10-05-2025
Florida AG Uthmeier enters legal fray over selling cars directly to customers
The politically powerful auto dealerships in Florida have battled for years to protect their turf, seeking help from the Legislature and state courts in their quest to ensure consumers don't buy cars without them.
Now they have a new defender in their latest legal fight, attempting to quash a new Volkswagen subsidiary's plans to sell electric trucks directly to drivers: Attorney General James Uthmeier.
Uthmeier says plans by Scout Motors to 'circumvent' auto dealers is 'harmful' to state businesses and consumers.
But he might have a good reason to take the dealerships' side. Dealerships – and their lobbyists – have donated close to $90,000 to his 2026 campaign, making him just the latest GOP leader to get money from the industry. Uthmeier was appointed this year by Gov. Ron DeSantis to fill the job left open by Ashley Moody's appointment to the U.S. Senate. He must run for the job next year.
Several Florida VW and Audi auto dealerships have sued Volkswagen of America challenging the German auto manufacturer's plan to use a direct-sales model for Scout. The lawsuit says such sales are prohibited by Florida law and that Scout is not properly licensed as a manufacturer with the state Division of Corporations.
Uthmeier took to social media this week to publicly blast VW and share a letter he'd sent the company in mid-April demanding answers about how many $100 reservations it had taken from Florida residents for its Scout vehicles, which the company says should be available in 2027.
His spokesman declined to answer questions about the letter or campaign donations.
'Volkswagen's efforts to circumvent Florida's auto dealers are harmful not only to the state's business community but also to Florida consumers, as they fail to disclose that these new Scout vehicles won't actually be sold in Florida,' Uthmeier posted on X Wednesday. 'That's why my office sent a letter to VW demanding answers. We will stand by Florida's consumers and businesses!'
Built by International Harvester, the Scout was a popular competitor to the Ford Bronco and Jeep CJ5 in the 1960s and 1970s. VW acquired the rights to the Scout when it bought Navistar, International Harvester's successor, in 2021.
Scout Motors CEO and president Scott Keogh revived the brand and reconceived it as a line of electric sport utility vehicles called the Terra and the Traveler. The company is building a $2 billion plant in South Carolina and expects the first vehicles to roll out in 2027.
But its plans to sell directly to consumers, as Tesla does, quickly prompted controversy and pushback from auto dealerships, who'd lose out on sales, Auto Week reported last year.
'There's a lot to talk about with this revival of an iconic SUV brand, and a lot to admire, but it's the sales model that's started a boiling pot of controversy—and is likely leading to lawsuits,' the trade publication wrote in a November story.
In February, the owners of several Florida dealerships, including Audi Lakeland, Lakeland Volkswagen, Leesburg Volkswagen, launched legal action against Scout in Miami-Dade Circuit Court.
The Florida suit is similar to those in other states, including one filed in April in San Diego by The California New Car Dealers Association against Volkswagen Group and Scout.
In Florida, the issue is a 2023 law that bans most automakers from selling directly to their customers. The Florida Automobile Dealers Association pushed hard for the new law, the Florida Politics news website reported.
The law created a carve-out for electric car companies Tesla and Rivian but not for those that are a 'common entity' with another manufacturer. Those firms must sell their vehicles through licensed dealers.
The dealers and Uthmeier argue Scout is a 'common entity' of VW.
Scout's relationship to VW, Uthmeier's April 18 letter says, would prohibit it from leasing or selling a 'motor vehicle to any retail consumer in America.'
In its letter, Uthmeier's office asked for a record of all fees Scout Motors has collected from Floridians and the number of agreements executed to see if they follow state law, including Florida's Deceptive and Unfair Practices Act.
Keogh has said that Scout is a separate brand and entity from VW, and has the right to sell direct to customers, according to Automotive News.
'We look forward to discussions with the Attorney General,' a Scout spokesman said in an email Friday.
Weeks before the letter went out, Uthmeier's political campaign received $31,000 from Norman and Irma Braman of Braman Automotive, a plaintiff in the suit, plus $25,000 from Warner Peacock, CEO of Windermere Ford, which is not listed as a plaintiff.
He received an additional $30,000 from the Florida Automobile Dealers Association days after the letter was sent.
The automobile association gave more than $1 million to Florida politicians before the Legislature approved the 2023 law, according to the Seeking Rents newsletter, including to a political action committee controlled by the then-president of the Florida Senate. DeSantis collected more than $2 million in campaign funds from dealerships in that same time period, the newsletter reported.
Days after the Florida dealers' suit was filed against Scout earlier this year, state lawmakers introduced a bill (HB 429) to make it even easier for dealerships to sue the competition. The Legislature has approved the bill, but not sent it to the governor for his approval.
