Cadillac offering to buyout nearly 400 dealers

[ContiFan]

Cadillac is offering nearly 400 of its smaller dealers buyouts if they decide they don't want to spend the money necessary to upgrade their showrooms and adapt to new sales and dealer incentive programs.
http://www.freep.com/story/money/cars/g ... /90918238/

I wonder if Lincoln will do anything similar with its dealers. Both Cadillac and Lincoln have already eliminated/consolidated a number of dealerships over the last 10 years or so.

[Dan Szwarc]

Lincoln has already done this since the recession. A lot have closed down.

[ContiFan]

Lincoln has already done this since the recession. A lot of closed down.

As I mentioned, both Cadillac and Lincoln eliminated many dealerships in the last decade. Just before GM's bankruptcy, Cadillac had over 1,400 dealerships in the U.S. and now has around 925. This new voluntary buyout proposal could cut that number even more, potentially to fewer than 600. Quite a drop from the 2008 level.

If this plan is "successful" for Cadillac, Lincoln might look to do the same as they too have around 900 U.S. dealerships right now.

[Steve K]

It looks like both are doing more to move toward exclusivity of the brand, bring the level of service amenities up to a standard, and in many ways follow the approach Tesla has for sales and service. I guess it makes sense from that perspective.

[ContiFan]

It looks like both are doing more to move toward exclusivity of the brand, bring the level of service amenities up to a standard, and in many ways follow the approach Tesla has for sales and service. I guess it makes sense from that perspective.

I think this is much more a reflection of what luxury import brands have done over time (selling through fewer dealerships and with more exclusives), a trend largely started or accelerated by Acura, Infiniti and Lexus in the 1980s/1990s. That's who Cadillac (and Lincoln) sees as the competition.

This is also not unlike what Audi did in the 2000s, as far as emphasizing larger and more exclusive dealerships, during de Nysschen’s tenure there. For better or worse, the imports are influencing Cadillac's (and Lincoln's) direction a lot more than any domestic company/brand.

[Gerald F. Chase]

This is also not unlike what Audi did in the 2000s, as far as emphasizing larger and more exclusive dealerships, during de Nysschen’s tenure there. For better or worse, the imports are influencing Cadillac's (and Lincoln's) direction a lot more than any domestic company/brand.

... And where is de Nysschen now? The reason he's gone is he caused Cadillac to focus on the foreign competition... instead of customers. Clearly, Cadillac forgot who its customers were. Many were Americans who wanted to buy American. Cadillac needs to focus on these "natural" customers. And what Cadillac's product planners and designers need... are several good automotive people that are over 48 years old! The younger-than-31 set... just don't, and won't, comprehend!

The same applies to LINCOLN. Senior citizens and near-senior citizens don't want dashboards and radios with thirteen million teeny buttons! LINCOLN Division needs to return to, and focus on, real potential American customers ---- and forget what the foreign makers are doing. Give their real market what the people want [high quality & reliability]---- NOT what they think that they can convince them as to what they want! LINCOLN needs to hire some people that are 50 - 60 years old.... to learn from THEM what their 'natural' market wants ---- the 30-year-olds are simply not going to know!! Kapiche?

[LithiumCobalt]

The U.S. market is no longer where the money is to be made for many brands. Whoever can get their craptastic vehicles designed and thrown together for China the quickest are the ones that will be profitable.

[ContiFan]

... And where is de Nysschen now?

I think Cadillac's (and de Nysschen's) main problem in the American market was a lack of crossovers and SUVs. The new XT4 just out now and the upcoming XT6 should help "correct" that but were taking too long to get to market as overall sedan sales continued to slide.

Sales remain quite strong for Cadillac over in China which has been their largest market for a couple of years now. Luxury buyers, old and young, continue to favor imports here at home too with many of those brands (Audi, BMW, Land Rover, Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, etc.) having seen record sales in the U.S. in recent years and largely thanks to their expanded crossover/SUV lineups.