[Bug Report][3.12.4] `VAutocomplete` emits update:search with empty string on blur, breaking remote-data selections

[Drillan767]

Environment

Vuetify Version: 3.12.4
Vue Version: 3.5.31
OS: macOS 10.15 (current)

Steps to reproduce

1. Bind v-model:search on a VAutocomplete and use it to fetch items from a remote API
2. Search for an item not in the initial list, select it
3. Click outside the field to trigger the blur
4. @update:search fires with "" / undefined → remote reload → selected item disappears from items → label no longer renderable

Expected Behavior

Blurring the field should not emit @update:search.

Actual Behavior

@update:search is triggered, which updates / clears the items list, with the selected element among it. The field will then display the object's value (for example, an ID) instead of label

Reproduction Link

https://play.vuetifyjs.com/#...

[J-Sek]

This example breaks so much I can hardly see it reflecting actual use case. (i.e. selecting User 6, or changing to multiple)

Improved demo.

[Drillan767]

@J-Sek Thanks for the improved demo, return-object does indeed work here.

In my case though, the majority of my forms don't store full objects in their state, they store IDs (or a specific value), which map directly to API payloads I need to send. Adopting return-object across an app means every form field now holds { id: 3, name: "..." } instead of 3, and every submission needs to unwrap it. That's a significant structural change to work around what is ultimately a side effect of the component emitting update:search on blur.

The core question is: why does blurring the field emit update:search at all? The user didn't modify the search, the component cleared it internally. Whether one uses return-object or not, that emit is surprising and forces us (at least me) to either guard against it or restructure their data model. Both options are workarounds for a behavior that happens when the user no longer interacts with the field.

[J-Sek]

return-object is bare minimum for this use case. The demo has much more changes that I don't have time to go over. The gist is - "don't fire API call for empty search".

I agree that binding to the search reflects internal behavior that does not make sense on the outside. I doubt it is going to change though. You are free to inspect the implementation and suggest changes that introduce the change you need without introducing regression.