Good Times with Family: PRICELESS

The ECONOMY. I never thought a topic could be more popular than the weather! The implosion of the auto and banking industries can put a scare into the most ardent optimist! What we've seen happen during these times at VanDerZee Motorplex is very heartening. When times are tough, we turn to our families and I think we actually come closer together! We see examples of this every day at the Motorplex. You see, we sell FUN STUFF! Our products are FAMILY FRIENDLY. Personal watercraft are a great example. It is exciting to see a family walk in and ask about a Jet Ski or a Waverunner. When we explain the evolution of personal watercraft in terms of versatility we see moms and teenagers eyes light up! Personal watercraft can now pull wake boarders, tubers and skiers with ease. If spins and 360's aren't for you, a 15 mph "day cruise" will allow you to drive in street clothes without getting wet! In the "old" days, it took patience to get a 2 stroke motor started and when it did the cloud of smoke was both disturbing and not very environmentally friendly. Today's 4 stroke personal watercraft are actually the cleanest ultra low emission engine on the water! Our Yamaha and Kawasaki watercraft also have "parental control"; the ability to reduce power by up to 30%! They are easy to start, 3 passengers can ride in comfort, and maintenance consists of putting gas in it and having a great time!
Sure, times are pretty tough right now but families give strength and a sense of well being that rises above any short term obstacles. I know that when I'm with my 3 daughters, my stress dissolves and the laughter is non stop. As our daughters were growing up, every Sunday was Jet Ski day. Sure, 5 or 10 extra kids came to the beach, but you know what? Our daughters wanted to hang with Mom and Dad. Like I said: Good times with your family: PRICELESS. I'm proud to say at VanDerZee Motorplex, WE SELL FUN STUFF!!

Chrysler and GM Dealers TERMINATED without so much as a valid reason!

The sad stories keep coming. Another family owned auto dealership is told via form letter or email that they are no longer wanted. It's over. You're done. You are not a part of the "new" company. If you've read the story of the Hobart, Indiana or the Mesa, Arizona dealerships it had to bring tears to your eyes. If not, google the stories. It is just outrageous that the government demanded that Chrysler and GM "cull" the heard. I'm a former General Motors dealer and I can ASSURE you that our dealership didn't cost GM a dime! We PAID for every mandatory program, computer, essential tool, communication system and any other arbitrary item the factory could come up with. Now the media is suggesting that cutting dealerships will save the automakers untold millions of dollars. Are you kidding me? The result is going to be a far LOWER SATISFACTION rating from consumers who have to travel further to get service on their vehicle. No Chrysler dealers in Kalamazoo or Holland? If I live in either of those cities, you'll soon find a Honda or a Toyota in my driveway. I will have supported a local dealer and I'll be confident in service after the sale. Great move GOVERNMENT MOTORS. The guys calling the shots just don't have a clue. To all of the hundreds of wrongly terminated dealerships throughout the US, those cities and clients will soon agree: You just don't know what's good 'til it's GONE! I'll be anxiously watching the market share of Chrysler and GM. Going down anyone?

Thanks for hiring me as CEO but I really don't know anything about cars!

Can you believe that the newly government appointed chairman of GENERAL MOTORS made that very statement? ARE YOU KIDDING ME!! Let's just go back just a few months ago: We were told by the president of GM, the Governor of Michigan and the President of the United States that a GM bankruptcy would be disastrous to the economy and it should not be a consideration. Billions were poured into GM in order to prevent the UNTHINKABLE BK. Well now, the billions didn't help and GM filed. Suddenly, this CLEANSING of GM into the "new/good" GM and the old "bad GM" will make everything hunky dory. The US and CANADIAN governments plus the UAW are all now in charge of what used to be the biggest company in the world. Remember the saying "What's good for GM is good for the country."
That brings us to the newly hired Chairman. This man ADMITS that he knows nothing about automobiles! He says a business is a business so it shouldn't be a big deal for him to call the shots. No big deal, right? Think about this: Would you feel confident if you were hospitalized and found out the CEO didn't know anything about health care? How about hiring a construction company whose CEO said "hey, a business is a business." I would really be confident if the President of a college where my child was considering paying tens of thousands of dollars to attend told parents, boy, I really don't have any experience in education, but I did run a public utility once! That's what the new GM chairman used to do! I never paid any attention to those crazy Holiday Inn Express commercials, but they're starting to make sense now! I guess he needs the job since his golden parachute was only 150 million from AT&T. If this is how our government is going to FIX General Motors, then you'd better set your watch by an AMTRAK train schedule. The same people that straightened out our trains are now going to fix our automobiles. I can't wait to hear about some senator that tells GM he has a great idea for a new car. This is going to get comical. My Dad was a GM dealer for over 20 years. I'm thankful he's not here to witness this mess!

They don't have a clue! Is GM Government Motors or Barak's Big Mess BBM?

What a colossal mess! General Motors became one of the most expensive bankruptcies in American history on Monday. After pouring billions of our money into GM since last fall and warning us that the B word would be devastating, we are now being told that this approach will create a "new" GM owned by the US, CANADA and the UAW! That means Chrysler and GM are owned by their union and the government. Well, it sure made AMTRAK the envy of public transportation didn't it? I may be wrong, but I don't think that Amtrak has ever been profitable and we all know how wonderful the service is! Petty politics have already entered the picture with Congressmen demanding that plants from the "old GM" be kept open in their respective districts irregardless of any type of analytical evaluation of the viability of the location. Can you imagine if a Congressman has a "can't miss" idea for a new car design? I have information from GM engineers that they can't make any product decisions without clearing it with treasury! You know that the folks at FORD are just jubilant! Ford has expressed concern that with the government running the competition the playing field may not be a level one. It is going to get very interesting.....
One thing that really bugs me from all of this is that Chrysler and GM advertising is now telling us how great the "new" companies are and everything is rosy once again. GM has many great vehicles available right now. Chrysler has virtually none and there aren't any on the horizon any time soon. Fiat can't have a car ready for sale in the US for at least 20 months so just how will that help? GM, on the other hand, has done nothing to earn the consumer's confidence. If they want to get folks back into the showrooms, some of which have stayed away for a whole generation, they should tell it like it is. GM should run ads that tell consumers: America, we apologize for our actions during past 15 years. During the 80's and 90's we built some pretty poor vehicles in terms of styling, quality and customer service. We fell in love with big trucks and sport utilities and each unit made us a lot of money. Our factories were cranking out Yukons and Tahoes like the golden goose. Our number one volume customers were the RENTAL companies. We gave them lower prices than even our dealers PLUS we agreed to buy all of them back after 6 months or a year of use. They could care less about styling or quality or resale value. We messed up so badly that now we have paid the ultimate price: bankruptcy.
The sad thing is that GM is building some world class vehicles right now. The Malibu, Vibe, CTS, Corvette, Camaro, Outlook, Lacrosse are some examples of what the GM design staff is capable of. What GM is ignoring, is the promise that GM dealerships must meet the most stringent service and business practice standards in the industry. Commit to the client who owns your product, GM. I don't think that this will ever happen. With the government calling the shots, client satisfaction will be at the bottom of corporate priorities. Have you driven a Ford lately??

Have auto makers kept pace with product improvements?

Well, it's official. The Feds announced a new nationwide fuel economy and emissions mandate for cars and trucks. While we certainly welcome vehicles that get better mileage, it made me wonder about just how eager the auto manufacturers have been to make it a reality. Virtually every product that we use evolves and improves over time. Here are some examples: the first computers that took up entire rooms and were as slow as a plow horse are now laptops. Cell phones. Remember the 5 pound milk carton that had a range of about 10 miles and the console models in cars? How much have they changed in 5 years? The television used to be a black and white 15 inch, tube blowing, temperamental monster. Today it's a flat screen mounted on the wall with a 50 inch screen! How much more efficient have home heating furnaces become? They are now smaller in size and use less fuel. Now let's take a look at the internal combustion engine. While it has certainly improved from the 1920's, it sure hasn't kept pace with its contemporary inventions has it? One could argue that fuel injection has really been the most outstanding improvement. Now don't get me wrong, between 1975 and 2005 auto emissions have improved by leaps and bounds. Did the brilliant folks that improved computers and cell phones have no counterparts in the auto industry? Makes you wonder, doesn't it? GM has developed one of the most dynamic new engines in decades. It is an all new design with nearly 35% fewer parts. It is a diesel V-8 that can deliver excellent fuel economy and meet the most stringent emission standards. In the US the word "diesel" does not equate with "normal". I read a comment from one of the lead engineers on the project. His hope was that his revolutionary design would be welcomed as a great ENGINE and not as just a low volume diesel. This engine was scheduled to go into production this year. In light of GM's financial problems and wonderful guidance from their new majority owner, the Government, the motor has been shelved! I'd like to hear from that design engineer today. Just makes me wonder what if??????

Chrysler shows no respect for terminated dealerships

As a kid I can remember getting excited when the UPS truck pulled up. This past Thursday, UPS brought envelopes to all of the Chrysler dealerships in the country. One said "welcome to the new Chrysler" and one said goodbye. Who knows, maybe they were even color coordinated or labeled like Publisher's Clearing House with the words "You may have WON!" Can you imagine pulling the zip cord on your UPS letter and finding your fate in a letter? The termination list was released to the media BEFORE some dealerships got their envelope. Dealerships were getting calls from clients informing the dealer that they were closing before the letter came! What a way to conduct business. Think about everything that a hometown dealership does for their community: tax base, employment, community service, donations, sponsorships and so much more. Great job Chrysler. You've got a great ally with the federal government telling you what to do despite having no automotive knowledge. I have a great friend who got the goodbye letter. He really put the situation into perspective when he said: "you know, I'm sitting in my dealership, still stunned from the letter. I had really expected the termination, but you know what? The new Chrysler is owned the the Federal Government and the send my letter via UPS! They don't even use their own government postal service to do their dirty work!" That says it all. You could have done it the right way with honor and dignity. Chrysler chose a scuzzy way to do business!!!

GM headed to Chapter 11?? Top execs sell all stock.

Expect GM to file chapter 11 bankruptcy in June. When many of your top executives sell all of their stock, the writing is pretty much on the wall! I just can't fathom the implosion of both Chrysler and GM. Is it possible that every ranking executive at these corporations was so out of touch with reality? I can give you a little insight. When I was a GM dealer, I had a district manager who became a high level member of the corporation. Even though he had become a big time exec, he continued to call me from time to time for what he called "REALITY CHECKS". He would always wonder what was happening in the real world, away from Detroit. I remember one call where he related how livid he was at a comment made by then Chairman Roger Smith. When Smith was asked how GM was going counter the announcement of the Dodge Neon, Chrysler's ill-fated attempt at making a quality, low cost small car, he made the following statement. " Our best competition for the Neon is a used Buick." How telling was that mentality? One could guess that the desire to saturate the market with high profit SUV's was the golden egg that GM thought would never cease to be. Oops. Reality Check Time. I never thought that I would ever witness that less than a 50 cent drop in the price of a GM share of stock would represent a drop of over 20% of its value! The sad fact is that it's going to get a whole lot worse before it gets any better. The Federal Government will see to that.