GM to eliminate hundreds of Cadillac dealers

Some Cadillac dealers may be surprised to learn that their dealerships will be terminated by Oct 31, 2010, when GM decides to reduce its dealer network to 3,500 dealers. It may be a bit strange since Cadillac is one of the four core brands that the ‘New GM’ will concentrate on.

According to LaNeve, GM wants to eliminate hundreds of Caddy dealerships in metro markets to make the brand’s per-store sales comparable to those of Mercedes-Benz, Lexus and BMW.

“Our current footprint of 1,400 Cadillac dealers, most of which are dualed, is out of sync with modern luxury automotive retail,” LaNeve told dealers in a report obtained by Automotive News.

LaNeve would not provide the exact number of Cadillac dealers that will be terminated. However, in order to meet a goal of a per-store sales that will match other luxury rivals, hundreds will have to go.

“Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Lexus outsell us with 250 and 450 dealers,” LaNeve said. “We have to address this and enable our large Cadillac dealers to do more volume.”

– By: The Daily Auto Editor