Due To “Life-Threatening” Steering Wheel Touchpads, Volkswagen Is In Court

The buttons in question are found in the Volkswagen ID.4, specifically the model in question. Unlike the smaller ID.3 and the flattened ID.5, the ID.4 is available in the United States, the land of both unlimited possibilities and lawsuits.

To be fair, the point of the two ID.4 drivers, so far, isn’t entirely incomprehensible. They’re filing a class-action lawsuit and are therefore looking for supporters who also believe the touch buttons on the steering wheel can be dangerous. The issue is those attractive, shiny, high-gloss black button panels on the spokes of the ID.4 steering wheel. These aren’t button panels at all but smooth, interconnected “touchpads” where each button has a different function. That function is activated by touching it, and according to Janice Beecher and Omar Hakkaioui, this creates dangerous situations. According to the plaintiffs, it’s quite easy to unintentionally engage cruise control this way, causing the electric Volkswagen to accelerate suddenly, quickly, and unexpectedly. This, of course, quickly leads to dangerous situations.

According to the prosecutors, fatal accidents have already occurred due to this “defect,” and Volkswagen’s choice of buttons has left ID.4 drivers “terrified” of driving their cars. We thank Carscoops for the tip about this lawsuit, which you can find here.

Even if the prosecutors are right, there’s one silver lining for Volkswagen. The decision to replace the touchpads in new models with physical buttons has already been made.

• Also See: China’s SAIC To Work With Volkswagen On A New Pickup