General Motors’ bankruptcy won’t have any impact on the local Chevrolet dealership, Fuller Chevrolet General Manager Tommy Arden said.
Last month, more than 1,100 GM dealers across the nation were notified their relationship with the automaker was ending. Another 250 were informed of the same thing earlier this week in the wake of Monday’s federal bankruptcy protection filing.
“I have a letter on the back of my desk that says we’ve been chosen to be a part of the new General Motors,” Arden said. “We didn’t have any worries whatsoever. We really didn’t have a concern that we would be one of the dealers cut.
“We’re not going anywhere.”
In fact, Arden said, the GM that will emerge from bankruptcy, perhaps as soon as the end of summer, will be leaner, meaner and more competitive.
The company is expected to reduce the number of its brands to four — Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and GMC. Hummer is being sold to a Chinese manufacturer and there are more than a dozen bidders for the Saturn vehicle line. Saab also is on the block, and GM will discontinue the Pontiac line.
“There will be a new GM,” he said, as the carmaker slashes its number of dealerships from 6,450 to around 3,600.
Chrysler has cut several hundred dealerships as well after it declared bankruptcy on April 30. Springfield Chrysler was not among those whose franchise agreements were ended.
Its marquee along Highway 21 proclaims its continued operation: “We Are Still Here.”
Arden said his dealership has not had one call inquiring about existing warranties and service agreements, which are still in effect, he noted.
“I have had people ask me if we were one of the dealers to get cut,” he said. “Our customers know how solid we are and how well we take care of our customers. I am extremely pleased General Motors has identified us as one of its key dealers for the Chevrolet brand.
“The No. 1 issue is what is a dealer’s financial viability — is he going to be able to endure if the economy stays in a funk for 12 months?” Arden said. “No. 2, they look at your location and facility.”
The company also took into account sales effectiveness, customer satisfaction, profitability and capitalization.
Fuller Chevrolet, which has been in Rincon for 18 years, has a market area that includes Garden City and Port Wentworth and Jasper County in South Carolina, and parts of Pooler and Bloomingdale.
“We’ve got a viable market,” Arden said.
