| Local auto dealrs in limbo | | Posted: Friday, May 22, 2009 3:00 pm
| Local auto dealerships may or may not have been spared in the pending purge by Chrysler Corp. and General Motors Corp.
Last week, Chrysler LLC notified about a quarter of its dealers that it won’t renew their contracts. Owners of General Motors dealerships were awaiting word on whether they would be next. They were to have been notified by letter no later than Friday.
Taylor Automotive of Martin says they have been nnotified and they will continue to operate it’s Chrysler dealership, however, other businesses around the area are still waiting for answers.
When interviewed, two of the four dealerships in Obion County sounded positive.
“I have been inundated with calls, everybody asking me, and I’ve told them, ‘Yes, I’m going to be fine,’” said Terry Petty of Terry Petty Chevrolet-Buick in Union City, a General Motors dealership.
“I just did some ads, letting people know that I’m one of the final 4,000, at least.”
Greg Hahn, manager of Ken-ton Chevrolet, a General Motors dealership, said all GM dealers who would have been notified they were on the cut list were notified by letter Friday. “Thankfully, we weren’t one of them. We are very excited about that,” he said. “It’s tough now for any business to stay in a small town. Whether it’s us or our competition, we hope none of Local auto dealerships may or may not have been spared in the pending purge by Chrysler Corp. and General Motors Corp.
Last week, Chrysler LLC notified about a quarter of its dealers that it won’t renew their contracts. Owners of General Motors dealerships were awaiting word on whether they would be next. They were to have been notified by letter no later than Friday.
Taylor Automotive of Martin says they have been nnotified and they will continue to operate it’s Chrysler dealership, however, other businesses around the area are still waiting for answers.
When interviewed, two of the four dealerships in Obion County sounded positive.
“I have been inundated with calls, everybody asking me, and I’ve told them, ‘Yes, I’m going to be fine,’” said Terry Petty of Terry Petty Chevrolet-Buick in Union City, a General Motors dealership.
“I just did some ads, letting people know that I’m one of the final 4,000, at least.”
Greg Hahn, manager of Ken-ton Chevrolet, a General Motors dealership, said all GM dealers who would have been notified they were on the cut list were notified by letter Friday. “Thankfully, we weren’t one of them. We are very excited about that,” he said. “It’s tough now for any business to stay in a small town. Whether it’s us or our competition, we hope none of them got a letter.”
Herman Jenkins of Herman Jenkins Motors, a Chrysler and General Motors dealership in Union City, could not be reached for comment today. However, they were spared by Chrysler and did not receive a letter from General Motors, according to Lynn Jenkins.
Tim Blackley of Blackley Chevrolet Co., a General Motors dealership in Hornbeak, said he has no comment at this time.
The situation
Chrysler Corp. has announced it will seek protection in federal bankruptcy court.
General Motors is seriously considering bankruptcy.
Chrysler Corp. has a total of 3,181 dealerships nationwide. As part of its bankruptcy strategy, it will close 789 of its dealerships by late 2010. All 789 were named on a 40-page release posted on the Worldwide Web.
Thriteen Tennessee dealerships were on Chrysler’s hit list. Three are located in northwest Tennessee, including Clay Dillahunty’s Tri-City Motor Co. in McKenzie, Graves Pontiac-Chevrolet Buick in Milan and United Chrysler-Dodge in Dyersburg.
No public list
Petty said none of the names of GM dealers on the “hit list” are going to be publicized. “There’s not a (public) list,” he said. “GM’s not going to say who they are. And the dealers are only required to tell you if they want to tell you.”
The reason for that, he said, is that there will be a systematic shutdown through October 2010, “which means they won’t be offered a sales and service agreement after that time.”
It’s not like filing formal bankruptcy, as Chrysler has done. Petty said Chrysler announced what dealers would be cut because they have to be closed by June 9. “It’s a fast shutdown. In bankruptcy, you can do that,” he said.
The only reason you see that list on the Worldwide Web is because Chrysler is in bankruptcy proceedings. General Motors is trying to not do that.
“All GM is doing is trying to let some dealerships go that are under-performing — they’re in bad locations or not selling enough cars, things like that,” he said. “They are the ones that got the letter. But their letter tells them they have to do a systematic shutdown over the next 18 months.”
Petty said that in his opinion, if he were a buyer looking for an automobile, he would ask the dealer if he got a letter from General Motors. | | | | |
