from staff and wire reports



As of Friday afternoon, GM had not sent letters to local dealerships informing them that their franchise agreements will not be renewed, and dealers here are optimistic that business will continue as usual.

“We have not heard one way or the other,” said Steve Hall of Nelson Hall Chevrolet Cadillac, “but we feel confident we will not be affected.”

Meridian has two GM dealerships, Nelson Hall and Rick Justice Pontiac Buick GMC. Rick Justice also has Honda and Suzuki franchises.

On Friday afternoon, one GM dealership in Mississippi, Courtesy Chevy Buick in Booneville, had confirmed it received a letter from GM and will close in 2010.

General Motors sent letters Friday to more than 1,100 dealers, telling them they’ll lose their franchises by the end of 2010.

It’s unclear how many other GM dealers in Mississippi will be affected, because the manufacturer is not releasing a list of the dealers. Mississippi has 74 dealers selling GM products.

Hall said that all standalone Pontiac, Hummer, Saab, and Saturn dealerships will close, along with about 1,000 other GM dealerships. But Hall said he was told that only very poorly performing dealerships, ones that were likely to close anyway, will be affected.

Hall said his own dealership is doing well, all things considered. “We sold three cars yesterday,” he said. “We’re selling cars every day. We’re at a reduced volume compared to what we’ve done in the past, but so is every other domestic and foreign dealership.”

Billy Humphrey, the general manager at Rick Justice, said he too had not heard anything from GM as of Friday afternoon, but that he wasn’t expecting to receive one of the letters GM said they have sent to dealers whose franchise agreements will not be renewed.

“I don’t think we’ve got anything to worry about here,” he said, but added, “It’s making our customers nervous. We’re not getting as many lookers.”

Hall said his customers have also taken notice of GM’s financial difficulties. “They’re naturally asking questions,” he said, “but it’s pretty much business as usual.”

As for the future of his dealership, Hall said, “It’s our livelihood and how we make our living, and we plan on it being that way for many years to come.”