Post New Article

GM driving about half of its Buick dealers
out of business with demand for upfront
cash investment to handle electric vehicles

Original Article

Posted By: Magnante, 12/23/2023 9:57:11 AM

The decline and fall of General Motors, which sees it heading toward liquidation from its status as arguably the most powerful corporation on earth more than half a century ago, is entering a new phase. The federal government's mandated conversion to electric vehicles is taking another big bite out of its organization. Ron Glon writes: In 2022, General Motors gave Buick dealers across the nation a simple choice: invest a significant amount of money to prepare for EVs or opt for a buyout. Over a year later, the brand has reportedly lost nearly half of its dealerships

Comments:

EVs may kill he US auto industry, and if you don't see the plan behind that, you aren't looking hard enough.

Post Reply

Reminder: “WE ARE A SALON AND NOT A SALOON”

Your thoughts, comments, and ideas are always welcome here. But we ask you to please be mindful and respectful. Threatening or crude language doesn't persuade anybody and makes the conversation less enjoyable for fellow L.Dotters.


Reply 1 - Posted by: franq 12/23/2023 10:35:31 AM (No. 1622940)
Hear those jackboots in the distance?
22 people like this.

Reply 2 - Posted by: DogFacedPonySoldier 12/23/2023 10:47:05 AM (No. 1622945)
Did Congress ever vote on the mandate of electric vehicles and the end of IC vehicles?
26 people like this.

Reply 3 - Posted by: Ida Lou Pino 12/23/2023 10:50:13 AM (No. 1622946)
Don't worry about the automobile industry. They'll do booming business - - once the windmill cars come on the market.
18 people like this.

Reply 4 - Posted by: MattMusson1 12/23/2023 10:50:22 AM (No. 1622947)
EVs will replace ICEs right after wine coolers replace Beer.
21 people like this.

Reply 5 - Posted by: skacmar 12/23/2023 11:08:51 AM (No. 1622957)
Take a struggling brand and make it even more difficult for consumers to find a dealer and vehicles less desirable. Great plan GM. Is Buick the next brand to go the way of Pontiac, Oldsmobile, and Saturn?
25 people like this.

Reply 6 - Posted by: LC Chihuahua 12/23/2023 11:10:38 AM (No. 1622959)
Any car dealers out there? Dumb question: Do car dealerships have to purchase the cars on their lot from the manufacturer up front? Now they being told to purchase cars they cannot sell? That's not going to work. Amazing to watch corporate mismanagement in action. It's quite the destructive force. First, it shows no regard for the customer and they lose their customer base. Second, it cost their employees their jobs. Eventually, it kills the business itself. Ironically, the people that did all this get rich in the process.
18 people like this.

Reply 7 - Posted by: Krause 12/23/2023 11:13:09 AM (No. 1622963)
Two bit politician know-it-alls telling professional businessmen how to run their businesses, by forcing pie-in-the-sky products in them.
16 people like this.

Reply 8 - Posted by: DVC 12/23/2023 11:41:37 AM (No. 1622974)
Government Motors.... bought out under The Zero and still doing the govenment's bidding, including killing itself on command.
24 people like this.

Reply 9 - Posted by: DVC 12/23/2023 11:43:22 AM (No. 1622976)
The winners are the dealers smart enough to take the buy out. The suckers are the fools who spend huge amounts to get into a business that is doomed to failure.
19 people like this.

Reply 10 - Posted by: Bur Oak 12/23/2023 11:48:05 AM (No. 1622982)
US carmakers are committing corporate suicide via electric vehicles.
19 people like this.

Reply 11 - Posted by: wilarrbie 12/23/2023 11:52:55 AM (No. 1622984)
Look for the union label.
11 people like this.

Reply 12 - Posted by: Mizz Fixxit 12/23/2023 11:57:55 AM (No. 1622986)
Automobile kill switches mandated in 2026. My plan, buy a gas burner in 2025.
13 people like this.

Reply 13 - Posted by: john56 12/23/2023 12:07:04 PM (No. 1623002)
I guess that's why our local Buick dealer sold out. Family owned for 60 years plus.
12 people like this.

Reply 14 - Posted by: Harlowe 12/23/2023 12:08:42 PM (No. 1623008)
Don’t know the basis for Buick’s decision to stop manufacturing sedans several years ago in favor of SUVs, but that decision resulted in decades-long Buick sedan customers being deprived of purchasing new or used sedans, as well as imposing hardships on sales personnel for lack of sedans by customers seeking such purchases. Buick still manufactures sedans for the Chinese market, but not for the States. It would be interesting to learn the “rationale” behind the decision to discontinue manufacturing sedans for sale in the States but suspect the answer to be monetary.
9 people like this.

Reply 15 - Posted by: mc squared 12/23/2023 12:22:01 PM (No. 1623017)
As a car guy I don't want to see the demise of any brand but GM dropped Olds and Pontiac in favor of Buick when commanded by Obama. Here in E Central Florida I see more Edsels than new Buicks. BTW: China’s Buick models are currently selling include LaCrosse, GL8, Regal, Excelle, Excelle XT, Excelle GT Verano, Enclave, and Encore. https://wherearemade.com/where-are-buicks-made/
9 people like this.

Reply 16 - Posted by: DVC 12/23/2023 12:24:24 PM (No. 1623024)
Re #14, the very, very complex equation (literally, the government wrote an equation) which controls the gas mileage number that a particular vehicle must attain to be sold without a huge cost penalty per vehicle works out that an SUV gets a more lenient treatment than a sedan. This has nearly killed the sedan in the USA, with few available, the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry and a Subaru sedans making up a huge fraction of all sedan sales. I much prefer a sedan for daily driving, too. We have a real SUV, a very capable 4Runner for trips to the backwoods where snow, mud and rough roads are expected. Many people can only have one vehicle. If you have older vehicles, my pickup is 20 years old and my SUV is 17 years old, you can afford to have multiple vehicles. But, it helps a lot to be able to maintain them yourself, too. I estimate that I have saved well above $150,000 in auto service and repair costs over my lifetime by doing 99% of them myself. And my repairman never rips me off.
14 people like this.

Reply 17 - Posted by: mythman 12/23/2023 1:08:01 PM (No. 1623052)
Nothing like having your EV towed to a surviving dealership 50 or more miles from your house, then getting no loaner vehicle while they take 3 months to repair your vehicle if they do it at all, then having to get a ride to that dealership when your EV is supposedly repaired.
6 people like this.

Reply 18 - Posted by: Dreadnought 12/23/2023 1:29:15 PM (No. 1623060)
Buick survives as a brand because it remains popular in China; otherwise, it would have gone the way of Pontiac and Oldsmobile. The brand was hugely popular in Saudi Arabia in the early 80s. The Buick dealers make their money on the GMC brand that many also market.
6 people like this.

Reply 19 - Posted by: Mizz Fixxit 12/23/2023 2:03:46 PM (No. 1623081)
I drove a 2005 Buick LeSabre for 170,000 miles. Mechanically, the car was very good, but needed $3,200 in suspension repairs. I considered not trading it. Comfortable, full size sedan. Over 30 MPG on highway.
7 people like this.

Reply 20 - Posted by: JHHolliday 12/23/2023 2:31:52 PM (No. 1623097)
They will have to pry my 2002 Toyota Camry and my 2016 Sienna van from my cold, dead hands...
4 people like this.

Reply 21 - Posted by: franq 12/23/2023 2:41:38 PM (No. 1623098)
Kindred spirit with #16.
5 people like this.

Reply 22 - Posted by: Tennman 12/23/2023 3:35:18 PM (No. 1623115)
GM doing their very best to self destruct. Unfortunately Buick's days were numbered anyway. Demographics - average buyer's in late 60's or early 70's. Not a target market for EV's.
6 people like this.

Reply 23 - Posted by: JimBob 12/23/2023 10:05:55 PM (No. 1623283)
I have NEVER heard said, or seen it written, that GM's Board of Directors were very smart. They have decided to kill the Camaro (this is the last year of production) and now they are killing Buick.
3 people like this.

Below, you will find ...
Most Recent Articles posted by "Magnante"
and
Most Active Articles (last 48 hours)
Most Recent Articles posted by Magnante"
GM driving about half of its Buick dealers
out of business with demand for upfront
cash investment to handle electric vehicles
23 replies
Posted by Magnante 12/23/2023 9:57:11 AM Post Reply
The decline and fall of General Motors, which sees it heading toward liquidation from its status as arguably the most powerful corporation on earth more than half a century ago, is entering a new phase. The federal government's mandated conversion to electric vehicles is taking another big bite out of its organization. Ron Glon writes: In 2022, General Motors gave Buick dealers across the nation a simple choice: invest a significant amount of money to prepare for EVs or opt for a buyout. Over a year later, the brand has reportedly lost nearly half of its dealerships
Newsom’s bottomless cynicism reflected
in his appointment of a black, lesbian,
Maryland voter to fill remainder of Feinstein’s
Senate term
10 replies
Posted by Magnante 10/2/2023 12:29:35 PM Post Reply
It’s impossible to be too cynical about Gavin Newsom, the Brylcreem-topped governor of California who lusts after the Democrats’ nomination for president, even as he publicly mouths support for Biden. This is a man who bedded his best friend’s wife, after all. (snip) I wonder if Senator-designate Butler has kept her extra home in California vacant, or if a family is renting it? Housing is notoriously in short supply in California (snip) if her home has tenants, is she going to evict them suddenly in order to obtain immediate residency -- purely on paper?
California AG Sues to Prevent Pro-life
Clinics from Claiming Abortion Pill Reversal
Treatment is ‘Effective’ and Can ‘Reverse’ Abortions
6 replies
Posted by Magnante 9/22/2023 9:23:06 AM Post Reply
California’s Attorney General Rob Bonta called a press conference yesterday to announce the filing of a lawsuit against two leading chains of clinics offering treatment to reverse chemical abortions before either of those organizations had even been served with the 30 page complaint. Both organizations only learned of the action when media representatives called them for a response. The lawsuit does not seek to halt the treatment, which is being used by other clinics in California and around the world, but rather to enjoin the two clinic chains from making what the AG asserts are “false” claims.
A disturbing killing, and the media won't
touch it
21 replies
Posted by Magnante 9/18/2023 5:38:11 AM Post Reply
As I write this on September 16, the New York Times has yet to mention Andreas Probst, the retired 64-year-old California police chief brutally murdered on August 14 in Las Vegas. The initial silence is understandable. Probst was killed while bicycling at about 6 A.M. along a quiet road. The assumption was that he was the unfortunate victim of a careless driver who fled the scene. By August 31, the media had access to the video recorded in real time by the passenger in the vehicle. It is chilling. The driver and his companion, both males, had apparently stolen the Hyundai
Tax cheat Hunter Biden not prosecuted
by California: Where is the outrage from
Governor Newsom?
6 replies
Posted by Magnante 9/7/2023 7:57:50 AM Post Reply
Hunter Bided failed to pay federal income taxes on millions in income and some of that income was earned while Biden was living in California, so he likely failed to pay state taxes as well. The Plea Agreement between Hunter Biden and federal prosecutors filed in the Delaware shows that Hunter failed to pay taxes on millions from companies and individuals in Ukraine, China and Romania. Hunter was living in California for at least part of the time according to the later filing by prosecutors (snip) Newsom’s hand-picked Attorney General, Rob Bonta, has pledged to prosecute tax cheats.
‘Rich Men North of Richmond’: A Stirring
Ballad for the Real Forgotten Man
3 replies
Posted by Magnante 8/14/2023 5:06:58 AM Post Reply
A truly beautiful thing happened in the past week, as I hope you’ve already heard. Oliver Anthony, a singer-songwriter from Farmville, Virginia, captured lighting in a bottle with at recording of his song, “Rich Men North of Richmond,” which quickly proceeded to become the most popular and talked about song in the country. (snip) the song exudes an authentic human experience, and it begins with the song’s title. (snip) If you were to ask a Nashville advertising exec, (snip) they would have both told you that the song could have just as easily been titled, “Dirty Politicians in D.C.”
So what happened to Obama’s chef? 22 replies
Posted by Magnante 7/29/2023 5:14:33 AM Post Reply
Barack Obama was “heartbroken” over the drowning of his chef Tafari Campbell, but has said nary a word about him since he drowned on Sunday. Sasha and Malia Obama flew off to California on Tuesday and Michelle, appropriately dressed in black, played tennis on Wednesday “but only for an hour.” (snip) There has been no obituary for Tafari in any paper, no notification of a funeral -- not even in his hometown paper of Dumfries, VA. (snip) Edgartown, MA police still have not identified the 911 caller, but one story revealed that it was a female.
‘Out of control’ fire aboard a massive
car-carrier ship spotlights the calamitous
consequences of electric vehicles
13 replies
Posted by Magnante 7/28/2023 8:12:29 AM Post Reply
Seventeen miles offshore from an island belonging to the Netherlands, a nearly 20,000-ton vessel loaded with vehicles is burning “out of control,” and officials are in a race against time; Lea Versteeg, spokesperson for the Dutch coast guard, reportedly said, “we’re currently working out to see how we can make sure that...the least bad situation is going to happen.” A Daily Mail article out yesterday reported that at least one crew member had died while “many” others were injured (snip) The coastguard said the cause of the fire was unknown, but had earlier suggested it might have been an electric car. Gee, who woulda thunk it?
The Democrats’ Dilemma: How to Convince
Joe Biden to Drop out of the Race
17 replies
Posted by Magnante 7/26/2023 5:14:59 AM Post Reply
As the 2024 presidential election is beginning to cast a growing shadow over the American political landscape, many in the party establishment are quietly looking into replacing Joe Biden as the Democrat Party nominee. But who will they choose to replace Biden and how are they going to force him to either resign or drop out of the race without creating political turmoil for the party? Biden’s physical and mental incapacity is becoming increasingly pronounced and the Republican House, with the assistance of numerous whistleblowers, is revealing evermore damning evidence of potential criminality by both Joe and his son, Hunter.
85 seconds of video that hilariously show
what a liar Fauci was about Covid’s origins
9 replies
Posted by Magnante 7/25/2023 4:28:56 AM Post Reply
The short video from Matt Orfalea embedded below brilliantly summarizes the evidence that Dr. Fauci bullied scientists into changing their minds about what their research showed: that Covid was the product of a lab, not a naturally occurring virus. It’s one thing to read about the correspondence among those scientists in print. But seeing their actual words excerpted and dramatized with exaggerated cartoonish treatment drives home the point forcefully, especially after the brief clip of Fauci lying to the nation in a presser. This is the best use of 85 seconds today that I can think of right now:
‘Thorny Questions’: How the Democrats
and Media Enablers Censor News
5 replies
Posted by Magnante 7/23/2023 5:23:11 AM Post Reply
Democrats in Congress and their legacy media enablers dropped their veils this week, revealing how dear they hold their desire and capacity to censor truth. The drop came during Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s testimony about vaccines and shows how frightened they are that he may out-primary their demented puppet Joe Biden and his cackling numbskull veep. (snip) Censorship, whether it is direct or indirect through threats to social media (snip) is a danger to us. We saw how the serious concerns about the COVID vaccine by reputable scientists were blocked from public view; how bad medical treatment (use of ventilators for COVID victims) and denial of alternative therapies cost lives
Meet the Threat that No One Saw Coming 9 replies
Posted by Magnante 7/22/2023 7:42:39 AM Post Reply
Have you ever tried to warn people about something, only to be told repeatedly that there's nothing to worry about? That you are not a serious adult for even broaching such issues? Ever wonder how things would have gone if people shouted out their windows for Paul Revere to shut up, the king's army is on the other side of the ocean? Ever started to feel like Cassandra? What if there were substantial evidence that shady operators currently inhabiting the U.S. have the determination and connections to pose a threat to free speech, starting with the press and the internet?
Most Active Articles (last 48 hours)
Al Gore: Without Climate Action, ‘We
Could Lose Our Capacity for Self-Governance’
26 replies
Posted by Imright 12/24/2023 7:26:44 PM Post Reply
Former Vice President Al Gore said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union” that if the climate continues to warm, we “would lose our capacity for self-governance.” Anchor Jake Tapper asked, “What happens if the world doesn’t react? What’s the worst-case scenario?” Gore said, “The scientist who has warned us of these mega-storms and the floods and mudslides and droughts and the ice melting and the sea level rising and the storms getting stronger and the tropical diseases and climate and migrants crossing international borders in large numbers. They were dead right when they warned us about this, and so we need to pay more attention to them now.”
Sen. Susan Collins Pushing Gun Control
for U.S. Troops
26 replies
Posted by Imright 12/24/2023 2:59:53 PM Post Reply
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) is putting together legislation to require the U.S. military to adhere to state-level red and yellow flag laws for troops. A red flag law allows family, friends, and others, to seek a court order to have guns removed from someone they view as a danger to himself or others. A yellow flag law is more narrow, allowing law enforcement to seek the court order for firearm removal.Collins bill comes in response to the October 25, 2023, Lewiston, Maine, attacks, which were carried out by a member of the U.S. Army Reserve. The attacker used a sniper rifle which was legally purchased.
The most dangerous towns in America are
revealed as violent crimes soar across
the nation: Cities in Alabama, Louisiana,
Missouri, Michigan and Tennessee round
out the top five
22 replies
Posted by Imright 12/24/2023 12:47:06 AM Post Reply
A personal finance website analyzed the FBI's recent crime statistics to determine the most dangerous cities in America - with a city in Alabama coming out on top. MoneyGeek’s annual analysis estimated the cost of crime in 302 cities with populations greater than 100,000 across the US. The analysis determined the violent crime rate, property crime rate, cost of crime per capita and the total cost of crime in millions. The violent crime rate includes murder and nonnegligent manslaughter, rape, robbery and aggravated assault, while the property crime rate includes burglary, larceny-theft and motor vehicle theft offenses per 100,000 residents.
UFO appears to fly by Air Force One at
LAX during Biden visit
20 replies
Posted by VietVet68 12/24/2023 3:15:23 PM Post Reply
A UFO was spotted hovering over Air Force One during a fundraising trip President Biden took to Los Angeles earlier this month in footage shared online by two amateur plane trackers.
Biden Admin Denies Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Secret Service Protection For Third Time
18 replies
Posted by Beardo 12/24/2023 12:10:25 AM Post Reply
Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was denied United States Secret Service (USSS) protection for the third time, according to a letter obtained by Deseret News. Kennedy’s campaign confirmed Friday the credibility of the letter which allegedly showed Department of Homeland Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas had signed off on rejecting Kennedy’s request, according to the outlet.
US economist makes chilling prediction
for 2024 - warning of 'biggest crash in
our lifetimes' as 'everything bubble' bursts
17 replies
Posted by Imright 12/24/2023 7:32:45 PM Post Reply
An economist has warned that an 'everything' bubble is going to burst next year prompting the 'biggest crash in our lifetimes.' Harry Dent claims the effects of the crash will 'be obvious' by May and will slow the economy for over a decade. He told Fox Digital: 'If I'm right, it is going to be the biggest crash of our lifetime, most of it happening in 2024'Since 2009, this has been 100 percent artificial, unprecedented money printing and deficits; $27 trillion over 15 years, to be exact. This is off the charts, 100 percent artificial, which means we're in a dangerous state.'
The Most Memorable Ad You'll Watch This
Christmas Stars a Man in His Shed
17 replies
Posted by Imright 12/24/2023 1:28:27 AM Post Reply
In just over two minutes, the story of a man puttering around in his tool shed will reduce many of us to a sobbing mess. So, here's your warning in advance: have that box of tissues at the ready! RedState is no stranger to the magic of emotional Christmas season commercials. Readers might still remember the one my colleague Joe Cunningham shared in 2022 from Chevy.And Chevy followed it up in 2023 with this one, via Nick Arama. It tells the story of a family dealing with the scourge of Alzheimer's, and how a daughter lovingly makes sure that her mother and father have a wonderful Christmas together.
No, Donald Trump Will Never Consider Nikki
Haley as VP Possibilty, Here’s Why
15 replies
Posted by 4250Luis 12/24/2023 7:30:26 AM Post Reply
CBS floated some ridiculous story about President Trump asking advisors their opinion of Nikki Haley as a VP option. That story is nonsense. Anyone in the orbit of Donald Trump knows Nikki Haley is a nonstarter. CBS is known as the worst news organization for making stuff up. There is no element of their thin-gruel story [SEE HERE] that is believable. Here’s why… President Trump is known for remembering betrayal; he doesn’t always burn the bridge, but he never recrosses it. Nikki Haley in February 2021: …”“I don’t think [Trump’s] going to be in the picture,” she said, matter-of-factly.
“Joe Biden vs. Cornpop” -BEST BIDEN
MEME EVER! Joe Biden Quotes Set to Cowboy
Western Theme
14 replies
Posted by Imright 12/24/2023 12:59:58 AM Post Reply
This has got to be the BEST BIDEN MEME EVER! “Joe Biden vs. Cornpop” buddydawg22 posted this video on Twitter. I Meme Therefore I Am then tweeted it on X. The creator put several of Joe Biden’s famous lines into a Western themed video. This is spectacular! If you get lost watching the video look up the quote online and it will lead you to Joe Biden. (Video) Here is the transcript: Cowboy named Tex: Corn pop? Boy: Who’s corn pop?
Outgoing Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards
pardons 56 inmates, including 40 convicted murderers
14 replies
Posted by Beardo 12/24/2023 12:02:43 AM Post Reply
The outgoing governor of Louisiana has pardoned 56 inmates since October of this year, including dozens of convicted murderers. (snip) "For as long as I can remember, Louisiana reflexively responded to an increase in crime by putting more people in prison and keeping them there longer," Edwards told Louisiana news outlet NOLA.com this week. "We've never been made safer as a result of that," Edwards said. "There is no data to suggest that an increase in crime here was because of the reforms." Others released by Edwards include inmates convicted of arson, robbery, and drug dealing, according to a complete list compiled by local outlet Fox 8.
For his own sake, DeSantis should drop out 11 replies
Posted by Moritz55 12/24/2023 2:06:33 PM Post Reply
The race between Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley to secure a clear and commanding second place to Donald Trump is starting to feel like an old Law and Order episode. You know the ones. Where two guys who committed a crime are separated and the first one to flip gets the better plea deal? As it stands, DeSantis and Haley could both choose to be the first to drop out and endorse Trump, thus ensuring the other is set up for a grueling one on one with the surging former president that looks to be a very uphill climb.
Merry Christmas, Matt Drudge 10 replies
Posted by earlybird 12/24/2023 2:18:52 PM Post Reply
Did I ever tell you about the time Matt Drudge shut down the Charleston Daily Mail and the entire Charleston Newspapers operation? He linked a column I wrote about Nancy Pelosi and the traffic overloaded the company’s lone computer system.(snip)Nowadays I could not get a link to Drudge if I paid him. It is just as well. He has gone to the dark side. Drudge made his mark on the world in 1998 when Lucianne Goldberg handed him the Monica Lewinsky story, after Newsweek spiked it. That is how reporters get stories: through sources.
Post New Article