Dealership Law Means Austin-Built Teslas Must First Be Shipped Out-of-State For Texas Buyers

[#TexasPolitics365]

Tesla is on the verge of having to jump through the most ridiculous loopholes because of an arcane law: having to ship its Austin-built Cybertrucks out of the state before it can sell (and ship) them back to Lone Star buyers.

Under Texas franchise laws, which are similar to those in most other states, automakers like Toyota and General Motors cannot sell you a car. They must sell their cars to independently owned third-party businesses that in turn sell them to Texans—you know, new-car dealerships. 

As it stands, Tesla’s company-owned outlets cannot legally sell a car in Texas, nor can the company “deliver” a car within the state even if bought by a Texan. 

And the state legislature did not pass a bill to fix the problem, as widely expected. The legislative session ends this week, and they do not meet again until 2023

(Full story here.)
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