These are some serious accusations.
Inflate Gate
Three Tesla owners in California have lobbed a class action lawsuit at the EV maker, accusing it of false advertising.
They allege, as Reuters reports, that Tesla misled them by inflating the estimated driving ranges of its vehicles.
The news comes a week after Reuters found that Tesla had used a “Diversion Team” to suppress a growing number of range-related appointments, following a high number of owner complaints about the vehicles’ driving range.
“Had Tesla honestly advertised its electric vehicle ranges, consumers either would not have purchased Tesla model vehicles, or else would have paid substantially less for them,” the lawsuit states.
While it’s still unclear if the proposed suit will ever get class action status, it could be a considerable legal battle for the Elon Musk-led company, considering it would cover all Tesla drivers in California who bought a Model 3, S, X, or Y.
Class Actioned
Last week’s Reuters report suggests Tesla intentionally modified the displayed ranges in its EVs around a decade ago to show inflated numbers when fully charged. But, as Engadget points out, it’s still unclear if this is still the case today.
It’s not the first time Tesla has been accused of misleading its customers about its vehicles’ ranges. Earlier this year, South Korea fined the company $2.2 million over its failure to disclose how ranges are affected by cold weather.
The embattled company is already facing a number of other lawsuits. A different class action lawsuit alleges Tesla violated the privacy of its customers, while a shareholder is suing the company over Musk’s claims about the safety of its controversial Full Self-Driving driver assistance software, among others.
To be fair, it’s not just Tesla that has been accused of inflating its EV ranges. A recent study found that offerings from other EV makers are also falling well short of their advertised ranges.
It’s nonetheless a bad look for Tesla that could be yet another blemish on its already tarnished reputation.
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