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There is at least a pinpoint of light at the end of the tunnel for suffering car dealers who have Ford and the other struggling franchises of the Detroit 3.
That glimmer is arrogance on the part of their competitors. Toyota executives speak openly of their fear of arrogance even as they keep winning huge hunks of the American car market.
The following is a story about a dealer of one of the triumphant brands, Honda. While many Ford dealers scrap for every last sale just so they can stay atloat, this dealer appears to he so flooded with customers that ... well, let's go to the story. (The story is unedited except that I have cleaned up a couple of typos from each writer.)
Paul Guthrie used to work at Reynolds and Reynolds, the big dealer software company. Last December, he was looking to buy a new Honda in the Dayton, Ohio, area. His e-mail sets the scene. The e-mail was to Matt Castrucci of Matt Castrucci Honda, one of four Matt Castrucci import-brand dealerships at the Matt Castrucci Auto Mall:
I sent a request for an Internet quotation on the new CR-V over a week ago after I received a promo email from...