A coterie of Florida car dealers filed a lawsuit this week against Scout Motors over its direct-to-consumer sales model. The complaint alleges that Scout, which operates under the Volkswagen Group, is in violation of Florida law which blocks automakers from trying to bypass dealers by selling directly to consumers.

The lawsuit is believed to be the first formal legal challenge on behalf of VW and Audi dealers over Scout Motors' direct-sales model.

The Scout, which gets its name from the legendary International Harvester Scout, differentiates itself from other electric runabouts that sell themselves as "tough," like Tesla's Cybertruck, by giving them an "old-school" feel,

A group of Florida Volkswagen and Audi dealerships filed a lawsuit against Scout Motors over its direct-to-consumer retail model.