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Michigan Latest State To Ban Direct Tesla Sales
An anonymous reader writes As many expected, Michigan Governor Michigan Governor Rick Snyder signed a bill that bans Tesla Motors from selling cars directly to buyers online in the state. When asked what Tesla's next step will be, Diarmuid O'Connell, vice president of business development, said it was unclear if the company would file a lawsuit. "We do take at their word the representations from the governor that he supports a robust debate in the upcoming session," O'Connell said. "We've entered an era where you can buy products and services with much greater value than a car by going online."
It's a lot more likely that foreign auto makers would use a dealer network than sell direct though, as there are more storage concerns with the importation of vehicles compared to when they're produced domestically, plus the nature of international trade might require an American holding company to do business more easily.
I think this is more an auto-industry trying to screw with the very nature of the market itself with protectionist practices than it is anything else. American automakers have never happily sold non-petroleum-fuelled vehicles in any real quantity, and while Tesla's cars so far have been luxury, they're looking to ramp up economy of scale and pricing for mid-line products that could really threaten the status quo. Teslas might be more expensive to purchase initially, but their lower operating costs and lower maintenance costs make them attractive to those drivers that don't need to go more than a couple-hundred miles a day and plan to keep their cars for more than a few years.
I can state, definitively, that if a $30,000 electric car with a 150 mile range on a single charge became a thing I'd have to consider it. That's plenty for commuting and errands for my household, and since we already have a four door sedan with low miles as the out-of-town trip car, we wouldn't need extended range on something in the city. Having relatively clean maintenance would also be a plus.
Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
To be fair, dealers provide maintenance, repair, and recall services.
Those services are also provided by independent garages, usually at much lower prices.
That's a bigger factor in the history of these laws than the sales part.
No it wasn't. These laws were never, even in theory, about protecting the customer. They were about protecting existing dealer networks. Since Tesla never had a dealer network, these laws shouldn't apply to them.
http://www.mojomotors.com/blog...
http://www.autonews.com/articl...
"Mr. Musk is a brilliant man, and Tesla is an innovative company. We can all respect that," says Jim Appleton, the president of the New Jersey Coalition of Automobile Retails. "But he doesnâ(TM)t get what it takes to do business in New Jersey."
Translation: Musk won't pay off all the useless parasites represented by Jim Appleton and all the corrupt government officials like Governor Rick Snyder the required under-the-table money to do business in their state.
These outdated statues were originally designed to protect little dealerships from the threat of big auto opening their own dealerships if one of their indirect dealers refused to carry their lemons. So dealers under pressure from Detroit were forced to sell the crappy next to the good cars.
Today, prohibiting direct sales protects only the dealerships and harms the consumer. There’s no reason to prohibit a consumer from buying directly from the manufacturer.
Come on now, who among us does not regularly drive down the highway for 15 hours straight while pissing in a bottle?
84 average, when new, at 70 degrees, and don't drive over 55 or the range drops quickly. On cold winter days chop a good 20-30% off that range. Expect 20-30% further degradation after 3-5 years of normal usage. There are a fair number of 3-4 year old Leafs that are under 66% capacity and getting replacement batteries (mostly under warranty), and those Leafs are mostly 2011's and 2012's that only started life with a 73 mile EPA range. It is a great little car with real limitations that should be soberly considered.
I expect that any car labeled a 150 mile car will be more reasonably a 100 mile car after a few years of aging and in non-southern winters. A buyer should count that degradation in if they plan on keeping the car for a decade or two. Thankfully battery prices are coming down, so a battery replacement after 5-10 years will be less daunting of an expense than originally feared.
1. 21 stops * 0.5 hours / stop != 17 hours /hour == 2.6 hours; 0.5 hours / 2.6 hours ~= 20% additional road time for the electric car, not 50%
2. 170 miles * 21 == 3570 miles. 3570 miles / 65 miles / hour ~= 55 hours (which is > 2days even if you drove straight).
3. 170 miles / 65 miles