Anyone lose a GM dealer today?

[Silvertwinkie]

Please post if you have a GM dealer that is going away. No one is talking and even if the letters are out there, few dealers are saying either way.

So far here we have, in a 15 mile radius, 9 GMC or Chevy dealers. We had about a dozen up through last fall when one took a GM buyout offer and the other that also sells Cadillacs opened a Chevy section, then closed it after about a year.

No Chrysler here please, everyone knows the Chrysler list as it was made public. GM will not make the list public and many of the dealers aren't talkin', so if you have any info on any dealer, anywhere going away, please share it here. Sad day for me.....

[Airslide]

I hear they want major freeway exposure only. I suspect the Hansel group here in santa rosa will lose the Pontiac, Cadillac and Mazda store. They just bought it about 1 year ago. The land is worth plenty so who knows. We are also waiting to see how the landscape changes. Here at our dealer we have been calling around to see who it affected. It is a sad day for all of us. Each dealership employs and average of 40 people and accounts for much of the sales tax revenue in the cities.

Vinnie

[Airhog1]

ST...we had one in Fordyce, Arkansas (Keeton Motors) say he received his letter. Such a shame! I have a friend that bought a dealership 2 years ago for 8 million smackers...he lost it yesterday! The folks that own our company (Airstream of Arkansas) had owned the Chevy store here in town since 1939!!! They sold it back in 2006 along with a Dodge Chrysler Jeep franchise...man are we glad to be out of the car business!

G

[Airhog1]

This is what I found online:
Fordyce - At least one Arkansas General Motors dealer will be shutting down as the troubled Detroit automaker reduces its number of franchises.

Kenneth Keeton, owner and president of Keeton Motor Co. Inc. In Fordyce, tells The Associated Press that he ran down to meet the FedEx truck carrying the letter announcing his franchise would be cut from GM after October 2010. Keeton says he expected the news, even though his company has sold cars in the small Arkansas town for 42 years.

Looks like GM is giving dealers a little time.

G

[Airslide]

Yeah.. and you know why? because they want the dealer to sell down their inventories because in no way do they want it back!

Originally Posted by Airhog1

This is what I found online:
Fordyce - At least one Arkansas General Motors dealer will be shutting down as the troubled Detroit automaker reduces its number of franchises.

Kenneth Keeton, owner and president of Keeton Motor Co. Inc. In Fordyce, tells The Associated Press that he ran down to meet the FedEx truck carrying the letter announcing his franchise would be cut from GM after October 2010. Keeton says he expected the news, even though his company has sold cars in the small Arkansas town for 42 years.

Looks like GM is giving dealers a little time.

G

[purman]

.Yep, we lost one in every major town and city on the western slope of Colorado. (4) Durgango, Montrose, Delta, Criag, Grand Junction is ok

[Silvertwinkie]

First Illinois dealers identified:

Tom Sparks Buick in DeKalb

John Reichert, whose Reichert Automotive Group owns showrooms selling Chevrolet, Buick and Pontiac cars in Crystal Lake and Woodstock

GM dealer cuts Chicago: Tom Sparks Buick in DeKalb gets letter from GM about dealer cuts -- chicagotribune.com

[Silvertwinkie]

More possible closures found:

Eastern North Carolina Reed Lalier Chevrolet in Fayetteville NC (first said they got a letter, then said they did not get a letter)

Dorman Chevrolet in Roseboro NC

Warsaw Chevrolet in Warsaw NC

Also:

Keeton Motor Co. Inc. in Fordyce, AK

[Silvertwinkie]

Looks like a total of 20 dealers will be cut in NC:

NCADA: 20 Or More GM Dealers To Close In N.C. - Raleigh - MyNC.com

[Silvertwinkie]

TN:

Team Chevy in Smyrna, TN-- letter received

Smyrna Dealer Affected By GM Closures - Automotive News Story - WSMV Nashville

IL:

R.L. Reising Sales Inc. in the Chicago suburb of Beecher, Illinois, which has sold GM vehicles since 1929 and learned today by letter that its Chevrolet franchise agreement won’t be renewed.

[Silvertwinkie]

OH:

Three confirmed so far-

GM Sends Three Ohio Valley Car Dealerships Closure Notices - State Journal - STATEJOURNAL.com

Bell Chevrolet of Sistersville

Glen Dale Motors of Marshall County

Matthews Chevrolet of Brilliant


Not sure what state this one is in:

Woodland-based Lewis River Motor Co. found out Friday that it was among 1,100 dealerships General Motors Corp. plans to terminate by late 2010.


OH:

Dick Bigelow Chevrolet franchise in Parma


FL:

Six AutoNation GM franchises somewhere in FL
http://www.bizjournals.com/tampabay/...1/daily53.html


According to WULK in WI there are handfuls of dealerships that may have gotten letters...no confirmations..yet.....

Ok one now confirmed in WI:

Johnson Sales in Arlington, WI about 20 miles north of Madison


KS:

Merle Snider Motors in Winfield, KS confirmed to have gotten letter

http://www.kansascw.com/Global/story.asp?S=10369683


MS:

Courtesy Chevy Buick in Booneville confirmed to have gotten letter

http://www.wxvt.com/Global/story.asp?S=10370112

[Silvertwinkie]

MI:

Fox Pontiac Buick GMC in Alpine Township, Michigan.

GA:

Chuck Clancy Chevrolet dealership in Cartersville, Georgia.

SC:

Nourse Interstate Automall in Richburg, South Carolina.


IL:

Roseland Auto Sales on Chicago's South Side will go out of business presumably after 98 years


Unknown state appears to be in the Kansas City area:

Adams Chevrolet in Belton


It's just a rash all over the Internet. It's almost impossible to keep up with it all...there are literally 3-5 new ones coming up every few minutes!!

Possibly 18 more in MN:

http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/dpp/n...st_May_15_2009

[Mikethefixit]

Silvertwinkie
No confirmed lost of Chevy dealers here as of yet. But the rumor is the Chrysler/Jeep dealer up the road 2 miles from me got a letter of intent to close from Chrysler yesterday. They have served my little community here for 40 yrs. Its a family owned dealership. The Zappia family. They do a fine job of serving their customers. Not to mention the taxes they pay to our town. Dan Zappia said he will fight to keep it open.

[cobaltboatfa]

I work for a Honda dealership but the owner also has a Chevy and Hyundai franchise. He got a "Dear John" letter today from the folks in Detroit and is not very happy. He just invested over $10 million not more than two years ago to build a brand new facility to sell Chevrolet cars and trucks. The dealership is located in Norwalk, Iowa, just on the south edge of Des Moines.

[markdoane]

Walser Buick/Pontiac/GMC in Bloomington, MN, just down the road from the Mall of America.

[Silvertwinkie]

Well, by now most know if a dealer near them is packing up shop. Much to my surprise, none of the remaining GM dealers within a 15 mile radius from me are going away from what I've heard. What I found shocking is that I have roughly 6 Chevy dealers within a 12 mile radius and all are still here and 12 GM dealerships total within a 15 miles radius(including the 6 Chevy dealers). Three Chevy dealers are within 5 miles of my door, two of them are less than 5 miles apart. I thought for sure one or two would have been mothballed or consolidated, but nope. Kind of glad, lots of jobs at these dealers and of course competition keeps the prices honest.

[overlander63]

The sole GM dealer in my hometown (Darrow's) got a pink slip last week. They're going to try selling used cars and service for now. This is the only GM dealer in the area.

[Silvertwinkie]

Originally Posted by overlander63

The sole GM dealer in my hometown (Darrow's) got a pink slip last week. They're going to try selling used cars and service for now. This is the only GM dealer in the area.

This is the part I don't get, but then far smarter people (I think) have made the decisions.

I know this is a major metro area, but to have 6 Chevy dealers in a 12 mile radius and two in less than 5 miles, yet areas where there is no such saturation gets their only dealer yanked. Dunno what Darrow's sales volumes were or there customer sat ratings GM collects, but I heard many dealers who were making profits and good ratings got pink slips, some where there are no other GM dealers for miles and miles around. I mean I like having choices, but 12 GM dealers (mostly Chevy) in a 15 mile radius? It's almost as bad as McDonald's or Walgreens...you can't go 10 miles without passing 5. Seriously, in a 5 mile radius, I have 4 Walgreens and 4 McDonald's too. Guess with all those triple bypasses and angioplasties, you gotta get your post-op meds handy.

[Shacksman]

What I don't understand is how does it help GM to shut down dealers. Aren't the dealers owned privately and stopping them from selling is helping them how???

[overlander63]

Originally Posted by Silvertwinkie

This is the part I don't get, but then far smarter people (I think) have made the decisions.

I know this is a major metro area, but to have 6 Chevy dealers in a 12 mile radius and two in less than 5 miles, yet areas where there is no such saturation gets their only dealer yanked. Dunno what Darrow's sales volumes were or there customer sat ratings GM collects, but I heard many dealers who were making profits and good ratings got pink slips, some where there are no other GM dealers for miles and miles around.

The closest GM dealer is in another town about 20 miles away, and the next closest one is 55 miles away, in another state.