In a recently filed class action against Tesla and its CEO Elon Musk, a group of Tesla owners allege Musk and Tesla have exaggerated mileage range projections. The complaint stems from the electric car company’s false representations of distance that can be traveled in a Tesla from a single charge. Plaintiffs in this case seek undisclosed monetary damages alongside a court order prohibiting Tesla from “falsely advertising the estimated ranges of its model vehicles.”

Musk is being targeted in the case for instructing employees to use “overly optimistic algorithms.”  The company is also under fire for deliberately hindering complaining customers by cancelling appointments to have their battery examined. This lawsuit alleges that if drivers had prior knowledge of accurate range limitation, the sales would not have taken place.

This lawsuit is currently seeking class action status in the Northern District of California.

In September, the SEC alleged that Elon Musk falsely claimed in a series of tweets on August 7, 2018 that he had lined up funding and support to take Tesla private at $420 per share, with backing from Saudi Arabia’s public investment fund. The announcement boosted Tesla’s stock price about 6 percent to close at $379.57 a share that day, although the price has since fallen 28.4 percent, to $271.78, as of Wednesday evening. Continue reading “Tesla Settles with SEC – Other Suits Remain”