7 ms·
Tesla is unable to sell its vehicles directly to the public in Texas
- wmf 13y agoThis page refers to April 9th (2013?) in the future tense, so it's probably pretty old news.
- jleader 13y agoAccording to http://openstates.org/tx/bills/83/HB3351/ http://openstates.org/tx/bills/83/HB3351/ and http://openstates.org/tx/bills/83/SB1659/ http://openstates.org/tx/bills/83/SB1659/, the bills haven't progressed any further since then, I don't know if that means they're dead, or if that's just how slowly the Texas legislature proceeds.
- skaevola 13y agoThe Texas legislature meets for 140 days every odd year. The bill was not passed in this session (which is to say it failed). It will likely be reintroduced in 2015 when the Texas Legislature meets again.
- YooLi 13y ago"Texas Bans the Sale of Tesla Vehicles" Title is misleading. Texas didn't ban the sale of Teslas but rather Teslas are incapable of being sold due to legislation that was added back in 2003. Still a problem, but it should at least be presented correctly.
- Dylan16807 13y agoThe legislation is working as designed. I don't see how that part is misleading.
- dylangs1030 13y agoSorry, that's my bad. I read it elsewhere[1], went to Tesla's site for official news, and couldn't find anything other than Advocacy. I'll try to change it. I put up the original title in the spirit of the guidelines, because "Advocacy: Texas" doesn't by itself mean anything in particular. And I haven't seen this story on Hacker News. [1]: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/nightline-fix-abc-news/why-texas-bans-sale-tesla-cars-140842349.html http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/nightline-fix-abc-news/why-texas...
- skaevola 13y agoYou can buy a Tesla in Texas. You have to order it online and (as the page says) it will be delivered by a 3rd party. You can see plenty of them in Austin. Tesla also maintains two "showrooms", one in Austin and one in Houston where you can see the car, but cannot test drive it or discuss pricing. Tesla is not allowed to run its own dealerships in Texas, because the auto dealer's union has laws which prevent car manufacturers from running their own dealerships.
- kvanderd 13y agoTotally misleading. We bought ours through the website. It is the ONLY way to buy one regardless of where you live.
- nicklovescode 13y ago"Prior to the filing deadline, Tesla Motors reached out to Sen. Craig Estes (R-Wichita Falls) and Rep. Eddie Rodriguez (D-Austin) who agreed to file bills on our behalf. These bills would permit U.S.-based manufacturers of 100% electric- or battery-powered vehicles to sell directly to Texas consumers." A silly band-aid to ridiculous legislation.
- stcredzero 13y agoYes, but in a possible future where passenger cars are all electric or hybrid, it doesn't seem that bad.
- skaevola 13y agoThis bill failed in the last legislative session. The next session begins in January 2015, and a similar bill will likely be re-introduced.
- fnordfnordfnord 13y agoUnless another special session is called.
- nknighthb 13y agoThe band-aid is easier to pass.
- Florin_Andrei 13y agoThat somehow sounds even worse.
- AsymetricCom 13y agoHowever, not a concept new to dog owners.
- bostonvaulter2 13y agoYet it still didn't pass.
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- grecy 13y agoAhh, The American Way (TM) When a competitor offers a better product that you, make what they are doing illegal rather than competing with them. Stopping innovation in America since the 70s.
- throwaway_yy2Di 13y agoIs "since the 70's" some sort of ironic joke? US industries were extremely and overtly anti-competitive up until the deregulation of the 1970's. If competition is restricted now, it was far worse in the past. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staggers_Rail_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staggers_Rail_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motor_Carrier_Act_of_1980 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motor_Carrier_Act_of_1980 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airline_Deregulation_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airline_Deregulation_Act
- jtoeman 13y agolike Airbnb getting sued in New York? or Uber/Lyft/etc having to go through extortionary-like procedures in California? ...
- mbreese 13y agoSome regulation can be good. Airbnb, Lyft and to a lesser degree Uber (definitely UberX) are all competing with established industries that are heavily regulated for a reason. Hotels and taxis are regulated to protect consumers (think safety). Requiring car manufacturers to sell via franchised dealers protects franchised dealers. That's a big difference.
- mercuryrising 13y agoSomeone in California should figure this out - I checked quick on CA's DMV website but couldn't find an email to ask someone. If you buy a car in another state, California will charge you the difference in sales tax to bring it up to California's tax rate, netting them more tax revenue. What happens if you bring in a car that you paid a higher tax rate on? Would they refund you the difference? Would you get double taxed purchasing a vehicle from California and bringing it to Texas? Can someone explain what's going on in the service paragraph? The customer can't talk to the repair place? They can't discuss the issues the car has, they need to relay all the information through Tesla motors? What the heck?
- jleader 13y agoI am far from a tax expert, but my impression was that excess sales tax paid in another state can be claimed on your California state income tax return? It sounds like the customer can talk to the repair place, it's just that the repair place can't contact the customer, or even advertise themselves as a Tesla repair place.
- stcredzero 13y agoCould someone still buy some Teslas, leave them in the lot, then sell them on Craigslist?
- jccooper 13y agoSure. The warranty's even transferable. In fact, last I looked used Model S cars were going for more than retail. Scarcity, I guess. But it's not like you can't get a Tesla in Texas, just that they can't sell it to you.
- cobrausn 13y agoSo, this might seem a silly question (I find the ban ludicrous but this is worth asking). Why not just allow certain dealers, approved by Musk himself for all that matters, to become 'authorized Tesla dealers'? Why does Tesla insist on direct-to-consumer sales, even to the point of not being able to do so in large marketplaces?
- skaevola 13y agoMusk clearly wants Tesla to sell all of their products themselves ala Apple. His stated reason was that car dealer's cannot properly advertise the benefits of electric cars without undermining their gasoline car business and so he doesn't trust them to properly sell the car.
- leetrout 13y agoAs a Prius owner I can attest to this, even if just a little. The dealerships I talked to over the past 4 years were excited to sell me a Prius when I called over the phone (and when demand was so high they had to order them and you agreed to MSRP to place said order). However, showing up on the lot, they generally didn't have one to show you (again, the demand issue) and would push me towards an in stock Camry or similar. Even when I made it explicitly clear I wanted a Prius there was a bunch of FUD acted out by the sales reps. "Yea, the sticker says 45mpg, but that's only in the city where you can use the battery". "Hey Jon, what'd that lady say she got on her commut? 37mpg?" I was truly shocked. I will also note that this happened more at multi-franchise dealerships.
- Shivetya 13y agoThat does not explain away others who would relish the idea of setting up an electric only dealership. He is using an pretty damn thin excuse to not allow others to sell the cars. Sorry, but there are many other like minded individuals who would very much sell the cars the way he wants, they may even improve on the methods. Local dealers for electrics would provide the benefit of tighter integration with supporting businesses, from those who install the requisite plugs at homes, to marketing the need of stations to employers so that their employees can charge up at work. There are many many benefits to having local, private dealers.
- fnordfnordfnord 13y agoElon, just install a bunch[1] of superchargers on I-10. [1] And I do mean a bunch. EDIT: I just noticed. This is an old press release. The lege' is out of session. Be sure and pester representatives if another special session is called.
- jokoon 13y agosome people want to kill the electric car
- Aqueous 13y agodon't think it's about being against the electric car, but against a world where car dealerships are unnecessary. car dealerships will eventually go the way of the book store. they don't want a world in which they aren't the very profitable middle men between the consumer and the manufacturer. tesla's direct consumer sales threatens their existence, so they want nothing to do with it.
- jokoon 13y agoSo basically the law mandates that salesmen are not out of work. Brilliant.
- marvin 13y agoThe dealerships in Texas don't really care about Tesla, they're just afraid that other car manufacturers will follow suit and undercut their business model.
- tomkarlo 13y agoI thought Texas was all about reducing regulations and welcoming new businesses.
- VladRussian2 13y agoq: How to tell when politician is lying? a: His lips are moving. Btw, "Financier" is a fascinating read and should be just used a main textbook for "Civics" class in schools on how the system works. I like this double-whammy : "... Grund had been about, years before, purchasing through one or two brokers large amounts of the various kinds of Texas debt certificates and bonds. The Republic of Texas, in its struggle for independence from Mexico, had issued bonds and certificates in great variety, amounting in value to ten or fifteen million dollars. Later, in connection with the scheme to make Texas a State of the Union, a bill was passed providing a contribution on the part of the United States of five million dollars, to be applied to the extinguishment of this old debt. Grund knew of this, and also of the fact that some of this debt, owing to the peculiar conditions of issue, was to be paid in full, while other portions were to be scaled down, and there was to be a false or pre-arranged failure to pass the bill at one session in order to frighten off the outsiders who might have heard and begun to buy the old certificates for profit. ..."
- sbarre 13y agoAs long as that new business don't mess with the oil business, son...
- Florin_Andrei 13y agoha ha
- muzz 13y agoThat's the image they portray. However, it's simply not true in this case.
- umsm 13y agoIs it correct to assume a Texas resident may order one from another dealer and drive it home? Can they just drive it home and legally have it registered in Texas?
- jeady 13y agoYeah, you basically just order it online and there's no problem. There are a couple of showrooms in Austin and from what I've heard, although you can't actually purchase it from the Tesla showroom, you are welcome to use their kiosks to order one via the internet.
- wmf 13y agoThat's basically what Tesla already does, although they'll ship it so you don't have to drive it from the factory.
- guelo 13y agoDoes any other company get so many straight press releases consistently voted up on HN? BTW this is old, the referenced bills did not pass.
- AsymetricCom 13y agohttp://bigcharts.marketwatch.com/advchart/frames/frames.asp?symb=TSLA&insttype=&time=7&freq=1 http://bigcharts.marketwatch.com/advchart/frames/frames.asp?...
- dylangs1030 13y agoIt's shocking how quickly this got to the top of the front page. People really, really like Tesla :)
- edouard1234567 13y agoIt doesn't shock me ... 1 - A charismatic "Rocket scientist" as a founder (Arguably the most inspiring founder since Steve Jobs). Check! 2 - A disruptive idea in a industry that hasn't been disrupted since the rise of Japanese cars (A long long time ago). Check! 3 - Wining against all odds (a year ago very few people were betting on Tesla). Check! 4 - A world changing idea. Check! 5 - A David and Goliath story. Check! 6 - A sexy machine and a delightful product. Check!
- MichaelApproved 13y agoThere is no "David" in this story. There is a new company but being new doesn't make you David. The power behind Tesla is not small by any means.
- ArchD 13y agoFor Goliath, what about the entities that allegedly kill GM's EV1 electric car and want people to keep depending on fossil fuel? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_Killed_the_Electric_Car http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_Killed_the_Electric_Car
- fsckin 13y agoThere's gotta be a simple, legal workaround to require franchising. Here's how I could see it happening: 1. Create Company X. 2. Sell exclusive USA franchising rights to Company X. 3. Acquire Company X, rename the new subsidiary as 'Tesla Franchising'. 4. ??? 5. Profit Edit: Thanks for the unwarranted down vote without a comment... I didn't know that big oil is trolling HN now. From the article, they're already doing this with their service departments: Customers in need of warranty service must call the Tesla Service to speak to someone at Tesla Motors in California. Based on their over-the-phone explanation, a Tesla Service employee determines whether repair work is needed/warranted. If so, the customer is sent to have the work sub-contracted by a local subsidiary, Tesla Motors TX. The local repair centers – currently in Austin and Houston – cannot advertise that they do warranty repairs nor can they discuss any additional repair needs or concerns with the customer. Tesla Motors TX then bills Texas Motors, Inc. for the work. If customers have additional warranty concerns, Tesla Motors TX cannot discuss them with the customer – the customer would need to call Tesla Motors, Inc. back and go through the process again.
- chris_mahan 13y agoIt's ok. Instead, it will sell its cars in China.
- hearty778 13y agoWhy single out Texas? The vast majority of states are the same way, including Tesla's home state.