North Carolina governor test-drives Tesla Model S amid dealer fight

Tesla scored a big point in the “hard sell” column in North Carolina recently, when the chief executive of one of the states opposing direct-to-consumer vehicle sales got behind the wheel of a Model S electric vehicles, the Silicon Valley Business Journalsays.

With Tesla lobbyists recently meeting with more than a dozen North Carolina lawmakers to plead their company’s case, Governor Pat McCrory somehow ended up driving the all-electric sedan, which, judging by the stellar reviews for the car, is a good thing. Tesla Chief Elon Musk is preparing to talk to state legislators as well.

Last month, North Carolina lawmakers proposed a bill that would prevent automakers such as Tesla from selling cars to customers without going through third-party dealerships. The bill, backed by the North Carolina Automobile Dealers Association (NCADA), would stop Tesla from opening its planned showroom in the state and also bar Internet sales of the vehicle.

Texas, Massachusetts, Minnesota and New York are other states that have taken Tesla on in the automaker’s effort to legalize direct sales. Tesla has argued that the nature of the all-electric vehicle would prevent traditional dealers from effectively selling electric vehicles.

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