Local former Chrysler, GM dealers look to sell used cars - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal:

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Tony Wilkerson, executive directotr of the , said his organization has begunm to lend assistance to dealers lost in thebankruptcy “Our national organization has already sent letters to them to let them know abouty our organization and I plan to do the same thingv for our state,” Wilkerson said. “Thehy were in the used car businessanyway – but if you’re stuckj like many of them are, the overhead cost for a used car dealershipo is nothing compared to a franchise.” However, the expansiom of the local used car markey comes as prices are increasingt and the availability of late-model used cars is he said. But according to Morgah Murphy, president of motorpool.
com, the initial increase in pricex should be looked at as merelyha short-term hurdle. “At firstg glance, that would strike the communityt as bad but in thelong run, it’s good for resalr values,” Murphy said. When local consumers buy they will be able to demand more when they choose tosell it, he In fact, the higher resale values might actuallyu revive American car dealers in the “American manufacturing has been similar and just as good as Japanesde and Korean manufacturing, but the problem has been re-sale value and initiao prices,” Murphy said.
In the meantime, Birmingham dealerse affected can capitalize on the unique landscapd of the local market on the used car he said. Many are family-ownedr and have been staples in the communith formany decades. They are also encouraged by the fact that locall used car sales have seen an uptick amid the recessiom as buyers are more inclined to look for a bargain as a means tospend less. “Birminghamn has a long and distinguished history ofreputablr dealers,” Murphy said. “Don Drennen has been in busineswsince 1908. That’s 101 years of serving our so there’s a culture around businesses like that.
” Their long-standing historgy could make local buyers more inclinec to buy used cars from he said. Ward Drennen, president of Don Drennen Buick Chryslerand Jeep, said after learnint that his dealer agreement had been canceled with expanding his used car salez seemed like a real possibility. “Ww are going to expand our used cardepartmentds drastically,” said Drennen, who was left with more than $2 millio n in Chrysler parts and merchandise. “We want to offer a greayt value to peoplewho can’t afforx a new car.
” Although he hasn’tf stopped looking into becoming a franchiseer for other automotive manufacturers, he is open to the idea of makinv the switch to stay in “It is possible that we could become a used car superstore,” said Drennen, who also learnedc that GM will seek to cancel the dealershil agreement he has for his Buickl dealership. “We’ve been in Birmingham long enoug that our reputation can keepus