Did Elon Musk Just Open The Door For Tesla Dealerships?
Tesla Motors founder and CEO, Elon Musk, appeared in Detroit yesterday and he had a lot to say. The always-quotable Musk was in the Motor City for the International Auto Show. Musk said he was at the Detroit Auto Show to promote Electric Vehicles (EVs). Musk said, “The main reason I’m here is to talk about electric vehicles and to do what I can to encourage other automakers to accelerate their electric-vehicle programs.”
Tesla always seems to be dominating automotive industry news coverage, and Elon Musk is often the reason. One of the most interesting things he said was that Tesla could potentially consider using franchised dealerships in the future. Yesterday in Detroit, Musk mused that dealers might be a part of the long-term plan for Tesla Motors. Musk reportedly said he would consider dealerships, but that Tesla “must establish a solid base with our own stores.”
This isn’t the first time Musk has teased the automotive world by talking about dealerships. During October, on the subject of incorporating dealers into Tesla, Musk reportedly said, “We may need a hybrid system with a combination of our own stores and some dealer franchises.” For the time being, Tesla is selling direct-to-consumers and Musk is simply talking about hypothetical situations.
However, there is another state that might open its doors to Tesla Motors. Connecticut is reportedly considering legislation changes that would allow Tesla to sell directly to consumers in their state. Ahead of that discussion, a Tesla spokesman explained that Tesla Motors doesn’t think dealers are the most efficient way to sell cars. Will Nicolas, a spokesman for Tesla said, “the company sees dealers as unnecessary intermediaries between the manufacturer and the customer…we’re in control of the whole process. We find it more efficient to control the customer experience.”
Will Tesla continue to have state-by-state legal battles with dealers? Do you think that Tesla Motors will change its policy and use franchised dealerships? How would your opinion of Tesla change if they worked with dealers?
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He very well may wind up putting in place a hybrid system to market/sell his cars…but whatever he does I can guarantee it’s been thought out and worked out well in advance. I believe much of this hangs on how soon more and more states will allow him to sell his cars direct to consumers with no dealer involved. The bigger question though is will Tesla be able to survive, long-term, with a long delivery time/wait for each vehicle sold? Not having any standard inventory will be a major hang-up sooner rather than later I fear.