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GM cutting 1,100 dealerships, effect on midstate unclear
General Motors Corp. will not release a list of the 1,100
dealerships it is dropping, making it unclear which midstate dealers could be
affected by the 18 percent cut of its 6,200 dealers.
The company is expected to make additional cuts this summer,
slashing its dealerships by 42 percent, local dealers said. The company must report
future plans to the federal government by June 1, they said.
GM held a noon conference call today, detailing the cuts. The
carmaker notified the dealerships it was cutting with letters that arrived this
morning; GM won’t issue a public list, said Ray Bromley, vice president of the
Harrisburg Automotive Trade Association. Bromley, who listened to the call, also owns
Lehman Motors Volvo in Hampden
Township and Jaguar
Harrisburg Motors. During the call, GM officials said the company will break ties
with cut dealerships by the fourth quarter of 2010, Bromley said.
GM’s cuts come on the heels of yesterday’s announcement from
Chrysler that it would cut about 800 of its 3,200 dealerships.
Many Chrysler dealers saw their businesses on a preliminary
list the company filed in bankruptcy court before receiving notification from the
company.
“It’s being played close to the vest for obvious reasons,”
Bromley said of the GM cuts. “It’s really sad. We’re not talking about one
dealer here and one dealer there. It’s really sad.”
