Sending USPS letters to:
Robert Nardelli
Thomas W LaSorda
Jim Press
Mike Acavetti
Mark Mallie
all at:
Chrysler Corporation
12000 Chrysler Drive
Highland Park, MI 48288
Judge Arthur J. Gonzalez
One Bowling Green
Courtroom 523
New York, NY 10004-1408
Printing today - in the mail Monday.....:
Dear Sir,
It has come to my attention that through the reorganization proposal of Chrysler Corporation's Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Petition currently before the Courts, a reduction of dealerships was initiated by Chrysler LLC via an impersonal and archaic formula. While I understand there are parameters for every step of a company to recover and reorganize after filing bankruptcy, there are also justifiable and necessary exceptions based on individual cases. Due in part to the enormous investment the American taxpayers have in the future of the American auto makers, and the huge number of jobs that would be affected if they fail, we all desire to see them succeed and become profitable again.
I sincerely believe that an exception to Chrysler's "blanket formula" for dealership reductions is Frederick Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge of Boardman, Ohio. While for some reason this dealership fits the target Chrysler's set for it's dealership reduction, logic dictates that it should most definately remain in business. Please allow me to expound on this.
Frederick Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge has been a "5-Star" dealership for quite some time, and has consistantly been one of the top 25 dealerships in the Nation. With Chrysler's reduction of dealerships to 2,392, how can Chrysler NOT keep one of the top 25 dealerships in that count?
I live in Eastern upstate New York, close to the Massachusettes and Vermont borders. There were a dozen Dodge dealerships within a half-hour drive of my home when I placed my order for a 2009 Dodge Challenger. I did not order that car locally. I chose to order my "car of a lifetime" through Frederick Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge of Boardman, Ohio for a number of reasons.
While Chrysler LLC has been known to be "on financial thin-ice" for quite some time, my local dealerships insisted to ignore that painfully obvious fact and add $5K to $25K "Dealer Market Adjustments" to the price of the new and popular Dodge Challenger. Chrysler exercised careful consideration in pricing this car competitively to help them recover from continual "red ink" on the ledger. However, the "gouging" the local dealerships implemented only lined their pockets on the few cars they could sell to those fortunate enough to have not been hit hard by a souring economy, and did nothing to help Chrysler increase their production numbers and improve bottom line. Additionally, these dealerships were intent on continuing to follow this practice since they would not accept my order for the specific options I wanted on my car. Instead, they placed my name on a list - so that they could notify me when they got a car in that they ordered and marked up - without entering into an enforcable and binding contract. To add insult to injury, the salespeople at the local dealerships knew less about the car than I did, regaling me with fabricated production numbers, availability, trim levels, options, and sticker prices. I try to be an educated consumer, and frankly felt insulted that these dealerships thought I was ignorant enough to blindly accept their "fertilizer" and couldn't see through what they were doing. Enter Bob Frederick Jr.
I read Chrysler's blog on their redletterdodge.com site with a desire to get all of the information on the new Dodge Challenger as it became available. A dealership owner named Bob Frederick Jr was posting information on Dodge's blog that only someone with inside information and a true passion for Chrysler products could do. I had previously joined several online forums, created when the Challenger prototype debuted, dedictaed to Challenger enthusiasts. Several members of the forums stated that they were ordering their Challengers through Bob at Frederick Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge. With mistrust and insults from the local dealerships fresh in my mind, I called Bob Frederick Jr to discuss placing an order for my new car. Bob was friendly, honest, enthusiastic, but most importantly - knowledgable. There were no fabrications in our conversation, and Bob never asked for a "Dealer Market Adjustment" when I indicated I wanted to order my car through him. He asked for MSRP for the car (this was going to be a "cash deal" - no trade in) and I agreed to that. He changed an existing order he had placed for an "on the lot" car to match my order, and changed the order to my name (so the Maroney sticker would read "This car was specially built for Robert Moore"). He asked for a deposit on my credit card, and then mailed me "hard copies" of the agreement, the order status, and a Challenger brochure. Bob mailed hard copies of every status change as they occurred and sent me emails to let me know how my build was progressing.
During the wait for my car, my wife found out that she needed surgery, which would have to be scheduled as soon as possible. As it turned out, she had her surgery the week before my car was delivered to Frederick Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge. I had a dilemma in that we were going to drive out to Boardman, Ohio from Bethlehem, New York together, and she would follow me back from the dealership - an eighteen hour round trip. But with her surgery, this wasn't going to be possible. After informing Bob Frederick Jr of our situation and proposing that I drive a car to his dealership (that I was trying to sell myself) and trade it in, Bob spoke with his Used-Car Manager and offered me a very fair price for my trade, sight-unseen. That solved two problems for me. Since my wife's recovery was going well, I drove my 2001 PT Cruiser out to Boardman in a snowstorm to pick up my car when Bob called to let me know the car had arrived. As always happens, traffic in Western Pennsylvania was at a crawl in the storm, and there was no way I was going to arrive in Boardman before Bob's dealership closed for the day at 9:00 pm. I cell-phoned Bob to let him know I wouldn't be there before closing. Bob offered to solve this problem for me as well by informing me that when I finally crossed the Pennsylvania-Ohio border, to call him again. In the mean time, he was going to head home to eat dinner, and would return to the dealership when he got my call. I called Bob when I got into Ohio and he said he'd be at the dealership when I got there. Sure enough, when I pulled onto the lot at 10:00 pm, Bob was standing at the door with a big smile on his face! Everyone else had left the dealership, but Bob was prepared to close the deal and get me on my way back home. He had all of the "build sheets" for the car and most of the parts stickers/labels packaged up for me. He gave me a demonstration of how the "unique" features of the car worked, we chatted for a few minutes, took a few pictures, and I was on my way back to Eastern New York. There were no "surprises" or small print to haggle over. Bob even ordered and mailed me a new "Maroney sticker" since the one that came on my car had a small tear in it. It was like buying a car from a friend, NOT a dealer. At age 48, I've bought a few new cars in my time, and this was the absolute BEST new-car buying experience I've ever had!
I am sure there are hundreds of similar stories that could be told that you won't hear about where Bob has extended himself time and again to satisfy a customer and make the car buying experience pleasant. Equally important is Bob Frederick Jr's willingness to help out ANYONE who asks him for help or information about a car, whether they're his customer or that of another dealership. I have heard nothing but excellent comments about the service department at Frederick Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge as well, although my only contact with them has been the outstanding "prep" of my new car on delivery.
In a time when car dealers are looked at in disdain - as sheisters, liars and thieves, Bob Frederick Jr and Frederick Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge stands as a model of what Chrysler should be aiming for from their dealerships, NOT a target for elimination through restructuring. I am a long-time Chrysler/Plymouth/Dodge owner, and while my (and my Father's before me) loyalty held fast - even when the local dealerships failed to reward or remember it, I cannot conceive remaining loyal to a brand that doesn't recognize and reward the excellence consistantly demonstrated by a dealership such as Frederick Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge. My wife and I have bought two new Dodge cars in the past three years. But if Bob Frederick Jr's dealership remains on the list of terminations through Chrysler LLC's bankruptcy and ceases to exist, I will NEVER buy another Chrysler, Jeep or Dodge again. That's the ONLY dealership I will buy my Dodge vehicles from. I can assure you that there are MANY more people that feel the same way. We were treated with dignity, honesty, respect and enthusiasm. I can't understand how a dealership like that can be closed and Chrysler LLC expect to remain in business for very long.
Thank you for your time and attention to my letter.
Sincerely,