U.S. Auto Dealers Fear Chinese Carmakers Following Tesla Model

Chinese automakers could pose a threat to the U.S. auto industry’s dealer franchise system by following Tesla Motors Inc. in selling directly to customers, the chairman of National Automobile Dealers Association said.

“It’s in the back of everybody’s minds at this point, just to make sure that we should talk to the Chinese as their cars evolve,” David Westcott, a North Carolina auto dealer, said yesterday at an Automotive Press Association event in Detroit. “Dealers won’t fight having those cars come in. Will we fight to make sure there’s a franchise system? Yes.”