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Automotive News & Views Dude, where did all the dealerships go?
654 messages, Last post on Nov 23, 2009 at 7:56 PM
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Replying to: boaz47 (Jun 02, 2009 9:22 am) But I think in retrospect my question was answered: the dealer attrition is coming almost exclusively among domestic-brand dealers, where there is plenty of room for attrition given the expected size of the "new" GM and Chrysler. The third part of my initial point was that dealers are an important component of the local business community fabric - they support little league teams and charitable causes, you name it. In that respect dealer attrition hurts local communities and families. But then, it doesn't do so any more than other small businesses which are also presumably failing in this down economy.
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how do I post my own topic?
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Replying to: zionswrath (Jun 02, 2009 10:25 am) Check out the Help link at the bottom. You're posting fine; if you want to start a new discussion, check out this help link. |
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Replying to: whatugiv (Jun 02, 2009 10:05 am) I rarely use the dealer after sale so price is the most important. My impression of dealer service is mixed. Mostly mediocre. I can only remember two dealers throughout the years I would give a thumbs up. Drew Ford/VW and Bob Stall Chevrolet. Toy/Lex dealers are near the bottom. I like independent shops that do not have a huge complex to support. |
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Replying to: nippononly (Jun 02, 2009 10:23 am) Once again we have come to an agreement. And that is the point the dealer is not more important than the old paint store that was put out of business by Lowes or Home Depot. There never was any reason to worry about how they survived or even consider bailing them out. In the system we have they should be allowed to fail and then be replaced with whatever comes to replace them. To me this would apply to foreign or domestic dealers. If Suzuki were to leave the country what have we lost? If they were replaced by Fiat would anyone notice in their daily life? Cars are simply a product like a washing machine. They do us a service by taking us from a place of employment or to a place of relaxation. It doesn't matter who makes them because they have no soul they are machines and should be sold like machines. Anyone who can sell a toaster could sell a car and if we didn't have an obligation to return to the dealership we could get the machine serviced at any local service center that works on machines. The whole system was designed to make us dependant on the dealership because so much of the profit was in the service. Maybe we can take the camel trading part out of things with fewer dealerships and move into the future with the rest of the retail industry. Truthfully this has been a great time if you have the money to be a consumer in the car market. For the first time in years we have been able to walk out of a dealership simply because we didn't like the coffee to buy something down the street because they gave us coffee and a sweet roll. |
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Replying to: nippononly (Jun 02, 2009 10:19 am) |
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an interesting little tidbit on the evening news: a piece on the only remaining GM dealer here in Marin County, which is a Chevy dealer at the far end of the county. It was interesting for a few reasons, first because I didn't know (or had forgotten) that the much larger GM dealer (which was Chevy Cadillac Hummer Saab Hyundai) nearer to me went out of business five months ago after only being IN business for a year. More interesting was that among other things they announced that the Marin Chevy dealer (a) has made the "cut" - he has been notified he will keep his franchise, and (b) is the only remaining dealer of any GM brands for all of San Francisco and Marin Counties (which neighbor each other). That's an area that includes almost 1.1 million people, the bulk of which are in San Francisco, and yet the only GM dealer in that area, the one they have chosen to keep, is 20 miles out of San Fran in northern Marin. I understand that right now this is an accidental result of dealer deaths that occurred in the last 12 months, but how is GM going to keep the business of 800,000 residents of SF with this one dealership 20 miles away across the Golden Gate Bridge? And this dealer, BTW, sells about 8 cars a year. They still have new unsold 2007 models on their lot right now. Not to mention they have Chevy only, anyone who wants a Cadillac has to drive 20 miles further, and Buick or GMC? I don't know if there's anywhere left within 100 miles to buy one of those. It amazes me that this is GM's business plan for dealerships. One plus of all this for the Marin dealership (located in Novato) is apparently the business in their service department has doubled. As the dealer numbers drop way down, it ought to be good news for the few that are left.... |
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Replying to: nippononly (Jun 02, 2009 9:51 pm) By comparison I have 8 Chevy dealers within 50 miles and 6 within 25 miles of the house. Too bad they don't sell anything I want. SUVs are still the vehicle of choice for most people in my area. We still have 5 GMC dealers that sell Buick and Pontiac for the occasional Lemko that drops in.
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Replying to: nippononly (Jun 02, 2009 9:51 pm)
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Replying to: gagrice (Jun 03, 2009 7:15 am) I feel for the mom's and dad's filing the paper work, driving the courtesy shuttle, typing the warranty paperwork and servicing the customers. These are the people that are going to be hit the hardest when most of these places start shutting down. Most of them have already cut back and laid off. I am not a big fan of Ford but I really respect what they are doing as a company. The big 3 should grab their notebooks and go to class. They could learn something that would benefit thousands. And when its all said and done. Isn't that what it's really all about. Helping others?
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Automotive News & Views Dude, where did all the dealerships go?
