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Don't the dealers have to order cars or has that changed and Ford just sends them to you? Floor planning ain't cheap.And they keep shoving them down the dealers throats. We've got a least 12 of them, and have not sold one in 3 months. Ford just sent use new window stickers for the Lightning trucks, now instead of $100K, they are only $90K. They are not selling either..Both are service nightmares for us. I feel bad when someone buys one, they are so happy like any other new car owner, then it busts and ends up in service for a month and they get no rental car. We've had a few greenie assholes buy one, but most of them seem to be normal, decent people, and it bothers me that the cars suck so bad..
My small dealer friend has 2 of those things. Hey Ford, nobody in these poor small towns wants these things, even regular Mustangs don't sell.We still order cars, but Mach E's and Lightnings are being sent to each dealer automatically, using some algorithm based on sales volume that no one understands. If you refuse them, you do not get your F-150 allocation. Its extortion, and in violation of Ford's own dealer agreement, and some dealers have started a class action suit against Ford, but for now...
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That dealer Freeman Ford in Liberty, NC started many years ago by Buzz Freeman. I was in College with his son David when Buzz passed of cancer. David's mother became the dealer principal and David dropped out of college and ROTC to run the dealership. He was 20 when this happened. I worked at the dealership for a couple of years as a Service and Parts Manager, my wife worked there too, that is how we met.JOn, you've posted pics of that dealership, it amounts to no more than a storefront. That Ford would force anything on a facility of that size is criminal.
I don't see David giving up his dealership anytime soon but Ford will probably push him out. 11 miles away is another small dealer, Welford Harris Inc. The father started it and after his passing the son runs it. They did have Chrysler Dodge Ram too but because they would not upgrade the building, Chrysler dropped them. Welford Harris is larger than Freeman but both are good companies.That's how dealerships were run when individuals owned them. There aren't a handful here in Houston anymore, all are giant corporations like Autonation, Sonic, Group One etc. They pay crazy $ for dealerships, and even if you hate them and don't want them to have it, the $ is too good to pass up. I had a passing aquaintance with a guy where I grew up who worked in the dealership his father started after WWII. They had 4 dealerships and the dad was dead and my friend was pushing 60, and none of his family members wanted to be involved in working there or running it. Autonation started out offering $38M for all 4, and two years later, came back at $51M, and he sold. He told me he hated it, but it was too much money to say no to. Autonation sold off two of the dealerships, one of which was run into the ground and is now closed.