The week of May 11, 2009
What will happen to repairers with the auto industry in turmoil
by Dennis Lipardt
Pontiac no longer a General Motors car line, I can hardly believe it. Will GMC be next? Frankly I think GMC should have been dumped first since there is so little difference between the Chevy Suburban and the GMC Denali or the Chevy and GMC pick-up trucks, but then again I don't run General Motors. What about Chrysler what will happen to them since they have declared bankruptcy? If General Motors ends up with the government being a major stakeholder in the company what are the repercussions for the collision industry? What happens to the auto industry obviously has a huge impact on unemployment, supplier survival, the stock market, but how might all these changes affect YOU? Obviously I don't have the answers, but we can always speculate since everything that happens to the car manufacturers ultimately will have some affect on your business.
With General Motors no longer making Pontiacs (no more GTO's, SSE's, Bonneville's, Firebirds or G8's I think I am going to shed tear) there will certainly be a lot a dealer closures, unless the dealers are multi-line which will at least give them a chance to keep their doors open. Sadly many of the Pontiac dealers also are GMC dealers and GMC is probably also on the chopping block. There are at least a couple of opportunities for each of you when the dealers close their doors.
First, fewer dealers will mean less collision operations which will help with the over-capacity issue that repairers are struggling with. This is really a big benefit because each dealer that closes will mean hundreds of jobs available for other repairers to fix.
Second as dealers close their body shops there will be an abundance of quality technicians available for hire. This would give repair shops an opportunity to hire some people who might help the overall performance of their operation. Better performance equals higher profits and better quality. Like most of you each dealer probably had one or two real big producers that will be out of a job. It also won't take long for them to be gobbled up so you might do some research to find out who they are before the dealer closes their doors.
Thirdly, most likely the dealers that close will have established DRP relationships which will give you an opportunity to apply to fill in for what the insurer has lost. If I were you, I would go online to each insurers website to find out what Pontiac or GMC dealers where listed as a DRP for that insurer. I would then at least lay the groundwork for them to consider my shop by submitting an application to be considered to replace the dealer that would no longer be in business.
Nobody knows what will happen to Chrysler since they filed bankruptcy last week. It appears that a deal will be made with FIAT (Fix It Again Tony), but how that will shake out for what cars will be produced, which car lines will be terminated or if dealers will be closed or not is anyone's guess. Only time will tell if there are opportunities for collision repairers with the coming changes in Chrysler.
If the government has a substantial stake in the ownership of General Motors (what a sad day) I think we can expect what the media has broadcast a government designed car, meaning electric or alternate fuel vehicles that are smaller lighter and a hell of lot less attractive to buy. Can't you just picture a car that is designed by our liberal folks in congress? We would all be paying the cost of a Mercedes, but driving a YUGO. --- And you will have to learn to them.
NOTE: This editorial expresses the opinions of its sole author only and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of Autobodyonline, or any of its subsidiary companies, clients, or supporters.
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