Lucid Group Inc. filed a federal lawsuit in Texas accusing the state’s rules on auto dealerships of “economic protectionism” that hurt the company’s ability to sell its electric vehicles there.
In a suit filed in Austin, Lucid said the state is acting anti-competitively in forcing companies to sell their products through established dealerships.
The Newark, Calif.-based company, which markets its vehicles online and through a network of Lucid-owned Studios, maintains that its direct sales and in-house after-sales service are so closely tied that using an independent franchised dealer would not be economically viable and would harm the business.
“That tight and fast feedback loop, and the benefits it brings to Lucid’s customers, would be impossible with third-party dealers interposed between Lucid and consumers,” according to the plaintiff’s statement.
No one responded to an email request for comment at Lucid.
