Jump to content
Create New...
  • William Maley
    William Maley

    Mini May Allow Their Stand Alone Dealers To Move In with BMW

      But not every Mini dealer has a BMW dealer

    Mini has been struggling in the U.S. for the past few as more consumers shun small cars. The brand which expected annual sales to total 100,000 vehicles by 2017, peaked at about 66,500 models in 2013 according to Automotive News. Sales through the first ten months of the years have totaled 37,359. This isn't good news for the 127 standalone Mini dealers in the U.S. as it makes it tough for owners to justify the investment. In 2016, 45 percent of Mini dealers reported being unprofitable. A year later, that number rose to 54 percent.

    "As a dealer and a manufacturer you have a vision of where the brand is going, and you have to prepare for it. In this case, the vision now isn't what it was when some of these stores were built," explained Jason Willis, a member of the Mini National Dealer Council and general manager of fixed operations at Willis Auto Campus in Des Moines, Iowa.

    Mini's parent company, BMW is considering various options to help improve profitability. One of the options on the table is allowing dealers to integrate Mini into their BMW stores. To make sure the brands stand apart, Mini is looking into having a separate showroom with dedicated employees for sales and service.

    "We've given a lot of flexibility for the dealers to present ideas. This is to help make sure that, until our next wave of product, and the market becomes more favorable, our dealers each remain a strong and going concern," said Thomas Felbermair, vice president of Mini Region Americas.

    But there comes an issue with this idea. Mini has 31 dealers that don't have a BMW dealership that they can integrate into. A spokesman for Mini said they "are looking at additional forms of support for stores that remain fully exclusive," but didn't expand into how they plan on doing that.

    Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required)

    User Feedback

    Recommended Comments

    57 minutes ago, riviera74 said:

    No need to have Mini in the USA.  It belongs in Europe.  Nobody here likes small cars.

    Let me correct that for you, a very small select group of people like mini. The majority of Americans want something much bigger.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites



    Join the conversation

    You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
    Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

    Guest
    Add a comment...

    ×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

      Only 75 emoji are allowed.

    ×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

    ×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

    ×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.


  • Chevy Estimated Range for Silverado EV Work Truck Raised to 450 miles

    When Chevrolet initially took the wraps off the Silverado EV last year, GM had estimated up to a 400 mile range based on its own calculations.  As the Silverado EV has made its way through development, it went for EPA certification and came back with 50 miles more than GM's estimate.  With this new EPA certification, the Silverado EV has an over 100-mile advantage over its only on-sale competitor the F-150 Lightning Extended Range (320 miles). The Silverado EV will launch first in WT trim with t

    Chevrolet

    All New 2024 Toyota Tacoma Yearns For Adventure

    The Toyota Tacoma has been the best-selling mid-size pickup in the U.S. for nearly 20 years. Holding such an important place in the lineup, Toyota has been very conservative with updates in the past.  The outgoing generation ran for a full 7 years, but even that was based on a platform that dates all the way back to 2004.  For 2024, the Tacoma sheds the old platform entirely and joins the Tundra and Sequoia on Toyota's new TNGA-F global truck platform.  The 2024 Tacoma is the latest (and final)

    Toyota

    The Ford Ranger Raptor Finally Comes to the US

    After years of being forbidden fruit offered only in overseas markets, Ford has finally deemed the Ranger Raptor worthy enough to bring to the U.S. The biggest reason for the U.S. not getting the prior version was its standard diesel power and the inability of the platform to take a sizable V6 engine. When Ford redesigned the 2024 Ranger (read more about the 2024 Ford Ranger here), they made sure to alter the engine bay and chassis to accommodate a V6. Powering the Ranger Raptor is a 3.0-li

    Ford


  • Subscribe to Cheers & Gears

    Cheers and Gears Logo

    Since 2001 we've brought you real content and honest opinions, not AI-generated stuff with no feeling or opinions influenced by the manufacturers.

    Please consider subscribing. Subscriptions can be as little as $1.75 a month, and a paid subscription drops most ads.*
     

    You can view subscription options here.

    *a very limited number of ads contain special coupon deals for our members and will show

  • Posts

  • Who's Online (See full list)

    • There are no registered users currently online
×
×
  • Create New...

Hey there, we notice you're using an ad-blocker. We're a small site that is supported by ads or subscriptions. We rely on these to pay for server costs and vehicle reviews.  Please consider whitelisting us in your ad-blocker, or if you really like what you see, you can pick up one of our subscriptions for just $1.75 a month or $15 a year. It may not seem like a lot, but it goes a long way to help support real, honest content, that isn't generated by an AI bot.

See you out there.

Drew
Editor-in-Chief

Write what you are looking for and press enter or click the search icon to begin your search