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Judge dismisses MA auto dealers’ suit against Tesla
A Massachusetts Superior Court judge dismissed a lawsuit that the Massachusetts Automobile Dealers Association had filed against the company, based upon the auto dealers’ lack of standing and failure to state a claim. Tesla plans to build its own network of stores, rather than using independent dealers as other US automakers do, the main reason being, as CEO Elon
BYD delivers 500 e6 cars to Shenzhen Police
Photo courtesy of BYD
Chinese automaker BYD delivered 500 pure electric e6 police vehicles to the Shenzhen Municipal Public Security Bureau this week. The local cops love the “virtually silent engine,” according to the company. The five-seat e6 has a top speed of around 87 mph, and a range of around 186 miles. It features a 75 kW motor and a proprietary lithium iron phosphate battery.
Some 300 BYD e6 taxis have been in service in Shenzhen for several years, and have racked up over 24 million miles. The city of Shenzhen also operates 200 of BYD’s 40-foot electric buses and, according to BYD, is planning to deploy 500 more. Last October, the company inked a deal to deliver 50 e6 taxis to a London minicab company, starting in the second quarter of 2013. BYD has been talking about introducing the e6 to the US since 2009, but the launch has been delayed several times. The company’s website has only vague hints that the car may someday be available in the US.
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Musk put it, “franchise dealers have a fundamental conflict of interest between selling gasoline cars, which constitute the vast majority of their business, and selling the new technology of electric cars.” Several groups representing auto dealers have cried foul, claiming that this violates franchise laws. In most states, it’s illegal for automakers to own dealerships, and Tesla’s claim that its stores won’t be dealerships, because cars won’t actually be sold onsite, is “an outright scam,” according to a spokesman for the Massachusetts association. Apparently, the Massachusetts judge did not agree, but this isn’t the end of the matter. The Massachusetts association has filed a separate, related lawsuit, and a dealer group in New York also has a suit pending.
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We are confident that other states will also come to this same conclusion and look forward to following through on our commitment to introduce consumers to electric vehicle technology in an open, friendly, nopressure environment. Elon Musk, Tesla CEO
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