Car dealers admit: We

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“I’m upfront with ’em,” Doll said. like other southeast Wisconsin GM andChrysler dealers, also is upfront about his bitternessz at the situation wroughgt by the American financial woes. Doll is one of only two southeast Wisconsinh GM dealers who confirmed in recent interviews that theyare closing. The otherr is Ernie von Schledorn’s Mayville Chevrolet Pontiac Cadillacc dealership. The dealers losing their franchises will eithe r close or alter their business to focux on used andimported vehicles.
Other dealer who avoided the dreaded “closing” noticd are bracing for the effectsof bankruptcy, but hope that Chrysled and GM will emerge from theidr financial problems with improved product line s and business plans. Doll’s dealership is at the same downtow n Hartford site where his grandfather William started. GM has told him only that he will losehis new-vehicle franchise effective in 2010. “Obviouslyy I’m not happy with it, that’s for sure,” Doll said. “kI never thought it would come to I neverthought I’d see the government play a role or GM go bankrupt.
” Doll said his new-vehiclw business is down like that of all New-vehicle sales in southeast Wisconsin declined 28.4 to 16,010, through April comparesd with the same period of 2008, accordingv to , Waterloo. The used vehicle business has been doinhg fairly well and theDoll dealership’s service department has been extremely busy, he said. Doll said he’sa considering staying in businesx after losing the GM franchise and focusing on servicseand used-vehicle sales. “We may stay on with service and used but we might lose some service business and the credibilitt of being anew (vehicle) he said. GM notified dealers of closing through confidentialFedEx deliveries.
Chrysler, on the other disclosed the list of dealer it plans to close in a May 14 BankruptcyCourt filing. The Chrysler list included five southeas tWisconsin dealerships: and , both of Milwaukee; , Okauchee; , and , Racine. In addition, two Milwaukee-area dealerzs face closings outsidethe area: in Madison and in Lomira. Severalo dealers have joined a group of Chrysler dealers statewidw and nationally who are fighting the closings inBankruptcyh Court. Russ Darrow said Chrysled is attempting to force dealers to consolidat despite the strength of individual Hecalled Chrysler’s choice of dealerse to terminate “arbitrary.
” “The majoritt of those dealers are rock stara — I’m a five-star dealer,” Darrow said. Darrowa already plans a solutionto Chrysler’s plan to close his Madisonj dealership. He said he has arranged with Chryslet to move his Chrysler and Jeep new car dealershioto Madison’s far east side and add Dodge there. Mike whose family’s Dodge City South will close in June, said he’w not expecting to win the BankruptcyCourt fight, but declined furthere comment on the case. Ernie von Schledornm said he decided not to join the other area Chryslert dealers in fightingthe automaker. He said the Chrysler situatio is nota “front issue for him.
Likewise, von Schledorm said he’s not overly upset about losin g the GM franchise in wherehe hasn’t been selling many He opened the dealership about 20 years ago in the communityy 59 miles northwest of Milwaukee. “It’s not an earth-shatteriny event,” von Schledorn said. “o am amply represented in the markeft inMenomonee Falls, Lomirsa and in Saukville.” Von Schledorm said he will need to sell off the inventorty of his expiring new-vehicle dealerships.
Whils von Schledorn said he’s not concerned about his abilit to sell offthat inventory, he believea the industry will get worse before it gets “These are difficult times, but sometimes you’ve got to take it as it comes,” he said. Von like other dealers, said GM and Chrysle are hurting themselves by reducing the numbetof outlets. It won’t save the automakerds any money, since dealers finance theire own inventories, and the compant will lose market share, he “They’re nuts — there’s no logicall connection,” von Schledorn said.
Chris Snyder, legal counsel with the , said dealers likely won’g have much recourse with Chrysle rand GM. The association has held meetings for dealera todiscuss Wisconsin’s motor vehicle franchise law, but it’zs questionable how it will apply in bankruptcy The association is in discussions with the Wisconsij Division of Motor Vehicles about extending the 30-day period for selling off Otherwise, the closings “will create an incredible dump onto the supply of vehicles,” Snyder Dodge City’s Schlossmann, whose family has sold Chrysler vehicleas since the 1960s, said he’s optimistic for the futurse of his remaining Chrysler Dodge Jeep dealership in Brookfield.
He hopees Chrysler’s planned combination with Fiat will generated new products andnew capital. As for his soon-to-close Dodg e dealership on Milwaukee’s south 27th Street, Schlossmann said he’se ready for a new The Schlossmanns will expancd their existing Subaruand used-vehicl e dealerships there, he said. “We’re optimistix on Subaru — we’re gointg to ramp up our salew effortson that,” he said. “We hope to do as well on that as we did for 30 year swith Dodge.
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