Minden dealership may close next year

Minden's car dealership may close at the end of 2010 if General Motors officials don't reverse their decision not to renew their contract with Carson Valley Chevrolet.

The dealership, owned by Michael Hohl Automotive Group, was purchased in 2007.

Group Operations Manager Steve Conroy held out hope that the dealership can change the auto giant's mind.

"We have a great relationship with GM, and we think we can appeal that and get them to repeal that decision," Conroy said.

Michael Hohl General Motors dealership in Carson City survived the cuts recently announced by GM.

Conroy said they were relieved to hear their Carson City dealership escaped the cuts.

Conroy also said that Scott Motors in Reno was on the list of GM cuts, which would leave Michael Hohl the only Cadillac dealer in the region.

GM recently told about 1,100 of its dealers " one in five " that they would be dropped, adding to the economic pain radiating from the beleaguered Detroit automakers to cities and towns across the country.

Including Chrysler's decision to eliminate a quarter of its own, about 1,900 dealerships " many pillars of their communities and heavy advertisers for local media " learned in a matter of 48 hours that they would be forced either to sell fewer brands or close altogether.

While GM doesn't own the dealers, the company says its network is too big, causing dealers to compete with each other and giving shoppers too much leverage to talk down prices and hurt future sales.

An industry group says the GM and Chrysler cuts combined could wipe out 100,000 jobs.

Both GM and Chrysler are scrambling to reorganize and stay alive in a severe recession that has pummeled car and truck sales for U.S. automakers, which had already been losing market share to foreign companies for decades.

Chrysler LLC is already in bankruptcy protection, and industry analysts say General Motors Corp. is making its cuts now in preparation for a bankruptcy filing June 1. The company says it would prefer to restructure out of court.