In the past, laminated glass was usually installed in the windshield, with side and rear windows being tempered only.
The difference is that tempered glass is per-stressed so that when it cracks, it shatters into many tiny and dull pieces. Laminated is the same thing, but with layers of plastic sandwiched with layers of tempered glass. Laminated glass will still shatter, but will be held together by the plastic layers.
In an emergency, small improvised, or purpose built tools meant to shatter tempered glass will be useless if the glass is laminated.
I hate Tesla and traded mine in after only two months of ownership, but in no way is the lever hidden or not extremely obvious. In fact it is more obvious than the button. Several times I had passengers try to use the manual lever, which doesn’t lower the window when used. After the second person did it, moving forward I told every person who hadn’t been in my car before to use the button before getting out. Was one of the many reasons I traded it in.
But that’s because they were used to other cars. If you’re used to pressing the button, that’s where you’re gonna go in a panic. Fear basically shuts down higher thought processes so you act fast rather than carefully. So the same reflexive action you use to exit in normal circumstances would be the only thing you can conceive of if you’re on fire or drowning.
Another detail is that she was on the phone with people as she was sinking
So what happened with this woman dying, could she not pull the lever?
I have no idea. I wasn’t there and didn’t even know about it until right now. Door could have been jammed shut after the accident like any other door that firefighters keep their jaws of life for.
Yeah it likely sunk into mud thus rendering all the debate over water pressure and lever location mute.