Empty showrooms, busy service bays-it usually happens when the economy goes bust, as consumers postpone purchases and try to keep their beaters alive a little longer. "They're telling me, 'It needs to keep going for two or three more years,' and the car's already got well over 100,000 miles on it," says one service manager. That's a ray of good news for dealers surviving off revenue from the back end, though the numbers appear down more than in other recessions. Dealerships that have always been fixed-ops driven are weathering the storm better. Case inrnpoint: Wisconsin dealer Keith Kocourek, Kocourek Automotive Group, Wausau, Wis., who began his career in the service department. He's in good enough financial shape that he's considering buying another store this year.
展开▼
