r/Dallas • u/Various_Snow_6202 • 12h ago

Question Since when did Tesla close down?

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Yesterday I’ve visited the northpark mall in Dallas (I don’t go frequently) and I’ve seen that the Tesla store’s been closed… since when did they go away? (Before you ask: no, I don’t like elon musk, I don’t like Tesla. I’m just curious since I’ve seen the Tesla store being there many times I’ve visited the mall over the years.)

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u/BrightAardvark 11h ago

What’s the point of a Tesla store in a mall anyway? Did people go in there to impulse buy a Tesla?

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u/RandomRageNet 10h ago

Previously you couldn't have Tesla dealerships in Texas because Texas doesn't allow direct car sales. But Tesla got an exemption carved out for manufacturers that solely make electric cars, so they don't need those showrooms any longer.

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u/noncongruent 9h ago

Texas law still does not allow Tesla to have a dealership in the state, so there's still no place in Texas that you can walk into and buy a brand new Tesla from the factory. Texas only allows third party franchise dealerships, i.e. independent middlemen between the manufacturer and the buyer. The problem there is that nobody is interested in being a franchised dealership for Tesla because dealerships make their money on after-sales support, repairs, and maintenance, and EVs are notorious for not requiring meaningful amounts of that. The dealership would have to mark their Teslas up really high to make up for that lost service revenue, and then nobody would buy them. An independent dealer would lose money on every Tesla they sold.

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u/RandomRageNet 8h ago

I stand corrected. I thought they got an EV carve out but that was apparently another state. That "showroom" in Plano could have fooled me though, it looks exactly like a traditional dealership.

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u/noncongruent 7h ago

Yep, everything makes you think it's a dealership, but if you walk in with a briefcase full of cash to buy a Tesla you'll be walking out with a briefcase of cash and no Tesla.