Chrysler “can’t say” which dealers will survive
May 11, 2009 by Matt Brogan
Chrysler has now paid all US dealers for incentive and warranty claims owed to them yet “can’t say” how many dealerships will survive the automaker’s bankruptcy.
While Australian dealerships are unaffected at this stage, US counterparts are facing the very real concern of closing their doors within weeks as a result of the company’s bankruptcy proceedings.
“Unfortunately, there will be dealers who will not go forward,” said co-President Jim Press. “We do not have a finalised plan. We don’t have identification of who. We don’t know when. We don’t know how. We have nothing to announce today other than this is all in flux.
“We paid all dealers who are open and doing business. We paid incentives, we paid warranty. We paid 100 per cent of the dealers even though some of those dealers may not be going forward.”
Chrysler also said it was adjusting its payment schedule by one day during the bankruptcy period. Normally dealers submit claims to Chrysler at the end of each week and are reimbursed over the weekend so the money is in their accounts Monday morning. This will now occur on Tuesdays.
Chrysler executives also said that 2,500 of the dealer body of about 3,200 had signed and returned their paperwork to get retail loans from GMAC Financial Services, which will become Chrysler’s designated lender once the company emerges from bankruptcy.
Print it: 
Australian Chrysler dealers ….
The only way to survive is to get rid of Chrysler Dodge Jeep badges as soon as possible.
For the most part their cars are outdated, uninspired and of average build quality.
It’s survival of the fittest in the car game, especially in the current climate, and although I do feel for the many workers caught up in this, I for one can’t believe it’s taken this long for consumers to wake up to the fact such brands are dinosaurs awaiting extinction.
Good riddance I say.
A smart marketing angle would be a “Cant Say” sale. To follow up on the “Can Do” sale currently running.
Arnie says “C’marn, you can do it..”
Friend has his Jeep turbo diesel blow out an intercooler connecting hose 2 days out of warranty, and they wouldn’t fix it under goodwill. It’s his 3rd Jeep in 10 years, so you might say he’s a loyal customer, and it’s a very common, known fault.
Now his chances of getting spares is also seriously diminished, so he’s got a right lemon on his hands.
We tried to warn him……
i know for a fact that wholesalers are not even buying up anything related to Chrysler currently, ESPECIALLY jeeps…
JEEP-In some European countries they have a silent “J” so what we really have here is a “HEEP”…yep spot on the Euros know what they were thinking.
Sales have slumped, nobody’s buying them, and that’s a good thing.