Did Sterling Marlin close his Dealership in Dickson, TN?

[XDCX]

I was reading a post on Allpar where a member indicated the Sterling Marlin CJD Dealership in Dickson, TN had closed down.

I surfed Google News in an effort to verify the story but I didn't find anything. There was a web-page indicating the dealership was tied to the NASCAR driver so I'm surprised the media didn't pick up the story.

Does anyone know if the dealership's closed? Was Sterling Marlin involved with the operation or was it just an investment with his name on the side of the building?

[scooter]

Sad but true...There is a list of closed down dealers on dealer connect and his has a termination date of 11/20/09......A friend and I met him at a NASCAR race a few years ago, what a nice guy,he even autographed my friends Coors Light hat.....if you look at that dealer list, there have been over 40 dealers closed after the infamous 789....and before that there were about 60 dealers from last December unitl April 2009....there have been about 900 CJD dealers that have closed down since a year ago, what a mess...

[XDCX]

That's too bad.

I'm surprised the media hasn't jumped on the story. It seems like there are tons of anti-Chrysler writers who would love to use this as an example of how bad things are.

When I first read the post on Allpar I thought the name of the dealership was just a coincidence. I checked out the dealership's website and the picture of the store made it appear that it was just an average looking dealership working out of a 40 year old facility. I would have bet Sterling Marlin would have a multi-million dollar Millennium II facility.

I wonder why he closed the store? Maybe he just got tired of losing money?

[CL Pgh]

The timing of this could also have him stuck between CFC & GMAC... and that piece was the final straw. ???

Hey Scooter - Where in DC is this list... I can never find it???

[scooter]

you go under the sales tab, then look for the fleet box on the right side of the screen then click on fleet facts. Fleet facts have a list of different items and scroll down to terminated dealer list-it is in alphabetic order- and there you will find the list from most current to about a year ago...

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by CL Pgh

The timing of this could also have him stuck between CFC & GMAC... and that piece was the final straw. ???

I was wondering about that too.

GMAC may have wanted Marlin to recapitalize the store and he may have grown tired of losing money. The timing of the closure would certainly support that theory. Who knows?

There was a CJD dealership in Idaho that was owned by former pro-baseball player Bill Buckner. He closed the store shortly after his GM committed suicide.

I'm assuming that people like Marlin and Buckner have financial advisors that let them know when it's time to walk-away from a bad investment.

[Ralph]

I'm going to join Marlin and Billy Buck.

I have the final preparations being put together by my B-ruptcy attorney and accountant in motion. I'm tired of the foolishness, the lies and the plummeting market. I'm preparing to cease operations and liquidate. I've made the decision to head for a lifeboat now while the decks are level enough to walk straight, rather than wait for the "real" plan for Chrysler to unfold. If I'm not getting paid now, have cut expenses and employees to the bone, juggled inventory and spent long days and nights looking at a near empty lot to the sound of silent phones, putting my coffee cup on the red ink of the statement, and making excuses to the few customers who come in and ask, "so when are you going out of business?"...what is the sense really?

I heard a stat from a customer yesterday, who works at the Title Bureau at the State of NH. he said normally their office works on about 4000 titles a day, in the past few months they don't see more than 400...and he said a majority of them are salvage titles. I can manage anything, through any conditions, under any circumstances...but I can't make a market where none exists.

Another couple of stats, during the summer of 2006, the old Boston Zone, (the six states of New England), one of the months over 100,000 Chrysler products were retailed in those states alone. That's New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont, Mass, Rhode Island and Conn. Last month Chrysler, nation-wide retailed 31,457 units and currently nationally they're at 21,572. I can listen to the PR, the 8 hour meetings of BS, the Fiat targets spun as the revival of Chrysler, the begging for orders and the investigations and seminars on Customer Service, only too long. The press and Chrysler PR people can tell me all day long that the hole in the side of the Chrysler Technology Center is only a little one, and the ship is unsinkable...but I'm not waiting for the thing to sink. When they do, Chapter 7 and such, there'll be no buying back inventory, no buying back parts, no protection under state franchise laws...no nothing.

Fiat and the Government are playing by new rules now. We are no longer important to them, no longer their "customers" whom they need to cuddle with. We're places that they can peddle the rest of the supplier's inventory to until the factories no longer run and we're left out in the cold to fend for ourselves. I for one, am going to get a nice comfy seat on the life boat and when the ship goes down, I'm going to be high and dry. I don't believe the spin or the government/Fiat's "rebuilding the Great Chrysler Icon" crap. It's a new world now kids...and I'm going to be a bagger at a grocery store watching from the life boat as the "true believers" fight for their lives in the cold sea...while the band plays on...and the Pentastar sinks under the waves.

Where the hell is John Galt?

[possum]

Ralph, I'm really sorry to hear this.
In the time I've read your posts, it seems like we have lived in a parallell universe. Many of your post really hit close to home. We were one of the 789, after 90 years of being a new car dealer, but I said at the time that we might actually be one of the lucky ones, in the long run.

It was a different world pre-May, 2009. What ever you decide to do, fight hard, and keep after it!

[crowe]

Ralph,
I too have enjoyed your posts & wish you the best going forward.
Everybody hates to lose but I think the key is to Live To Play Again.
You sound like a levelheaded fighter to me & I think you will find a way to win again.
The only permanent in life is change & I know there is life after Chrysler.

[XDCX]

Ralph, sorry to hear the news.

I think you had the only post on Christmas Day and I was sad to read that it was about your decision to close your dealership.

While I try to keep the site balanced so it's relevant to both OLDCO and NEWCO dealers I share many of your concerns about Chrysler's future.

Marchionne's decisions to give-up market share and go dark during the Detroit Auto Show just don't make sense to me. I'm also bothered that Chrysler seems to be willing to sit on the sidelines as many of their loyal dealers just whither and die. Their lack of involvement with the CF to GMAC transition defies logic.

I imagine in some respects a weight has been lifted from your shoulders now that you've made your decision. That said, I'm sure you'll be faced with a number of difficult and unpleasant chores that are associated with closing a business.

Thanks for your contributions to the forum and best of luck going forward.

[F&I Pro]

Ralph, I too am sorry to read your post, as stated above, I have followed your posts and the fact that you are making this very difficult decision tells me you will do well, regardless of the path you chose to take. Best of luck during this transition and may the new year bring you peace and prosperity.

[JUNIOR]

Ralph,
I think you nailed it. Why wait for the music to stop and be the one without the chair. Get out now while you can sell the parts and cars back to Chrylser. Best of luck in the future!

[ohiobuckeyes]

Sterling Marlin I can not remember him in a NASCAR Race this year or the past few. Totally forgot about those stores that NASCAR drivers get from the Chrysler, Ford and GM.

Ralph - Best of luck man.

[Ralph]

Management...indentify the problems...develop solutions...choose a course of action...implement the action...monitor the results.

Problems: plummeting market share nationally, locally...ownership by union and foreign company with no ability to make a profit but can take all tooling, platforms, and technology they want. General public lost confidence in the product, no change in the product plan for 3 years, yet new product in Italy in 12 months. Inability to generate enough revenue to cover expenses.

Solutions: Continue to put personal cash into business to float until better days. Or, continue to cut employees and work hours to reduce expenses making the business understaffed and too weak to survive in the short term...until better days ahead. Or, cut your losses now before you're flat broke.

Not many choices.

Thanks for the kind words and thoughts guys. I know you're all going through the same miseries. It's astonishing we're in this situation. Gotta get to work and pretend the place is going to live on until...what,....better days? Big Spring market? Great new products ahead? Redesigned Patriot...yeah right, standard power locks and windows...WTF..re-priced Journey...the 500...oh yeah, only a handful of them in select metro markets,...wait 3 years for changes. May have to get sick before taking a shower. LOL

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by Ralph

Or, cut your losses now before you're flat broke.

Not many choices.

I think that's a trap that a lot of dealers fall into. It's hard to walk away from your business when your still have some cash in your wallet, but it's the smart thing to do.

There have been a number of dealer closures on the West Coast where the dealer completely ran out of money and left his customers and employees as unsecured creditors. Stories about unpaid wages, trade liens, title fees, service contracts, etc. have been common.

Better to walk away today with a clean conscience than to try and keep the operation afloat and end up looking like a criminal.