the door can still be opened quickly in an emergency.
- Tesla (Model 3/Y): The external handle design is simpler and does not use a motor to extend. Crucially, the door latch operation is almost entirely electronic, with the backup mechanical releases (especially the interior ones) being separate, hidden, and non-intuitive, which has led to greater safety scrutiny.
