Tesla banned from selling cars in Arizona (Scottsdale: sales, 2013)

[kell490]

I had not been paying much attention to Tesla, but had read that Arizona was one of 4 states that banned direct sales from car manufactures. I can't even find in any Arizona news when that law was passed must have been passed with no news on it.

[Ponderosa]

It's 5 now. NJ voted to ban them this year. A couple more states have severe restrictions that essentially stop direct sales and several more are considering them. Why? The auto dealers are lobbying legislators to protect their turf. I think the law has existed in AZ for some time now.

[Zippyman]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

It's 5 now. NJ voted to ban them this year. A couple more states have severe restrictions that essentially stop direct sales and several more are considering them. Why? The auto dealers are lobbying legislators to protect their turf. I think the law has existed in AZ for some time now.

Many of those laws have existed for some time - Tesla was just trying for an "exemption".

It's not just a dealer thing though - tesla has no plans whatsoever to provide service facilities in the state either. A bit of a hassle if the vehicle is in warranty, and a major issue when the vehicles go out of warranty- a customer might have to pay to have a vehicle towed *hundreds* of miles just to get it diagnosed (or pay to have a Tesla tech flown in).

The other issue is the lemon law - if you didn't buy the car here, Arizona law might not apply. There will be some very unhappy people in the coming years.

[Ponderosa]

Originally Posted by Zippyman

Many of those laws have existed for some time - Tesla was just trying for an "exemption".

It's not just a dealer thing though - tesla has no plans whatsoever to provide service facilities in the state either. A bit of a hassle if the vehicle is in warranty, and a major issue when the vehicles go out of warranty- a customer might have to pay to have a vehicle towed *hundreds* of miles just to get it diagnosed (or pay to have a Tesla tech flown in).

The other issue is the lemon law - if you didn't buy the car here, Arizona law might not apply. There will be some very unhappy people in the coming years.

Tesla is the new DeLorean. Unless Tesla figures out how to make a car the masses can afford, they will be out of business in the next few years. Even then, if all-electrics ever catch on, the majors will do it cheaper, market it better, and drive out new entrants. The dealer networks will only hasten that. People still want to kick the tires and have to deal with their trade-ins. .

[azriverfan.]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

Tesla is the new DeLorean. Unless Tesla figures out how to make a car the masses can afford, they will be out of business in the next few years. Even then, if all-electrics ever catch on, the majors will do it cheaper, market it better, and drive out new entrants. The dealer networks will only hasten that. People still want to kick the tires and have to deal with their trade-ins. .

Tesla is in the process of making just that

Tesla will unveil under-$40K car within three years - Triangle Business Journal

Tesla is far from being the next DeLorean. In my opinion, they were the first manufacturer to produce an attractive energy efficient car. When you thought electric/hybrid, you thought ugly yet practical. Let's be honest, the Prius, Civic etc are pretty darn ugly. Furthermore, they are not the most comfortable cars to ride in. They have tiny cabins and you feel cramped. The Tesal Model S is very roomy and has an extremely soft ride. Basically, it's a car you would actually like to own. Every Prius owner I know buys the car for the fuel efficiency, environmentally friendliness and/or ability to obtain HOV pass, not because they admire their appearance and ride. Thanks to Tesla, you are seeing manufacturers step up their game and try to produce electric/hybrids that are attractive and comfortable and not just mini batteries on wheels.

[asufan]

Originally Posted by azriverfan.

Tesla is in the process of making just that

Tesla will unveil under-$40K car within three years - Triangle Business Journal

Tesla is far from being the next DeLorean. In my opinion, they were the first manufacturer to produce an attractive energy efficient car. When you thought electric/hybrid, you thought ugly yet practical. Let's be honest, the Prius, Civic etc are pretty darn ugly. Furthermore, they are not the most comfortable cars to ride in. They have tiny cabins and you feel cramped. The Tesal Model S is very roomy and has an extremely soft ride. Basically, it's a car you would actually like to own. Every Prius owner I know buys the car for the fuel efficiency, environmentally friendliness and/or ability to obtain HOV pass, not because they admire their appearance and ride. Thanks to Tesla, you are seeing manufacturers step up their game and try to produce electric/hybrids that are attractive and comfortable and not just mini batteries on wheels.

Agreed and Ponderosa is waaay off base thinking Tesla will be out of business, in my opinion. If the other manufacturers get into electric vehicles, they will be getting their technology from Tesla ($) because Tesla is the only company that has figured out how to make an electric car that can drive a reasonable distance. They will probably be getting their batteries from the Tesla battery factory. My hope is that another car company just purchases Tesla and sends my stock skyrocketing

[PhoenixSomeday]

Originally Posted by azriverfan.

Tesla is in the process of making just that

Tesla will unveil under-$40K car within three years - Triangle Business Journal

Tesla is far from being the next DeLorean. In my opinion, they were the first manufacturer to produce an attractive energy efficient car. When you thought electric/hybrid, you thought ugly yet practical. Let's be honest, the Prius, Civic etc are pretty darn ugly. Furthermore, they are not the most comfortable cars to ride in. They have tiny cabins and you feel cramped. The Tesal Model S is very roomy and has an extremely soft ride. Basically, it's a car you would actually like to own. Every Prius owner I know buys the car for the fuel efficiency, environmentally friendliness and/or ability to obtain HOV pass, not because they admire their appearance and ride. Thanks to Tesla, you are seeing manufacturers step up their game and try to produce electric/hybrids that are attractive and comfortable and not just mini batteries on wheels.

That's been exactly my problem with electric cars in the past. For some reason, manufacturers are trying to deliberately make them look like some 80s vision of what "futuristic" and "space age" was about. What the hell? Why? With Tesla, it's a normal, good looking car, that goes a decent range and has a lot of power (with the higher battery options).

The only hiccup - and it's a big one - is electric doesn't have the extensive "refueling" network that standard engines have, and they don't recharge as fast as filling a tank. But, I was reading earlier this year that they're actively working on solutions to those issues (Supercharger network; battery swapping).

[Ponderosa]

Originally Posted by asufan

Agreed and Ponderosa is waaay off base thinking Tesla will be out of business, in my opinion. If the other manufacturers get into electric vehicles, they will be getting their technology from Tesla ($) because Tesla is the only company that has figured out how to make an electric car that can drive a reasonable distance. They will probably be getting their batteries from the Tesla battery factory. My hope is that another car company just purchases Tesla and sends my stock skyrocketing

Tesla might have a future as a battery and component manufacturer but you will never see many Teslas on the roads. Tesla is the battery a car made famous. If and when (and both of those are highly debatable but certainly not now) electric vehicles are sold in numbers, they will be GMs, Fords, Toyotas, etc. Maybe with a Tesla battery.

[caryberry]

Tesla cars are being brought across the Arizona border.

I saw three different ones (2 AZ tags, 1 CA tags) in Scottsdale last week. Beautiful automobiles and quiet - quiet as a whisper. Just because there is not a "store" in AZ will not stop people from buying them (CA has numerous stores as does Las Vegas).

As far as charging stations - the numbers are growing and growing fast. http://www.teslamotors.com/findus/list?types=store,service,supercharger®ions=northa merica

Like my grandma used to say...you can't stop a right idea.

[garvan]

ugly is as ugly does. and the Prius does FINE at what it's supposed to do, provide cheap transportation. That makes it beautiful