It's the honest approach, really. Having numerous dealers compete for my business just offends my sense of fairness - sure, I could get a test drive from one, then accept a lowball from another dealer - but is that really sustainable? At what point was that "lowball deal" really just the actual price you should have paid whereas the competing higher priced dealer was inflating their price so they could spend an hour or two showing you the car?

To this extent, I even rent the car I'm going to buy (go to service dept at dealership, ask for the specific model). This way I can tell about all those ity-bitties like oh, whether the car will fit comfortably in the garage, how it feels on the way up the mountains, etc.

Just to be clear: I'm supportive of Tesla's current practice of "vetting" people and charging for test drives (or just denying them completely ) if warranted. I see no reason for them to waste their time.

What I don't think they should do is charge for test drives as a matter of practice, because that doesn't help them court their target clientele that are getting free rides (as vetted customers) at the competition.