GM, Ford, FCA fight for customers with increased service, deals

Emergency room nurse Adam Blanton doesn’t have any extra time to drive 90 minutes to the car dealership, especially during a public health crisis.

Blanton is also a volunteer firefighter and U.S. Army reservist. So Blanton, 32, was thrilled to get his 2020 Chrysler Pacifica minivan delivered to him on a flatbed truck Thursday afternoon.

“My wife works days. I work nights,” Blanton said. “She’s an X-ray tech. My wife is having another baby so we needed more room.”

Their family schedule is crazed and concierge car service made their car purchase go more quickly, with signing papers at home.

“We are expanding and making it happen,” said Thad Szott, co-owner of Szott Auto Group in metro Detroit, whose flatbed truck delivered the Pacifica to Blanton.

“This is the best spirit of America right now,” said Szott. “Everybody is rising to the top. Some dealerships may go by appointment only or even close. Not us. People have to keep their vehicles running and get to the doctor or grocery store.”

The Detroit Three automakers and many of their dealers are finding creative ways to keep business moving as people hunker down in their homes amid the coronavirus crisis. All three companies offer finance deals on new cars, online shopping and other services. And if it means picking up customers’ cars for oil changes, repairs or delivering a new car to someone’s doorstep, dealers are doing it.

‘So people feel safe’

Analysts estimate the coronavirus crisis could cost the auto industry millions in car sales and service business. But most dealers can sell vehicles with little in-person interaction, a new report from J.D. Power said. It predicts the use of online buying and car delivery services will rise significantly given current conditions.

“Increasing consumer awareness of new ways to purchase and receive delivery of a vehicle will be a key activity for manufacturers and retailers in the coming weeks,” the J.D. Power report said.

Szott bought a flatbed truck for the specific purpose of delivering more vehicles to customers without adding mileage on their new cars, plus he’s delivering parts and repairs now. He noted that nearly all paperwork signing can be done at customers’ homes. If they don’t want to come to the dealership, it’s not even necessary anymore.

In fact, Hank the golden retriever is the Szott Auto mascot. He goes along for the ride helping with deliveries to brighten up customer moods.

Szott said his service centers are filled with Jeep, Toyota, Chrysler, Dodge, Ram and Ford vehicles because they’re picking up vehicles from customers who would rather stay home.

For those who do venture into the store, Szott said, the dealership is cleaning and sterilizing every hour “so people feel safe.” The family has added air purifying devices in their Highland and White Lake dealerships with additional installation scheduled for Holly and Waterford.

Minimizing the damage

General Motors dealer Tony Young used to drive into his dealership, Young Chevrolet Cadillac Buick GMC in Owosso, each morning and see at least 15 cars lined up at the service lane for oil changes.

But last week, he started arriving to an increasingly familiar sight: “No one was lined up.”

So Young took to social media, posting on Facebook and sending out emails to customers offering home pickup and delivery service. He sends out drivers several times a day to a customer’s home to retrieve their car, leave them a loaner and then return the car when service is complete.

Young added 50 loaner cars to his fleet so customers who do come in for service can return home. If they want to wait, seats in his waiting room are spaced 6 feet apart for social distancing. And employees disinfect all vehicles serviced or appraised to keep them “germ free.”

“We’re just trying to be a little more proactive for people who are at home,” said Young, a co-owner in Young Auto Group, which has nine dealerships in Michigan, seven selling GM brands and two selling Kia.

For the month of March, Young Auto Group typically sells about 1,000 new and used cars across all nine stores, Young said. Now he is hoping to end the month with 500 to 600 car sales. Likewise, his service business is down by 50% for the month, he said.

“It hasn’t decreased as much as possible. If I wasn’t doing the pickup service, business would be down 70%,” Young said. “It’s going to decrease, but we’re trying to minimize the damage. I talk to other dealers where both service and sales are drastically down. But everyone’s starting to panic and employees are looking at you like what are