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XFactor
12-18-2007, 06:07 PM
What the heck happened to Board Ford. I drove by this morning and didn't notice any change. On the way home tonight all the Ford signs were covered. I called the dealership and they said they were out of business. Seems a little odd to me.:confused: I think Ford pulled the line for some reason. Anybody know what's up?

454 Squirt
12-18-2007, 06:24 PM
Hot Boat banned 'em :D

ULTRA26 # 1
12-18-2007, 06:35 PM
What the heck happened to Board Ford. I drove by this morning and didn't notice any change. On the way home tonight all the Ford signs were covered. I called the dealership and they said they were out of business. Seems a little odd to me.:confused: I think Ford pulled the line for some reason. Anybody know what's up?
I bought my Lightning there. Never much cared for the dealership

ULTRA26 # 1
12-18-2007, 06:35 PM
What the heck happened to Board Ford. I drove by this morning and didn't notice any change. On the way home tonight all the Ford signs were covered. I called the dealership and they said they were out of business. Seems a little odd to me.:confused: I think Ford pulled the line for some reason. Anybody know what's up?
I bought my Lightning there. Never much cared for the dealership

Member: 7673
12-18-2007, 06:41 PM
Was wondering the same thing this weekend.
Overcoming road bumps
Article Launched: 12/11/2007 06:39:44 PM PST
THERE are some silver linings in the big blue oval's demise in Whittier.
First, the city has not put all its sales tax eggs in the car dealer basket. No, in the last 15 years, redevelopment has diversified, focusing on shopping center remodels and restaurant outreach, meaning sales tax revenues flow into city coffers via purchases of iPods, Cuisinarts and sweaters as well as people eating tacos, burgers and babyback ribs.
So, now, Detroit's retrenchment of Ford Motor Co., which has rippled west and is soon to claim the corporate-owned Board Ford dealership on Whittier Boulevard (set to close its doors next month), can be absorbed without anyone at City Hall hitting the panic button.
Still, there are some caution signs on the road ahead.
Board Ford was "in the Top Ten" of sales tax generators in the city, said City Manager Steve Helvey. So, City Hall must work on filling the six-acre site and work quickly. Word on the street is that another car dealer in town will move into the site and expand. Then, there's the matter of replacing the other dealer's site, as the game of checkers gets tougher and tougher.
Whittier's silver lining also comes from experience. It has weathered the storm of failed dealerships in the past, namely, Whittier Dodge, Whittier Sun Nissan and Whittier Kia.
City Hall can fantasize about getting say a Chevrolet dealer. But there's pressure from General Motors to locate dealerships along freeways - something Whittier does not have. Already, many car dealerships go to Cerritos (San Gabriel River (605) Freeway) or to the Puente Hills complex (Pomona (60) Freeway). It's part of the trend in car dealership sales and marketing. In fact, some car dealerships started on Greenleaf Avenue, then moved to Whittier Boulevard for more exposure.
Still, the business economy in Whittier is good. What is happening in Detroit is not Whittier's fault. In fact, Ford dealerships are closing in Carson (Don Kott), Norwalk (Keystone) and in Claremont. It is because of Whittier's redevelopment efforts along Whittier Boulevard that we believe it can withstand this loss.
But only if city staff and the City Council stay aggressive on attracting new retail and yes, find the right mix of new business/jobs and new residential. That can turn the silver lining into green, as in general fund revenues, that keep Whittier supplying its residents with services they both need and expect.

19Nordic76
12-18-2007, 06:50 PM
it has gone thru different management and was ripping people off. hell it started for me in 84 when I bought a new Mustang GT. the power windows would only go 1/2 way up, took it in 4 or 5 times to fix it, and then the last time they gave me a can of silicone spray and told me to keep lubing the rubber moulding. A new car?? I had a few more problems with them also, and went to another dealer. Have heard other dealers also complain about them

rrrr
12-18-2007, 07:09 PM
Ford has been buying and closing underperforming dealerships nationwide. Troy Aikman Ford in Dallas was closed down last month. It was an older store in a bad location.

Ryphraph
12-18-2007, 07:39 PM
Claremont Ford is also going under...
Ryph

Baja Big Dog
12-18-2007, 07:54 PM
They sucked 20 years ago!!:(

Riomouse911
12-18-2007, 08:59 PM
I got this from an insider: Ford vehicle sales, outside of the F series and Mustang, stink, so they're trimming down dealerships all over the Country to lighten the load.
Think about it, between Pomona and Yucaipa there are 3 dealers on highway 10, (In Claremont, Fontana and Colton), another in San Bernardino, one in Ontario, on and on..

rrrr
12-19-2007, 05:26 AM
I got this from an insider: Ford vehicle sales, outside of the F series and Mustang, stink, so they're trimming down dealerships all over the Country to lighten the load.
Think about it, between Pomona and Yucaipa there are 3 dealers on highway 10, (In Claremont, Fontana and Colton), another in San Bernardino, one in Ontario, on and on..
It's not exactly a secret......this is from Autoweek, posted in September 2006:
Eliminating the Excess
Ford sets out to slash 600 dealerships
By DONNA HARRIS | AMY WILSON | AUTOMOTIVE NEWS
Ford Motor Co. wants to eliminate as many as 600 Ford, Lincoln and Mercury dealerships over three years through its store consolidation plan, sources close to the plan say.
Ford is quietly offering some dealers as much as $300,000 in financial aid to encourage dealership mergers and streamline its bloated retail network, dealers say.
On Jan. 1, Ford Motor had 4,396 U.S. dealerships, according to Automotive News' annual dealer census. Two sources familiar with the plan told Automotive News that the company seeks to trim its retail network by about 600 stores, largely by persuading weaker dealers in some metropolitan markets to sell out to stronger ones.
Dealers say Ford is offering cash selectively to some dealers in 18 large metropolitan markets, primarily in the Northeast and Midwest. But they say the $100,000 to $300,000 Ford is offering is not enough to compensate for their investments in their franchises, such as dealership upgrades.
Nor would those amounts compensate for the distressed price another Ford dealer likely would pay for their franchises, dealers say.
'Chicken feed'
"It's chicken feed," says a Lincoln-Mercury dealer who asked not to be named. "Ford doesn't appear serious."
As Ford told of big cuts on Friday, Sept. 15, in jobs and operating costs, Cisco Codina, the company's group vice president of North American marketing, sales and service, briefed dealers about the consolidation plan during a teleconference.
But Codina did not speak of a formal dealer aid package, nor did he offer new details of the company's plan to "right-size" its dealership network. Codina could not be reached for comment later Friday.
"I know this is a sensitive issue," Codina told dealers during the broadcast. "And it's primarily a metro dealer issue, not so much single-point and smaller points."
Ford has prepared a war chest to help promote dealership closures, an inside source says. The aid is likely to be tailored to the circumstances of each region and each proposed deal. In addition to cash incentives, Ford also seeks to speed up deals by providing money to buy back vehicle and parts inventories, sources say.
Voluntary effort
Codina told the dealers that Ford wants to pursue consolidation "on a voluntary basis."
"We understand what's at stake here, and I have no interest in having an adversarial relationship with any of you," he said.
The Ford national dealer council will meet the week of Oct. 2 in Dearborn, Mich. Council Chairman Tom Addis, dealer principal of Lake City Ford in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, says he expects Ford to disclose more details of the consolidation plan then.
The October meeting replaces an August meeting that Ford canceled abruptly after Automotive News first reported Ford's plan for dealership consolidations in 18 U.S. markets. The consolidation markets include New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Detroit, Boston, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
Despite the massive personnel cutbacks that Ford revealed Friday, Codina told dealers that "you can expect a very high level of service -- we will be available to you." Codina also insisted that Ford would "stay focused on our business."
But dealers counter that Ford's employees are too busy worrying about their jobs to concentrate on dealers' needs. Says a Ford dealer: "There's a lot of fear behind the cubicles."

OCMerrill
12-19-2007, 08:11 AM
Steve Saleen started out of that dealership back in '84. All Saleen mustangs were converted there for many years.