In a story that seems to be flying under the radar, it has been reported that hundreds of Buick and Cadillac car dealers across the nation have decided that they would rather quit those brands than sell electric cars.
Almost half of America’s Buick dealers and about a third of Cadillac sellers have taken manufacturer buyouts rather than agree to General Motors’ mandate to go all-electric in the coming years, according to Fox Business Network.
Those dealers are not necessarily closing their doors, as they have the option to continue selling other popular GM brands, including Chevrolet and GMC, the Wall Street Journal reported.
As Joe Biden’s regime continues to push EVs on an uninterested car-buying public, GM bought out a whopping 47 percent of its Buick dealers with an offer kicked off in 2022, FBN noted, leaving about 940 of its initial 2,000 dealerships across the country.
The dealerships abandoned the field “due to their reluctance to sell electric vehicles as the automaker looks to transition to EVs,” FBN added.
The corporate buyout offer is still in effect, too, meaning even more dealership owners could still head for the exits instead of selling less-reliable EVs going into 2024.
GM has informed dealerships that they will have to invest in expensive new servicing equipment and staff training to satisfy GM’s plan to be 100 percent EV by 2030.
The cost is steep, too. Dealerships are being required to spend $300,000 or more to reconfigure their business to accommodate EVs.
The owners were also told that if they didn’t want to make the required investment they would be forced to give up their Buick franchise.
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GM put a happy face on the startling statistic, telling Fox Business, “Buick is transforming, launching the best vehicles the brand has ever had and is the fastest growing mainstream brand in 2023. This all needs to be supported by the best customer experience in the transition to EVs.
“As stated before, this year we’ve given dealers who are not aligned with Buick’s future to exit voluntarily in a respectful and structured way; with the full support of our National Dealer Council,” the manufacturer added.
Buick was not the only net loser of dealership locations. Cadillac dealers also accepted a huge number of buyouts, reducing current locations by about one-third, driving the number of dealerships from 875 at the beginning of 2021 to less than 560, InsideEVs.com reported in November 2021.
Many, if not most, of these now-disappearing dealerships were family-owned businesses that have been around for decades. It seems unlikely that new businessmen will be willing to jump into the extremely expensive dealership game that requires millions in start-up costs before selling a single car.
This seems especially true since EV sales are already taking a nose-dive. Ford, GM and other manufacturers have been pulling back from investing in electric cars, manufacturing plants and battery-making facilities.
Meanwhile, in a desperate attempt to get EVs off their lots, car dealers have been offering steep discounts and attractive lease offers to cajole customers into taking home an EV. Still, dealers are reporting that a new EV sits unwanted on their lots for more than two months while hybrids and gas-powered cars sell in a month or less.
Many dealership owners have already banded together to warn manufacturers that they need to “tap the brakes” on EVs, at least for now. A coalition of nearly 4,000 car dealers recently cooperated to send a letter to the car makers to warn that EV mandates are “unrealistic,” The Blaze reported.
Insurance companies are also realizing that EVs bring some troubling and unique problems that are making them more expensive to insure.
This news shows a huge disconnect between car manufacturers and the people who have to sell those vehicles. The automakers may still think a headlong rush into EVs is the “future” of autos, but the people tasked with selling them are far less sure that Americans want EVs as sales continue to tank.
