Auto Dealer Monthly, September 2014

ON THE POINT CEO Mary Barra addressed GMs annual stockholders meeting in June The OEMs 2014 tally of recalled vehicles would reach 289 million by July 1 8 AUTO DEALER MONTHLY SEPTEMBER 2014 By Jim Ziegler Th e 1990 Arnold Schwarzenegger blockbuster Total Recall underwhelming 2012 is a futuristic fantasy centered around Rekall a that sells dreams so become actual memories In the original aft er a virtual trip to Mars goes awry Arnold fi nds himself in a world of blurred reality as a fugitive outlaw and revolutionary fi ghting to overthrow the dictator of a police state Or is he Certainties have been no easier to come by in the wake of the massive recalls that continue to drag General Motors its dealers and its beleaguered CEO Mary Barra down on many levels and in many dimensions To whom does the moral stigma belong Who knew what and when Who covered it up and why Did someone calculate liability losses and legal consequences verses estimated costs of repairs Th e government consumers dealers and yours truly would like to know Meanwhile the numbers continue to grow As of July 1 GM had issued 54 recalls involving 289 million vehicles around the world As I recently pointed out that fi gure is inching ever closer to the total number of units they sold during the period of time the recalls cover It also beats Fords single OEM record of 233 million recall units in 2001 most of which can be attributed to the Firestone tire debacle Speaking of GMs competitors they have collectively added at least another 10 million units to this years total leaving 2004 s once record 30 million unit total in the dust In the early stages I warned that massive recalls were a harbinger of doom for our industry I was dismissed in some circles as an alarmist and strong sales and increased service traffi c appeared to prove me wrong Come on Butt head my critics seemed to say Remember the Toyota recalls Th e public forgets Well get through this Well Beavis it may be time to put another notch in my I Told You So belt I started writing these columns 25 years ago and my predictions have always gone against the grain of what every other forecaster in the industry was predicting But I sure have been right a lot of the time Am I that smart or are they that stupid Lets save that question for another time Th e other shoe just dropped and dealers are moving into a world of pain I will explain but please dont blame the messenger Predictions aside these developments were always beyond our control Nothing could have been done for us to avoid the consequences of our manufacturers missteps THE PEOPLE VS CARMAX Th e fi rst tremor came in July when 11 consumer groups fi led a petition with the Federal Trade Commission FTC alleging BLURRED REALITY The ongoing recall saga has left dealers in a world of confusion and new threats related to unrepaired units may be larger than they appear ger block b and its remake rema trip cent company comp real they PHOTO COURTESY GENERAL MOTORS CO Jim Ziegler is president of Ziegler SuperSystems Inc and one of the industrys most recognizable experts trainers and speakers JZiegler@ AutoDealerMonthly com