Buttons behind the door handles

[astonius]

I know someone else pointed this out, but there are small, round rubber buttons behind every door handle. Have we figured out what these do? I've pressed them in a few different situations with no feedback. It appears they can also be pressed indirectly by pushing on the back of the door handle. It would make me so happy if these could be used to unlock the doors at some point. I hate proximity unlock with a passion and really want what every other car I've owned for the past decade has used: a button or capacitive sensor on the door handle that checks for the presence of the key then unlocks.

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[SoCalTravels]

Rubber covers hiding key holes? Most cars have them in case of battery failure.

 

[astonius]

Rubber covers hiding key holes? Most cars have them in case of battery failure.

They aren’t big enough for that. They also distinctly press in and rebound like a button.

 

[astonius]

Here’s a pic. I measured it with a caliper at 7mm diameter.

 

[Christopher]

Looks like a rubber stopper for the door handle to rest on when it retracts in.

 

[astonius]

Looks like a rubber stopper for the door handle to rest on when it retracts in.

Not saying this is wrong, but it seems odd that it would be press-able if this was the case. I don’t mean that the rubber deforms either. It retains its shape and presses into the door distinctly. It also has textured dots for tactility I’d assume.

 

[RealBillNye]

Not saying this is wrong, but it seems odd that it would be press-able if this was the case. I don’t mean that the rubber deforms either. It retains its shape and presses into the door distinctly. It also has textured dots for tactility I’d assume.

My guess is that it is a sensor to tell if the handle is closed.

 

[Max]

Looks like a rubber stopper for the door handle to rest on when it retracts in.

It has to be either that or a button telling R1 the door handle is now closed .

 

[crashmtb]

Not saying this is wrong, but it seems odd that it would be press-able if this was the case. I don’t mean that the rubber deforms either. It retains its shape and presses into the door distinctly. It also has textured dots for tactility I’d assume.

 

[lefkonj]

Maybe it is small peg that when you unlock pushes the handle out in case it is frozen. Wasn't that a problem on the Tesla.

 

[Engi_Nerd]

I also hope it's a button that could be used to only unlock the truck when you press the door handle.

 

[astonius]

My guess is that it is a sensor to tell if the handle is closed.

It has to be either that or a button telling R1 the door handle is now closed .

The handle doesn't press on the button unless I push in on the back of the handle. It rests on it, but it doesn't put any pressure on the button, let alone enough to push it in as far as it can go. I'd also think the motors controlling the handles themselves could indicate open/close state without an additional sensor.

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