Scheduled Maintenance

The site may be unavailable due to scheduled maintenance on Thursday, January 30th, from 7:00 PM - 10:00 PM CST.
During this time, the website may not be available. If you experience issues, please check back later.
Thank you for your patience, and we apologize for any inconvenience.

Industry Trends: Active Child Safety Lock

2020 Kia Telluride active child safety lock button.

Many people remember the good old days of the child lock, which was located in the jamb of the rear doors. The only way to open the rear door, was for someone to let you out. Many siblings have used this feature to torture their brother or sister, by locking them in the vehicle. Not to mention the annoyance this can cause a collision repair technician when they can’t figure out why the rear door won’t open from the inside. Well it appears, gone are the days of the manual child lock and onto an electronic child lock system. A system that also utilizes technology to make sure it is safe for the child to exit the vehicle.

Active child safety lock is a trend that is entering the industry. Using the same button that locks the rear windows, a parent can lock the rear doors so they can’t be opened from the inside. With the push of a button, the rear door handles can be disabled, which will be important to look for when the rear door won’t open from the inside after repairs.

However, this is not where the technology ends. Some vehicles that are equipped with blind spot detection and rear cross traffic assist, are pulling triple duty from the same sensors. These radar sensors, on the rear corners of the vehicle, look for traffic approaching from the rear and will actually reengage the child lock if there is danger. This is to prevent a child from opening the door into an oncoming vehicle, or worse the child being struck. A few examples of vehicles with this feature are the 2019 Hyundai SantaFe, 2020 Hyundai Palisade, 2020 Kia Telluride, and the 2020 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque.

Additional I-CAR Collision Repair News you may find helpful:


Related I-CAR Courses

  • Weld-Through Primer Guidelines: Subaru - UPDATE Wednesday, 29 January 2025

    Weld-through primers are generally a zinc-based product that are applied to the mating surfaces prior to welding. Corroding zinc forms zinc oxide which protects the steel. This is called sacrificial corrosion....

  • Corrosion Protection Guidelines: Rivian Monday, 27 January 2025

    A key factor in collision repair is making long-lasting repairs. When a vehicle is repaired, many areas of corrosion protection are disturbed. This creates corrosion hot spots that left untreated...

  • Honda Has Released The 2025 CR-V e:FCEV Body Repair News Friday, 24 January 2025

    Honda has released a Body Repair News bulletin for the 2025 Honda CR-V e:FCEV (fuel cell electric vehicle). This document provides at-a-glance relevant information for this new model.

  • Weld-Through Primer Guidelines: FCA/Stellantis - UPDATE Wednesday, 22 January 2025

    Weld-through primers are generally a zinc-based product that are applied to the mating surfaces prior to welding. Corroding zinc forms zinc oxide which protects the steel. This is called sacrificial corrosion....

  • Bumper Cover Repair With ADAS: Hyundai Friday, 17 January 2025

    A simple bumper repair on a modern vehicle may not be as simple as it seems. New technologies like blind spot monitoring, adaptive cruise control, and other advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS)...

  • Rivian Glass Replacement Requirements Thursday, 16 January 2025

    The role of the windshield is a lot more complex than simply allowing a view of the road ahead. It is considered a structural part of the vehicle as it contributes to the strength of the roof and...

  • I-CAR Repairers Realm: Compressed Air Filtration - Coming Soon Monday, 13 January 2025

    I-CAR is having a discussion on compressed air filtration.

  • Rivian Position Statement: Paintless Dent Repair Friday, 10 January 2025

    Rivian has released a position statement on paintless dent repair (PDR).

  • Your 2024 Favorites: Top 20 Sectioning and Partial Part Vehicles Thursday, 9 January 2025

    Now that the new year is underway, let’s take a look at your 2024 favorite vehicles in the OEM Partial Part Replacement Search.

  • Your 2024 Favorites: Top Articles Wednesday, 8 January 2025

    As 2025 rolls in, we can reflect back on what the previous year had to offer. Let's take a look at some of the collision industry information you've been most interested in from this past year....