Used car dealership closed up overnight?

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May 25, 2005
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I thought that with the current car prices "high-end" used car dealerships were raking it in. I used to work for an independent dealership years ago that somehow avoided bankruptcy and ended up moving to a larger newer building not too long ago. I haven't worked there in years but. Three weeks ago there were cars on the lot and vehicles packed inside. I happen to be coming back from lunch and drove past and there wasn't a single vehicle anywhere, and the building was cleaned out. Supposedly from people that Inknow the owner played loosecand fast. I don't think I've ever seen a place close up so fast. Has anyone else seen this?
 
Sure. You never know just how a business is doing; they coulda got bought out and their inventory moved; they could have been operating in the red and had to close up; they could have been operating illegally or unscroupously. Who knows?
There was a "Ferrari of Los Gatos" years ago that had such beautiful exotics. The owner was busted for tax fraud or something like that and ended up in the pokey. Ya never know.

This was the #1 dealership in the world for quite awhile.
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When I worked for him years ago I as a few others got laid off due to the business "hemorrhaging money " My immediate boss quit and took another job a couple weeks later. The F&I guy and front end staff changed up a few times. I've only heard of this once. A lady took her car in for an emissions test after she purchased it. That was mistake number 1. When she went back the used car dealership was gone. Now she was stuck.
 
Haven't seen it with car dealers, but I haven't paid attention. I know about it with industrial wholesalers. Loose funding, declare bankruptcy, creditors pull the plug - whatever. The inventory is usually grabbed immediately so the previous owner or less senior creditor doesn't try to steal it.
 
According to Google reviews it sounds like a couple of people snagged a purchase three weeks ago. They must have closed up right after that. One guy said he purchased an electric motorcycle but the manual and proprietary charging cable didn't come with the bike. Eeek.
 
Sure. You never know just how a business is doing; they coulda got bought out and their inventory moved; they could have been operating in the red and had to close up; they could have been operating illegally or unscroupously. Who knows?
There was a "Ferrari of Los Gatos" years ago that had such beautiful exotics. The owner was busted for tax fraud or something like that and ended up in the pokey. Ya never know.

This was the #1 dealership in the world for quite awhile.
3358240811_b2217bb475.jpg
Yep. Having lived in that town for a very long time I have a couple of stories about Ferrari of Los Gatos. I'll leave any hint of names out, but my comments are based on firsthand experience.

1) "Someone" bought a brand new F40. After waiting months and months he wanted it ASAP after it came in. At the time Ferrari of Los Gatos had a service facility in nearby Campbell (the town of Los Gatos no longer wanted a service facility in that part of town and made them move the service facility there). The new owner promised to drive it directly from the Los Gatos showroom to the service facility for a new car inspection. They refused to let the new owner drive it there, but let's just say a high ranking "official" of the dealership drove it there. The new owner followed his car on the way, only to see the high ranking "official" spin it out on the freeway on ramp and back his brand new F40 into the center guard rail on the freeway (Hwy 17). The new owner wanted a new car, of which Ferrari of Los Gatos refused. It ended up in a long legal battle, the owner finally conceding and having to take the damaged car after repairs.

2) An actual family member of mine bought not just one Ferrari from Ferrari Los Los Gatos, he bought three. His stunningly gorgeous single headlight 1967 330 GT (which I drove a few times) needed some valve train work, but the repairs took forever and forever and forever and forever. He kept asking for the status of his car but was told to be patient. He finally insisted on seeing his car one day, only to find the engine was gone and had been sold to someone else! Another legal battle but Ferrari of Los Gatos entered bankruptcy and my family member ended up with nothing more than a dusty rolling chassis.

I hope the owner of Ferrari of Los Gatos (I forget his name, Steve something?) got a long prison sentence. He was a crook with absolutely no morals. He would have sold his children's organs for money.

Scott
 
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Hennessy from what I understand back in the day had issues like this. People would drop off their Viper for a twin-turbo upgrade exhaust upgrade etc and wait and wait with parts missing etc.
 
Back in the day when I was a young internal bank auditor, we did, or should I say intended to, do a review of a small used car dealership that we provided a floor plan credit line to. When the Loan Officer arrived, the cars were gone as was the mobile office trailer...IIRC the sign was still there.
 
Dealer had lots of toxic debt and went out of business, lots of zombie companies with crazy amount of debt.

Some used exotic car dealers pull Consignment Scams and the ‘new owner’ never gets title to used vehicle. Only a fool would give their car to a stranger and expect no problems to happen.
 
Reminds me of a certain custom shop that a bunch of guys on another forum got burned by. He kept cars for months on end and ceased all communication, all the while taking various parts off some cars to get other cars finished, and other foolishness like that. Customers started showing up and found the place abandoned, with dusty half-finished cars locked inside and others sitting outside with no protection from the weather (windows open, etc).
 
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