It's a shame what's happening to a lot of solid dealerships that really don't "deserve" this. But I really don't understand how a businessman can say "how does a bankruptcy happen in a free market economy?"

I mean that IS capitalism, businesses rise and fall. If he wants a guaranteed US auto industry, then that would in fact be socialism and not capitalism.

I guess maybe being a republican stops being fun when you're the one that gets squashed.

Say no more...

Only republicans own Dodge dealerships now?

As far as getting whats coming to him...well...he is selling dodges, its not like he's a toyota or honda dealer, what did he expect?

This car dealer is getting screwed, no doubt about it.

Unfortunately for Mr. Dodge Dealer, when a company files for bankruptcy the laws that normally protect franchise owners no longer apply. I feel sorry for him, his family, his employees, and their families but in a Chapter 11 filing, he probably doesn't have a legal leg to stand on.

However, this is NOT a legitimate bankruptcy. We've entered uncharted territory right now.

In the event of a real bankruptcy, the senior debt holders would be paid in full before anyone else. Is that happening?

Or were the senior debt holders intimated and strong-armed by an unelected "Car Czar", in direct violation of several hundred years of contract law?

Remember, the only thing that separates us from the savagery of the kleptocracies is a legal system that recognizes the rights of property owners.

With the President's Car Czar's decision to throw Chrysler's senior debt holders under the bus...we move one step closer to becoming Zimbabwe.

If I were this dealer, I would find a lawyer interested in making a name for him or herself and attempt to get my case heard by a higher level court. Who knows, there might be some justice left in the world.

Dear George:

Sorry you are having so much trouble. In a way, it's not all your fault, to be sure, but in a way, of course, it is.

You have spent the last several decades selling Dodge cars. You of all people ought to know that far from a glorious tradition of automotive excellence, a lot of these cars were pieces of junk. The contract you had with Chrysler Corporation said that you agreed to sell whatever they sent you, no matter how crappy, and you did so, with a smile on your face, for many years. I am sure you are good at what you do.... you have to be in order to stay in business.

http://www.daimlerchryslervehicleproblems.com/

One of the ways that you stayed in business is by the service department that you are so proud of. I am sure you told your sales people to brag about it every chance they got. What you did not want to tell them is that making crappy cars works in your favor.... you get to charge your poor customers for the honor of fixing up the car that you sold them. What they really, really wanted was a car that would not break down. I am sure you have a dealer convention or something where you could feed this information back to Detroit, but evidently they did not get the message.

Another of the ways you stayed in business is by making sure your prices were lower than the Dodge dealer in Ft Lauderdale. To you, it was important that if someone wanted to drive a Dodge, they could go to you for the lowest price in the area. The guy in Lauderdale was doing exactly the same thing. From Dodge's point of view, both of you were undercutting one another, and it was costing them several hundred dollars per car. So, with one of you out of the picture, they are hoping that they can do away with some of this.

What they don't know, unfortunately, is that people nowadays can get on the internet, find the lowest price in the nation for the car they want, and with a couple hundred dollar airplane ticket can go someplace else and drive their car home. You, and the rest of the dealers, did not embrace this technology and take advantage of it, because you, after all, are just the grey haired version of the same greasy car sales people that you hire and fire every day.

Speaking of which, I can think of no other business where the customer is so shockingly humiliated and disrespected as he or she is in the American automotive sales transaction. Just saying.

Anyway, George, I do not want to keep you too much longer, because I know you have a short attention span, but I would just suggest that there are plenty of ways for you to make a living, starting with your big service department... people still need to have their cars worked on, even Toyotas break down occasionally, and they all buy tires and other supplies..... You are a victim of cirumstance, it is true, but what you really are is a victim of hubris... doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. You probably could have made the change gradually... or you could have gotten the message back in 1979 when the first Chrysler bail out happened.... but you stayed with what you know because you could, and now you can't. Sorry.

Anyway, if you are smart, you will figure it out. That really is free enterprise for you.

Later
pup55

Did you actually send that to him, pup? God, I hope so.

Great letter pup! +1

+2

Yes great letter pup. You insulted someone you never met behind the veil of the internet. You showed your wit and charm and lack of concern for the livelihood of fifty individuals. You repeated unsubstantiated claims of the quality of merchandise that I would speculate you have never owned.

Compare any car made now with one made 15 years ago. How many of the older cars had the safety and comfort of the ones being produced now. How many could be driven with no maintenance other than oil changes for over 100000 miles.

My Toyota 4x4 truck is 23 years old. I was just thinking about changing the oil one of these days. Of course the ride is a little harsh, but I'd rather be a bit uncomfortable while reliably going somewhere than totally plush by the roadside. As for safety, yes, it even lets me know if my seatbelt is not latched...

Well, probably, but that is part of the fun.



Wrong. I am deeply concerned for the livelihood of fifty individuals. I work in the automotive supply chain myself, and I can assure you that the same thing might quite likely happen to me. if it does, I will be prepared, and do not expect anyone to be concerned for my livelihood any more than anyone was concerned about the livelihood of the proverbial buggy whip manufacturer.

I can tell you stories that will absolutely frost your pumpkin about the resistance of these people at the company level to new materials and techniques of one type or another that would have made their vehicles better, or their processes more efficient or both. I have literally been in meetings where I have heard people in the big 3 and their upstream supply chain resist product improvements because if the products are too good, they won't need to be replaced as often.

But that does not help the guy who sweeps the floor in this dealership. He has a problem, but in a way, his skills are more transferable than mine.

The real solution is to get some training and find a job in some industry in which products are produced which fit the customer needs.



Incorrect. I have owned three Caravans. The first two required transmission replacement after 100,000 miles and I got rid of them. The one I have now is doing OK at the moment at 105. Since Chrysler bought out AMC, I can also claim ownership of a 74 Gremiln, which, despite being fun, was simultaneously the worst car I ever had, rusted completely out in 4 years, motor literally falling apart, etc. Right now, I own two Fords as well. I have owned multiple GM products in the past, the abomination of which was the 80 Monza whose door was pulled off the hinges at 80,000 miles by my wife when she was 8 months pregnant with pup86. I also owned a Ford Tempo which ceased to function completely at about 70K. I buy mainly american cars because they are cheap and when they break, you can work on them yourself, and it is easy to find the parts, so I am intimately aware of the repairs needed to keep them running.



Oh, I am well aware of this as well and agree with you completely on the issue of the cars being better, on the whole, than they were 15 years ago. However, that does nothing to change the fact that the business model these people are using to distribute and sell the cars is obsolete, and that cost these guys their jobs.

It also says nothing about the two decades worth of junk they produced between 1972 and 1990 which turned people off to their products and made them a laughing stock.

The reason these cars are better is that the car companies were dragged kicking and screaming by the government via the CAFE standards and other safety regulations, and also, by their competition who was eating their lunch. These guys have a massive bureaucracy set up to do one thing and one thing only, which is to resist change.

But, even that does not help poor George.

BTW I used to be a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers, but I only joined to get access to their database.

Frost my pumpkin. Tell me more.

+1 pup55, as per usual.




I'd just like to add:

PS Hey George, if you ride it our awhile and have a good location (i.e., didn't waste all your money on duallies, chinese wallboard and the stock market), Kia or Hyundai might need a franchise used to dealing with crap.

This reminds me of our local Rover dealer, Foxfield Garage, who had similar problems when Rover went under back in 2005. A decent family owned business, they where left similarly with large stocks of Rover cars and spares, plus they had just moved to a new purpose built facility.

The firm is still in business. What they did was to outsource warranty insurance on the new car stock, and sell it at cost. They are still Rover service agents, as lots of em still around.They also took on other franchises not present locally, Fiat, Mitsubishi, Hyundai. One workshop and stores does all four makes. This is a honest (for the car trade) company that I have used as a customer on many occasions. Their customer care is excellent. THAT is what matters.

Difficult times though ATM for all car dealers.

Gasmon