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Audi, Jag, Kia and Tesla top Strategic Vision 2014 Total Quality Index

A couple weeks ago, J.D. Power released its latest Initial Quality Study, which gave high marks to Porsche, Hyundai and General Motors, with the latter earning more individual IQS awards than any other manufacturer. Now, it's Strategic Vision's turn, and it's doling out its praise not to Porsche, but to Tesla, which wasn't even included in the JD Power IQS.
The Model S was named the best vehicle overall in total quality, while Porsche's corporate brother and endurance-racing rival, Audi, was named the best premium brand, alongside Jaguar. Strategic Vision cited the Q5 and the ancient Q7 for individual segment awards, as well as the A5, which was a mere point off the top of its segment. SV also handed out compliments for the Audi's interior work. The win for the German brand is a nice improvement over its IQS score, with which it landed above the industry average, but solidly mid-pack.
Jaguar was without a segment winner, although SV did say that the Indian-owned English brand had a number of vehicles very near the top of their segments. This is the second significant win for Jag in two weeks, after it finished second overall on the JD Power IQS a few weeks ago.

Tesla wants court to dismiss Georgia dealer lawsuit

Like the fire that forced Rhett Butler and Scarlett O'Hara to flee Atlanta in Gone With the Wind, the battle between Tesla Motors and Georgia's auto dealers is heating up. In late August, the Georgia Automobile Dealers Association (GADA), which represents about 500 dealerships, filed a petition to prevent Tesla from selling its electric vehicles in the state. Tesla is now requesting a Georgia judge to throw out the petition, the Atlanta Business Chronicle says. The issue, as with states such as Texas, New Jersey, Virginia and Arizona, is that dealers say Tesla violates state law by selling vehicles directly to consumers instead of through third-party dealerships not owned by the company. Tesla insists that the company is best suited to oversee all distribution channels because of the uniqueness of the product and plans to open stores in Atlanta's Buckhead area and Decatur next week. The judge won't hear the case until next month. For now, Tesla is allowed to sell as many as 150 vehicles a year in Georgia under a zero-emissions vehicles provision. There's precedent elsewhere for things to improve in states where Tesla and dealers clashed. In August, the company reached a compromise with the state of Pennsylvania that will allow Tesla to open five stores in that state. Of course, there is a precedent for things to go the other way, too.

Tesla Supercharger Network Now Covers Majority Of Americans

Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk announced via twitter Sunday that Tesla has officially expanded its Supercharger network across the county. The Supercharger network contains 71 stations, according to Autoblog, and Musk estimates that 80 percent of Americans are within 200 miles of at least one of them. Notably, that includes Texans who are barred from buying Tesla products in their home state. The Supercharger can charge a Model S EV to half its full power in 20 minutes, providing enough charge to get to the next filling station. All for free. The Supercharger is considered such a leap forward in green technology that it was voted 2013 Technology of the Year by AOL Autos. Critics of electric vehicles often cite a lack of recharging infrastructure as one of the major hurdles companies face when bringing the cars to the market. Tesla is tackling this problem head-on, and wants to continue expanding the network to 100-percent coverage, according to Clean Technia. With the release of the more affordable Tesla Model E on the horizon, the Northern California-based company is surely hoping that the expansion of the Supercharger network will put "range anxiety" to bed once and for all. Related Gallery Electric Cars And Hybrids Don't Have To Be Frumpy Green Tesla Alternative Fuels Fuel Efficiency Green Driving Electric supercharger network