audi-only dealerships?

Steve Marinello smarinello at telocity.com
Fri Sep 27 15:04:44 EDT 2002


You'd be amazed at Crescent City Motors, where we can get such good prices
from John in Parts.  They have a miserable little crowded showroom housing
Audi, Porsche, VW and Saab.  Broken asphalt lots for most of the cars
outside.  They recently paved the lot across the street for VW, but pretty
much cram what they have into the space they've got.  Used cars on the left
of the showroom, most of the Porsches and Audis displayed in one line on the
other side, across the street from the newly paved lot. Storage in back for
cars in service is completely exposed to New Orleans sun and weather.
There's a 928 out there that has been around for more than a year out back,
first waiting for parts and then trying to track the owner down.  It has
died a merciless death in the sun.

Why Audi or Porsche, or VW or Saab allows them to keep the franchises is
sometimes way beyond me.  There's a new VW dealership about 10 miles away
(good looking operation; abysmal service) and that ownership group has
apparently been given the franchise for the North Shore across Lake
Ponchartrain where I live.  I wonder why?

Steve

----- Original Message -----
From: "Brett Dikeman" <brett at cloud9.net>
To: "urq" <urq at pacbell.net>; <quattro at audifans.com>
Sent: Friday, September 27, 2002 1:05 PM
Subject: Re: Didi/Carlsen


> At 10:24 AM -0700 9/27/02, urq wrote:
> >Didi is still working actively at Carlsen ... I just picked up a load of
> >parts for a TB on one of the V8s yesterday ... perhaps the original
poster
> >was talking about Linda ... BTW, they are doing a big face lift at the
> >dealership ... and apparently they are going Audi only!
>
> Dictated policy from Audi Of America and Porsche North America.   In
> some cases, dealerships are able to get away with it by completely
> separating showrooms with a wall or similar, but for the most part,
> Audi doesn't want anything to do with other brands(VAG or not) on the
> same floor.  Can't blame them- not very classy to have a Honda Accord
> sitting next to an A8.
>
> I think half of it was to force dealers to shape up.  Some badly
> needed it- Bernardi Audi's building was a)shared and b)scary.  On my
> first visit, I said to the service writer(looking up a radio code):
> "This building is SO much nicer than the old one."
>
> He looked at me and nodded with a "tell me about it" look.  "You
> know, a lot of people have been saying that."
>
> No kidding.  The old building was poorly maintained, dirty, smelly,
> poorly laid out, had NO parking(and what parking there was required a
> 20-point turn to get in/out of), the service desk area looked like a
> DMV area, etc.  The new building is large, spacious, modern design,
> good parking layout, nice waiting room, covered dropoff area for
> service, etc...a thousand times better in almost every regard.  It
> was also busier than I ever remember the old place being.
>
> >Did did say she wanted to make sure that all were aware of the wholesale
biz
> >at Carlsen ... I told her that we all were.  Apparently Carlsen is even
> >getting calls from folks in the UK for quotes ...
>
> Phil Payne has reported outrageous prices in the UK in the past and
> dissatisfaction with the UK owner's club lack of handling the issue.
>
> Brett
> --
> ----
> "They that give up essential liberty to obtain temporary
> safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." - Ben Franklin
> http://www.users.cloud9.net/~brett/
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>




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