A coterie of Florida car dealers filed a lawsuit this week against Scout Motors over its direct-to-consumer sales model. The complaint alleges that Scout, which operates under the Volkswagen Group, is in violation of Florida law which blocks automakers from trying to bypass dealers by selling directly to consumers.

The Scout, which gets its name from the legendary International Harvester Scout, differentiates itself from other electric runabouts that sell themselves as "tough," like Tesla's Cybertruck, by giving them an "old-school" feel,

Tesla, Lucid, Rivian, VinFast and now Scout Motors have all, in their own way, changed the game in how cars are being purchased and sold. These automakers typically lean into the idea of a store, or an "experience center",

Under Florida law, even a deposit is considered a sale. Audi and VW dealers in the state aren't having it. S cout’s plan to sell its cars directly to consumers is already facing

A group of Volkswagen and Audi dealerships in Florida have filed a lawsuit against Scout Motors over its direct-to-consumer sales model. The lawsuit alleges that Scout shouldn’t be viewed as separate from other VW Group brands.