Suing for Incentives: Tesla Doesn't Like the Way Ontario's Treating It
In June, Ontario — the place just over yonder from Detroit and Buffalo — switched governments for the first time in 15 years. As part of his planned overhaul of the province’s finances, newly minted leader Doug Ford announced the cancellation of an electric vehicle rebate program that handed up to $14,000 to buyers of green cars.
Hardly an appropriate use of taxpayers’ dollars in a place where the debt’s approaching a third of a trillion dollars, the government implied. Ford axed the rebate last month, with buyers allowed to accept the former perk until Sept. 10th. Sorry — almost all buyers.
As the Canadian Press reports, the subsidy extension applies to all buyers who ordered their vehicle through a dealership and expect to take delivery by Sept. 10th. However, because of Tesla’s direct sales method, it didn’t make the cut. The $14,000 government perk dangling in from of its Model 3 sedan vanished overnight, leaving competitors to reap some sort of an advantage, if only for a couple of months.
Tesla’s Canadian arm is not happy about this, as Ontario has plenty of wealthy, green people who like driving around downtown Toronto, Ottawa, etc, in electric vehicles. (One of them bought a Tesla last year, only to find out on a road trip that the Supercharger plug didn’t fit. Fun story.)
In its bid to even the playing field and ensure the government hands over dough to its buyers, Tesla filed a lawsuit in Ontario Superior Court, seeking a judicial review. It’s unfair, says Tesla, that one company’s customers would be denied what other buyers enjoy, even if it is during a short transition period. The Ford government’s “arbitrary and entirely unreasonable” decision has already harmed the company financially, the automaker claims.
Model 3s only recently began appearing on Ontario roads, so there’s quite a backlog of buyers waiting for theirs to show up. Obviously, having the province hand over $14k for your car purchase sweetens the pot considerably, and Tesla says buyers expected that incentive to be in place when they take delivery. Both entities will have their day in court.
(Note: It seems Tesla’s weird feud with Ford now includes anyone named Ford.)
[Image: Tesla]
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- MaintenanceCosts Nobody here seems to acknowledge that there are multiple use cases for cars.Some people spend all their time driving all over the country and need every mile and minute of time savings. ICE cars are better for them right now.Some people only drive locally and fly when they travel. For them, there's probably a range number that works, and they don't really need more. For the uses for which we use our EV, that would be around 150 miles. The other thing about a low range requirement is it can make 120V charging viable. If you don't drive more than an average of about 40 miles/day, you can probably get enough electrons through a wall outlet. We spent over two years charging our Bolt only through 120V, while our house was getting rebuilt, and never had an issue.Those are extremes. There are all sorts of use cases in between, which probably represent the majority of drivers. For some users, what's needed is more range. But I think for most users, what's needed is better charging. Retrofit apartment garages like Tim's with 240V outlets at every spot. Install more L3 chargers in supermarket parking lots and alongside gas stations. Make chargers that work like Tesla Superchargers as ubiquitous as gas stations, and EV charging will not be an issue for most users.
- MaintenanceCosts I don't have an opinion on whether any one plant unionizing is the right answer, but the employees sure need to have the right to organize. Unions or the credible threat of unionization are the only thing, history has proven, that can keep employers honest. Without it, we've seen over and over, the employers have complete power over the workers and feel free to exploit the workers however they see fit. (And don't tell me "oh, the workers can just leave" - in an oligopolistic industry, working conditions quickly converge, and there's not another employer right around the corner.)
- Kjhkjlhkjhkljh kljhjkhjklhkjh [h3]Wake me up when it is a 1989 635Csi with a M88/3[/h3]
- BrandX "I can charge using the 240V outlets, sure, but it’s slow."No it's not. That's what all home chargers use - 240V.
- Jalop1991 does the odometer represent itself in an analog fashion? Will the numbers roll slowly and stop wherever, or do they just blink to the next number like any old boring modern car?
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Anyone know where I can get a MOGA hat?
Yes , the new government cancelled the carbon tax. Ottawa has a complete different agenda. We may find ourselves with a federally mandated carbon tax. With a federal election coming up we will see if the "Little Potato " has the gonads to shove the carbon tax down the throat of "vote rich " Ontario. Doug Ford for P.M.