Declining sales are having a bad ripple effect. Too many dealers are chasing a shrinking pool of customers for its cars and trucks, so the Ford Motor Co. is planning to reduce its dealership network.
The plan, which was announced to dealers at a meeting last week, will be "voluntary and collaborative," according to a spokesman. Nationwide, Ford dealers sold an average of 696 new vehicles each,
compared to the average of 1,613 for Toyota dealers. Ford has 4,300 U.S. dealers selling the Ford, Lincoln and Mercury brands, and the average dealer's profit has dropped 10 percent this year.
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