one benefit of them being flush is they will not collect snow/ice like your photo. Here's a video of knocking the ice that may be holding them free

 

Thanks for the video,

That's not what I meant by ice, I meant 1/8 of the shiny type ice...
A hair dryer, that's going to be handy at work.

Seriously, my TT has the window lowering process to open the door, works nice in the summer. As soon as any frozen precipitation ices up on the seal and it's scraping time.
Maybe with the powerful heater for the interior full blast for a while the handle would free up. I guess we'll have to wait and see.

I'm not sure that the form follows function has been followed in this case

 

Maybe with the powerful heater for the interior full blast for a while the handle would free up. I guess we'll have to wait and see.

That is my assumption.

If the car is covered in ice, pre warm it for 20 minutes before you go to open it up.

 

One of the reasons I'm getting the big battery is not having to evaluate if I'm going to make it home after one of these sessions.

 

No experience with Teslas, but I have had door handles freeze on every make of car I have owned, including Volvos. I use hot water if available and not too cold. A spray can of windshield de-icer is also very effective (essentially water-isopropyl alcohol solution).

 

I bet ceramic coating would help! From what I understand it’s pretty hydrophobic, may make it easier to remove ice or reduce accumulation.

 

Good idea,

It does make my windshield easier to scrape since I did the coating.

 

We had one of those 1/10" thick thin sheet of ice on the car ice storms here in Colorado back a month or so ago, and yeah, you are right to be concerned. Even after 10-15 minutes of defrosting the car - which cleared the ice on the roof and front and read windows - the handle was stuck, but I was only able to push it open with a bit of effort. When I got home the charge door was totally frozen shut and I just left it alone in the garage which was a bit above freezing and went in the house and came out an hour or two later and everything was fine. If there was any good news out of this, it was that the car drove surprisingly well on the roads which were pretty slick. I was slow and careful and cautious but I got home without incidents using the stock Primacy MXM tires while I saw lots of other cars which had slid off the road. It's not like it amazing - it slid and I drove slowly and took turns extra super slowly - but it was better than I would have suspected.

 

Weight helps for sure, I would have been surprised of the opposite. Suspension geometry and traction control is surely a quality of these cars.
Here I am talking without even seeing one in person yet!

Seriously, I see a 1/4 of ice at least once a year, ok, the handles are flush but still, they'll be buried under at least 1/8" of ice.
Unfortunately, I think the garage will be the best option. I say unfortunately because with all the abrasive they pour over here in the winter, the best option is to leave it in the cold. Otherwise wash it once warmed inside but then again humidity is a concern.

Solution... move to California. ..

 

Just reply to see dogs.....lol

 

We had a brief overnight cold snap here (Portland) that didn’t seem like a big deal, but froze our 3 shut completely. The door handles weren’t an issue - just pushed them harder and they broke free.

The trickier thing was the windows. Even after preheating for 30 minutes they wouldn’t budge. Turns out it’s not a problem when opening the door; the window just slides under the trim - but closing the door must be done very carefully. I scratched the trim twice trying to close the rear doors (was in a hurry trying to get kids to school). Later I figured out you need to push the window towards the car and “tuck” it under the trim as you close the door from the outside. Not the best solution! But we’ll know for next time.

 

We had a brief overnight cold snap here (Portland) that didn't seem like a big deal, but froze our 3 shut completely. The door handles weren't an issue - just pushed them harder and they broke free.

The tricker thing was the windows. Even after preheating for 30 mins they wouldn't budge. Turns out it's not a problem when opening the door, the window just slides under the trim - but closing the door must be done very carefully. I scratched the trim twice trying to close the rear doors (was in a hurry trying to get kids to school). Later I figured out you need to push the window towards the car and "tuck" it under the trim as you close the door from the outside. Not the best situation! But we'll know for next time.

I'm going to assume you are in Portland Maine, because the low overnight in the other Portland was 36F and clear skies

 

My TT does the same thing from time to time. Now if close it a few times without defrosting the windows it won't do that up-down thing anymore (once melted) and I need to reset the window for it to operate normally.
So even Audi have their issues, but I was always able to get in though.