GM Pays HUMMER Dealers Big Bucks to Go Away
While some of TTAC's Best and Brightest adopt a "rot in Hell" stance regarding HUMMER's imminent demise, pity the poor dealers. Speaking with Automotive News [sub], HUMMER Sacramento store owner Mike Daugherty said $4-a-gallon gasoline took away about half his biz. The other half disappeared after GM announced it might sell the brand. Yup. In June, Hummer sales fell 59.3 percent to 2,072 units. Obviously, GM CEO Rick Wagoner knew his "strategic review" proclamation– and subsequent withdrawal of all corporate support– would scupper HUMMER. But underhanded bastard clever man that he is, Wagoner also realized that dangling hopes of a HUMMER buyer would keep the dealer payoff price down. Wagoner mentioned a mystery buyer at the time of the first knife thrust. Since then, GM's paying HUMMER dealers "advanced sales bonuses" and buying them out, hoping to avoid the blizzard of lawsuits that accompanied Oldsmobile's termination. On Friday, Rick twisted the knife again, repeating the HUMMER sales rumor. "We have some interested buyers," Rick said [via Reuters]. "And I can't tell you anything beyond that right now, but we are moving as fast as we can." Believe it or don't.
More by Robert Farago
Comments
Join the conversation
Simpsons did it! In "Behind the Laughter" Homer buys MC Hammers house and and changes the gate to read "Hommertime". factotum : It wouldn’t be too expensive to turn the dealers’ big H on the front entrance to a capital M for Mahindra & Mahindra…
"we are moving as fast as we can." Believe it or don't." I believe it. They need some fast cash. Just call up India or China and it's good as gone. The cheaper the price, the quicker it sells. Might even toss in some more brands to sweeten the deal. I guess they will wait to sell off the North American operations until they see if the Volt saves the company or not. Only another year unless this is a Camaro redux. Those should be on the streets already!
Hummer USA may be dead but GM just needs to export them to markets where gas is subsidized and oil money flows like water: Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, and Russia. Not [s]any[/s] many environmentalists in those places either.