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If you do the math which starts with Smart only selling as many as 13,000 cars this year (30,000 last year) and you have all those Smart dedicated dealers selling a car that at it's sticker price can't have a ton of profit in it, I just don't see how they can sustain a dealer/distribution network over the long haul.
This is just my opinion. I have over 34,000 miles on my Smart and still love to drive it every day.
Remember, smart also has a nearly worldwide dealer network, they've been struggling for years to get profit and they actually are. Yes, demand is down, but NO, smart doesn't seem to be going anywhere at the moment.
Even with selling those 13,000 units they're making profit. And they only have a US dealer network of 70 dealers, so it's not like they're taking any huge losses by having sales cut in half.
Just wait until another fuel crisis arises, then the people will once again run to smart.
Last edited by Neonspinnazz; 11-18-2009 at 04:35 PM..
With no changes for 2010 demand will go down even more. The only thing they have going for them now is the upcoming electric which will bring folks in if it is priced right.
Remember, smart also has a nearly worldwide dealer network, they've been struggling for years to get profit and they actually are. Yes, demand is down, but NO, smart doesn't seem to be going anywhere at the moment.
Even with selling those 13,000 units they're making profit. And they only have a US dealer network of 70 dealers, so it's not like they're taking any huge losses by having sales cut in half.
Just wait until another fuel crisis arises, then the people will once again run to smart.
Do the math: 75 dealers dividing up 13,000 units is only 14 cars/mo. Can't survive on that. Even 'if' the smart centers were grossing $1,000 per, that's only $14,000/mo in gross profit for the dealership, to cover payroll and expenses. Not nearly enough $$ to survive. Add to that the bad press that 'we' get and well, I don't like what I see.
I love my smart, just concerned that the smart centers may not be around for long.
Remember, smart also has a nearly worldwide dealer network, they've been struggling for years to get profit and they actually are. Yes, demand is down, but NO, smart doesn't seem to be going anywhere at the moment.
Even with selling those 13,000 units they're making profit. And they only have a US dealer network of 70 dealers, so it's not like they're taking any huge losses by having sales cut in half.
Just wait until another fuel crisis arises, then the people will once again run to smart.
Normally we agree.... this time you're incorrect. Smart is hurting all over the country. Even in what was one of it's best markets.... Florida was huge for smart when they were released... now the Tampa dealership sold 1 car last month... and there have been rumors for a couple of months now that the Clearwater dealership will close soon.
Looking at car sales per month, there been a sharp drop for the last two months; not surprising just after the cash for clunkers. However, if they can hold out until 2010, things should be picking up.
I don't want to go into the "political", but there is reason to believe that the worst of the recession is over. Employment is a lagging indicator, so it might be sever months before we see that turn around.
The news right now is bad, but like I said, if they can hold on a few more months, things should start to turn around...
Things don"t look good for smart or the auto industry.
The recession will not be over until 2011 and economy will never be as it once was. There is nothing to energize the economy. GM lost 1.2 Billion the last qtr. and will have to continue to make drastic cuts.
As far as smart goes, unless gas gets over $4.00 gal to help sales, smart dealers will find it hard to survive. I love my smart and it is fun to drive, but most people don't. I don't think the electric will change anything, if folks won't buy a smart gas for 16K, they won't buy a smart electric for 18K that can only go 100 miles on one charge.
I will just continue to have fun driving my smart and hope for the best.
Just my 2 cents.
They may close a few poorly performing dealers but my guess is that - as in Canada - there are a dozen or so dealers that have very robust sales even now and will thrive even in a weak market. One concern is the low overall number nationwide. Penske might want to pull out if annual sales in the USA actually stabilize around 10,000 units or less.
What they need is a further commitment to the market, in the form of a BRABUS with some more power (say roughly 100 HP), to loosely compete with the MINI Cooper (not the S) in terms of speed, the mhd, if not the new diesel with 54 HP as well as the ED version shown at Frankfurt. But with sales collapsing it will be a ballsy move to introduce this sort of product range.
Mercedes-Benz Canada made such a move in 2004 with smart, expecting to make 1000 sales a year and they averaged 3600 (scaled to the US market size that is about 40,000 sales a year). No guts, no glory?
I've had similar concerns. And I really rely on my Smart for its diminutive size when it comes to parking in Manhattan! So if Smart goes the way of all things, I'll be hurting. I may just have to buy a 2nd (and 3rd!) just for back-up... I'm already over 61,000 miles, and at some point, that car's gotta give.
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