Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) was recently a subject of a light fun poked by the social media team of the Nissan Leaf, but only to realize later that, after all, it was not so funny. The Nissan Leaf social media team tweeted on the ongoing tussle between the Tesla and New Jersey auto dealers, and also attached an image, which garnered mild criticism. The image was later taken off from the @NissanLEAF feed. So, it can be said that the team suffered an embarrassing bout of tweetus deletus.
Tweet was not directly from Nissan Leaf
The Nissan Leaf social media team, which likely thought of taking advantage of the fight between Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) and New Jersey auto dealers, posted a tweet along with a bold image. The tweet read, “It’s okay #NewJersey, you can still #GoElectric with the #NissanLEAF #EV.” The image presented by the Nissan aroused some criticism, to which the team replied “It’s all in #EV love.” However, later the image was removed from the @NissanLEAF feed.
Clarifying the tweet, Rob Robinson, senior specialist of social communications for Nissan, told AutoblogGreen that the Twitter account of Leaf is handled by an agency, and the tweet in question was not “reviewed or approved by Nissan. We saw it and asked them to take it down,” and added, “We thought it was a discussion we didn’t need to be weighing in on.”
Tesla CEO not happy with New Jersey authorities
Previously, New Jersey passed laws banning car manufacturers from directly selling vehicles to customers. Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) is the most affected automaker as it does not use dealerships to sell its Model S, but relies on selling online or through company-owned stores. Texas and Arizona have already passed similar laws.
Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) CEO Elon Musk, as expected, was not at all pleased with the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, and called the decision an attack on technological innovation and consumer choice, and “an affront to the very concept of the free market.”
Musk, in a blog post on March 14, also questioned the integrity of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, whose image has already taken a hit from the George Washington “Bridgegate” scandal. Musk said that Christie failed to honor the commitment of bringing the proposed ruling to a vote in the assembly.
