The cofounder of the electric automaker partnering with Foxconn to possibly build vehicles in Racine County wants a Wisconsin law changed.
In an interview with Forbes published this week, Fisker CEO Henrik Fisker said that a nearly century-old state law could stand in the way of his company and Foxconn deciding to construct vehicles in (and bring jobs to) Mount Pleasant.
The law in question dates back to the 1930s. It requires franchised car dealers to sell vehicles to consumers; carmakers (i.e. Ford, Tesla, General Motors, Honda, BMW, etc.) cannot sell their vehicles directly to consumers, with few exceptions.
Defenders of the law, including the Wisconsin Auto & Truck Dealers Association, say the ban on direct sales opens up more job opportunities and protects pre-existing automobile dealers.
WATDA President William Sepic said that the ban on direct sales protects consumers. Car salespeople are able to “be an advocate” between consumer and manufacturer, Sepic argued. By making it easier to take dealers out of the picture, consumers could lose out.
“Think about it like this,” he said in an interview Friday. “If you have three car dealers, they can each set different prices for the exact same car, and the consumer can pick and choose. Likewise, they can make three different offers on buying a used car.”