At least 2 Georgia GM dealers get non-renewal notices

GM is not in bankruptcy and did not make its list public. More than 20 metro Atlanta GM dealerships contacted by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution said they had not received a letter, giving them confidence they will stay in business. Two said they got letters, while many others did not return calls for comment.

Chuck Clancy, owner of Chuck Clancy Chevrolet in Cartersville, got a letter saying GM doesn't want to extend his franchise beyond October 2010. Clancy, a longtime dealer who's sold many brands, said that's fine with him.

Clancy expects to shed his GM brands sooner than that and plans to absorb those employees into his Chrysler dealership next door — which was not on that automaker's hit list.

"Do you really want to do business with somebody like that?" Clancy said of GM, whose management and business strategy he criticized.

"It's sort of like going steady and finding out your girlfriend cheated on you," he said of his relationship with the carmaker. "You might want the ring back."

Jack Moore, who co-owns Moore Pontiac Buick GMC Truck in Canton with his brother, Gene, opened a GM letter saying his contract with the manufacturer might not be renewed when it expires the fall of 2010.

But Moore, who said he could end up carrying other brands, said GM's letter didn't clarify anything for him.

"I don't know how to read the letter," he said. "I didn't see anything locked in stone. We are going to be conversing back and forth."

Moore said he's still ordering new GM vehicles. He told his employees about the letter but assured them it was business as usual for the dealership, which Moore said has been among the most profitable in the region in recent months.

"I'm a GM nut. GM has been in my blood all my life," said Moore, who's father started the business 64 years ago.

In a conference call with reporters Friday, GM said dealers receiving letters were either poor-performing or small.

The 1,100 targeted dealers represent 7 percent of GM's U.S. sales. About 400 to 500 had average annual sales of 35 or fewer units, it said.

In addition to the 1,100 dealers notified Friday, GM said it will be talking soon with about 470 Saturn, Hummer and Saab dealers on the status of those brands.

GM is trying to sell Saab, Saturn and Hummer.

The two moves combined would leave GM with 4,400 dealers.

The company has said that by the end of 2010 it wants to have 3,600 stores, so even more cuts would be needed.

Several dealers said they believe GM's dealer network will be stronger once it is pared down. They acknowledged the process creates confusion in the marketplace.

Gregory Baranco, who owns a Lilburn Buick-Pontiac-GMC dealership, said he did not get a letter Friday, but he said uncertainty in the industry persists.

"No one knows what tomorrow will bring," Baranco said. "If you do, I want to know what the lottery number is."

Customers have shown concern, he said.

"They want to know what they can do to help, and I say, 'Buy a car,'" Baranco said.

Few dealers should have been surprised Friday, said Jimmy Ellis, vice president of Jim Ellis Automotive, which sells the Chevrolet, Buick, Pontiac and GMC brands in Chamblee.

GM laid out the peformance criteria two weeks ago to dealers, Ellis said. Plenty of remaining dealers, including Jim Ellis, will be in business to take care of customers' sales and service needs, he said.

"It's up to us to reach out to those customers and let them know, 'It's okay. You're not going to be left out in the cold,'" Ellis said.

GM said it decided not to make the list public because the company wanted an orderly wind-down. GM also has more legal restrictions than Chrysler because it is not in bankruptcy court, which makes it easier to end contracts.

GM's letter is not a termination of the dealer agreement but an advisement that the dealer does not fit into GM's long-term plans, said Mark LaNeve, GM North America vice president of vehicle sales, service and marketing.

"They don't have to make a decision today, but we're giving them this notification to begin thinking about their options," LaNeve said.

GM, though, has said bankruptcy is a possibility, and that could mean much faster dealer terminations with a judge's approval. The company, which has received billions of dollars in government loans to stay in business, faces a June deadline to present a new restructuring plan to the Treasury Department.

Staff writers David Markiewicz, Pat Fox, Rachel Tobin Ramos, Matt Kempner, Kent Miles, Gertha Coffee and D. Aileen Dodd contributed to this report.