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Dude, where did all the dealerships go?

654 messages,  Last post on Nov 23, 2009 at 7:56 PM

You are in the Automotive News & Views Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & claires

What is this discussion about? Car Buying, Automotive News, Legislation


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#39 of 654
Re: I'm wondering... [jchan2] by boaz47
Nov 23, 2008 (3:54 pm)
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Replying to: jchan2 (Nov 22, 2008 8:16 pm)

"if those port cars are '09s or '08s.. And, I still wonder to this day what happened to all those Chrysler cars parked in the Detroit area parking lots..."
 
Could be some of both. At 90 days some of them got there late August. But I would imagine the same thing will happen with these cars as the Chryslers you talked about, big discounts when they start flowing. At least they should be discounted after sitting that long.
#40 of 654
Re: I'm wondering... [jchan2] by lemko
Nov 24, 2008 (5:33 am)
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Replying to: jchan2 (Nov 22, 2008 8:16 pm)

I wonder if there's a picture from back in the day with a lot filled with R-bodies? It would be like andre1969's version of heaven.
#41 of 654
dealer networks by mattandi
Nov 24, 2008 (9:37 am)
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Here is what we have locally. Three companies, family owned and operated for the most part, have dealerships covering most of the nameplates. For example, Flow Motors has lots for Acura, Audi, Subaru, Volkswagen, Suzuki, Honda, Chevrolet, Saturn, Hummer, Saab, GMC, Pontiac, Buick, and Cadillac. The Modern dealerships are owned by the Fowler family. They have lots for Nissan, Infinity, Toyota, Lexus, Scion, Chevy, and Hyundai. The Bob King group has lots for Mazda, Kia, Hyundai, and Mitsu. FoMoCo and Chrysler are not a part of any of these big groups, but one private partnership has a few FoMoCo lots.
 
I am wondering if such dealer consolidation (diversification?) will help protect the companies and help them weather the storm. Is this type of situation common elsewhere? I notice it in the nearby cities. We haven't lost a new car dealer in a while locally. Just last week though, a Dodge dealer announced their closing after 40 years in business. They were one of the few remaining stand alone Dodge dealers left anywhere, so I guess the writing has been on the wall for a while for them.
#42 of 654
Re: dealer networks [mattandi] by nippononly
Nov 24, 2008 (9:46 am)
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Replying to: mattandi (Nov 24, 2008 9:37 am)

I am wondering if such dealer consolidation (diversification?) will help protect the companies and help them weather the storm
 
Yes, I have been thinking it would do just that, and that is one thing I think some bailout money could be put towards - helping them to do that.
 
With the $20 billion we gave Citibank yesterday, their total is now at $45 billion. Just think how many struggling dealers you could help with a sum of money like that. And that would still be less than they are proposing to give to automakers, who will take the money and make it disappear, only to be back at our door asking for more next year....
#43 of 654
Dealer Consolidation in York area (PA) by dtownfb
Nov 24, 2008 (10:10 am)
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We had a Chrysler dealership purchase a Dodge dealership. I guess Chrysler corp. "encouraged" this takeover. A longtime Lincoln-Mercury dealership (Wright Bros.) is merging with a local ford dealership in Jan. 2009. Th general manager at the Lincoln-Mercury dealership said Ford encouraged this consolidation as well.
 
Again, I think Ford realized a couple of years ago that business as usual was not going to work and is making the necessary changes. Wagoner should be talking to Mulally more.
#44 of 654
Re: Dealer Consolidation in York area (PA) [dtownfb] by fezo
Nov 24, 2008 (10:15 am)
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Replying to: dtownfb (Nov 24, 2008 10:10 am)

We've had that. The FLM dealer ate up the Nissan and Honda dealerships as well as the Jeep (then Jeep-Eagle) dealership. The Chrysler (at the time Chrysler-Plymouth) dealer got the Dodge dealership.
#45 of 654
Toyota dealer change by gagrice
Nov 24, 2008 (12:00 pm)
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I just received a letter that the dealer I bought my Sequoia from has changed owners. Not sure if they are part of some conglomerate. Does not seem like a good time to be going into the car business. He may have gotten a real deal.
#46 of 654
Re: Toyota dealer change [gagrice] by steve_ HOST
Nov 24, 2008 (3:14 pm)
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Replying to: gagrice (Nov 24, 2008 12:00 pm)

I was test driving a Honda Fit today and the dealer is on an auto row that was probably fine 10 years ago. Now the traffic out there is awful, especially this time of the year, since our only real mall is next door to them.
 
So the gentleman mentions that they are planning to move to a better location closer to my house, but plans are on hold "for a few months" as the credit situation shakes out.
#47 of 654
A bit off topic by boaz47
Nov 24, 2008 (3:27 pm)
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But it reminds me a bit of when our city shopping stores started folding. Big malls opened and all the big stores moved there and the city centers died. We used to have dealers in different parts of town but now almost all of the new car dealers are in big auto parks and yes they are all owned by some big family of corporation. Where we used ot live the same people own Chrysler/Jeep, Toyota, Kia/Hyundai, and Suzuki. Chevrolet,Ford and Nissan are stand alone but are part of the Auto park. Only Mazda and Subaru are not in the car park.
 
Still they are producing more cars than we are buying and I don't believe we can see the end of the tunnel yet. Right now there is just about no deal they could offer me to get me into the showroom and I know I am not alone. Zero interest sounds good but loans can be a bear to get.
#48 of 654
Re: A bit off topic [boaz47] by fezo
Nov 24, 2008 (3:39 pm)
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Replying to: boaz47 (Nov 24, 2008 3:27 pm)

I hear you but they certainly are trying. Ford is practically giving Fusions away.

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