What's good for GM still good for U.S.

The government in the auto business....it's all about union jobs. Stand by for this federal administration to be in your business soon. It's the Marxist way.

i have always been a gm person,but i will never buy a vehicle from a government owned car company.just love them toyotas.

GM and Chrysler decisions to close selected dealerships were based on performance, which is exactly how a good business should be operated. While these dealerships might have provided some good service, the records obviously indicated that their overall performance was not competitive enough to remain an authorized dealership when restructuring decisions had to be made. Therefore to stay in business, they must now develop a way to operate in a competitive market. My experience with most local dealerships is that they operate with a small-town mentality and don't understand fundamental economics of selling in volume vs. trying to make the highest profit on an individual sale. And because I do my price comparison homework before I buy an automobile, I generally purchase from dealerships in larger cities. I still get my warranty and routine service work nearby. So when dealership owners begin to learn better basic business practices, they will not have their dealerships taken away. Every business owner might want to pay attention to the lessons being taught by these GM and Chrysler actions.

While the duo in the LTE have a good point, let's not forget that Aiken County is NOT ALONE here. An auto dealer in the City of Bamberg was shut down after it consolidated with a dealer in the City of Orangeburg to its north on 301.

My name is George C. Joseph. I am the sole owner of Sunshine Dodge-Isuzu, a family owned and operated business in Melbourne, Florida. My family bought and paid for this automobile franchise 35 years ago in 1974. I am the second generation to manage this business.

We currently employ 50+ people and before the economic slowdown we employed over 70 local people. We are active in the community and the local chamber of commerce. We deal with several dozen local vendors on a day to day basis and many more during a month. All depend on our business for part of their livelihood.

We are financially strong with great respect in the market place and community. We have strong local presence and stability.

I work every day the store is open, nine to ten hours a day. I know most of our customers and all our employees. Sunshine Dodge is my life.

On Thursday, May 14, 2009 I was notified that my Dodge franchise, that we purchased, will be taken away from my family on June 9, 2009 without compensation and given to another dealer at no cost to them.

My new vehicle inventory consists of 125 vehicles with a financed balance of 3 million dollars. This inventory becomes impossible to sell with no factory incentives beyond June 9, 2009.

Without the Dodge franchise we can no longer sell a new Dodge as "new," nor will we be able to do any warranty service work. Additionally, my Dodge parts inventory, (approximately $300,000.) is virtually worthless without the ability to perform warranty service. There is no offer from Chrysler to buy back the vehicles or parts inventory.

Our facility was recently totally renovated at Chrysler's insistence, incurring a multi-million dollar debt in the form of a mortgage at Sun Trust Bank

HOW IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA CAN THIS HAPPEN?

THIS IS A PRIVATE BUSINESS NOT A GOVERNMENT ENTITY

This is beyond imagination! My business is being stolen from me through NO FAULT OF OUR OWN. We did NOTHING wrong.

This atrocity will most likely force my family into bankruptcy. This will also cause our 50+ employees to be unemployed. How will they provide for their families? This is a total economic disaster.

HOW CAN THIS HAPPEN IN A FREE MARKET ECONOMY IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA?

I beseech your help, and look forward to your reply. Thank you.

Sincerely,

CHANGE.........YES WE CAN'T! boycott chrysler and boycott GM.

I guess if you buy a new GM every few years you do not have problems, but for those of us who keep cars long enough to go well past 100k miles we get scared of GM products reputation (and for me first person seeing some of their late 90s/early 00 model cars have common problems with tranmissions, etc). I always thought I would buy American, and figured car magazines were being paid off to brag about the foreign cars, but after doing online research during my last car search and seeing what actual consumers had to say, it definitely seemed like Toyota and Honda were doing something better than other car companies. GM has probably fixed their problems, but I want to wait and see how long others newer GM cars last.

Mr. Broyles, I understand you comments but do not necessarily agree with them. Your ideas are as archaic as GM. The buying public is really the boss in this situation, not GM, not Chrysler, not Obama. The buying habits of the American public have really changed. The "Baby Boomer" generation is becoming the minority as time goes by and the "Me" generation is slowly taking over the market place. The "Me" generation has no concern for Mom, Apple Pie, Baseball, or Chevrolet. Only in me.
No matter what GM and Chrysler do after their reorganization, they must appeal to the "Me" generation in order have success. I fear it will never happen and in a few years will drive cars that resemble two seated riding lawnmowers. I think the "Baby Boomers" need to sit down, shut up, and let the "Me" generation worry about the future.

oldenuff2nobetter-thats what we are worried about your me generation of liberal morons

CA, I am a Baby Boomer. I am with you, brother.

The fact this guy bought a caddilac catera and gave GM a second chance is flabberghasting! What a wank of a car the caterrible was. When my corvette dies, i'm done with these people. This is coming from an auto tech with ten years in he biz. Build a car that doesn't blow, and thats how a car company survives. Obama, give me a call, i'll design ya one.

What gets me is people have had no problem over the years switching to foreign brands in other areas, which has killed off American industry and jobs previously, though slowly and more quietly, but still none the less. Suddenly people are so worried about the American car companies. No one cared to save Magnavox, Curtis Mathis, Zenith, etc until they were bought out by the foreign companies crushing them. If LG and other foreign companies make more in roads with appliance sales will anyone cry to save Whirlpool/Maytag?

Good point imdstuf....Same thing with the steel industry and the clothes makers.

Last time I checked these dealers have contracts with the automakers and either party has the right not to renew and extend said contracts when they expire. It would be called corporations doing lawful business as they see fit if their poor management hadn't allowed the unions to strong arm them into oblivion like the steel and airline industries and make them crawl to the government for survival. They shouldn't receive special treatment and handouts. They should be treated like any other corporation in an impartial bankruptcy court.

joe and pat----bullshieets!

joe, sounds like sour grapes!!!