Anyone own a car dealership

[Spiff325iS]

Been tossing the idea around in my head for a few years now about doing a small little dealership. Mainly for older BMW's (starting it off with E30's).

Everyone always tells me I should, since I go through mine pretty fast, and I enjoy fixing them up to basic OEM+ specs etc..

I think it would be a cool outlet for buying cars that you know you can trust to be reliable and clean.

What say you?


It could also potentially become another outlet for after market and OEM parts for the cars. Big picture would be to have 1 or 2 mechanics on hand, and be able to service cars there and POTENTIALLY have little service warranties, install the parts you buy there, and whatever else.

[Brandon12V]

There is certainly a market but it's hard not to get put under by the bigger guys in the current economic crisis. If you got to the point of Enthusiast Auto in ohio, that would be a pretty sick gig.

[Redfox]

Been tossing the idea around in my head for a few years now about doing a small little dealership. Mainly for older BMW's (starting it off with E30's).

Everyone always tells me I should, since I go through mine pretty fast, and I enjoy fixing them up to basic OEM+ specs etc..

I think it would be a cool outlet for buying cars that you know you can trust to be reliable and clean.

What say you?


It could also potentially become another outlet for after market and OEM parts for the cars. Big picture would be to have 1 or 2 mechanics on hand, and be able to service cars there and POTENTIALLY have little service warranties, install the parts you buy there, and whatever else.

I think it's a great idea. There is a shop here that specializes in german made cars, and they make a lot of money, but it's because they are greedy. There aren't many places that specialize in classic/older cars without charging an arm and a leg. You meet some really cool people that way, and you definitely have customers for life, especially if you are good at what you do. The other plus is that it's a pretty unique idea, especially if you are the only type of dealer/shop that has anything like this in your area.

[thearkitekt]

sounds like a fun idea, do what you enjoy and are passionate about. I'm sure if you do it right you can make enough money to have a good life.

also totally reminded me of this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Owai48O-4I

[bimmerteck]

Our family owns a few dealerships, there is definitely room for the small guy, assuming 2 things.

1. You find a niche market large enough to support your business with a customer base that is currently unsupported in you region.

2. Your buyers know the market like the back of their hand and are willing to go outside the regular network to find inventory should the normal channels not yield what your customers are looking for.


There is a guy down the street that is a smaller lot, lots of showroom space and he sells/deals in nothing but Corvettes. Seems to do pretty well, he said he'll often watch for ebay auctions that don't make reserve and make offers after the auction ends. He has also been known to arrange inspections for cars listed across the country and arrange dealer transfers/shipping ect.

[mikeedler]

you are going to starve if you try doing that with e30s. maybe with e46/e39 you could stay alive.

[Spiff325iS]

There is certainly a market but it's hard not to get put under by the bigger guys in the current economic crisis. If you got to the point of Enthusiast Auto in ohio, that would be a pretty sick gig.

I don't think I'd be worried about the bigger guys, as I wouldn't have my hopes TOO high to begin, it would be more of second job.

I think it's a great idea. There is a shop here that specializes in german made cars, and they make a lot of money, but it's because they are greedy. There aren't many places that specialize in classic/older cars without charging an arm and a leg. You meet some really cool people that way, and you definitely have customers for life, especially if you are good at what you do. The other plus is that it's a pretty unique idea, especially if you are the only type of dealer/shop that has anything like this in your area.

There are shops around where I live now, and where my parents are, but no one that specifically sells older BMW's like this- at least ones that people are looking for.

I see all the time that people "WTB E30" and a lot of "WTB E30, have the $ for a good one", and all that's in between; I think it would be an awesome place where people locally (and even from farther distances) could look/browse for a car that they know would be a trustworthy purchase.

Also, most E30's that are in any sort of decent shape tend to sell within a week or so- I'd imagine an E30 in even better shape wouldn't do too bad either!

But again, I wouldn't be starting this business to make millions, or to sell 500 cars a week.

It would start as something with maybe 4-5 cars, and I can focus on working on them and getting them out the door.

Our family owns a few dealerships, there is definitely room for the small guy, assuming 2 things.

1. You find a niche market large enough to support your business with a customer base that is currently unsupported in you region.

2. Your buyers know the market like the back of their hand and are willing to go outside the regular network to find inventory should the normal channels not yield what your customers are looking for.


There is a guy down the street that is a smaller lot, lots of showroom space and he sells/deals in nothing but Corvettes. Seems to do pretty well, he said he'll often watch for ebay auctions that don't make reserve and make offers after the auction ends. He has also been known to arrange inspections for cars listed across the country and arrange dealer transfers/shipping ect.

1. E30 scene is a pretty niche market, and there are definitely TONS of enthusiasts out there, and most any E30 person I've talked to can appreciate a clean well sorted E30, even if it's bone stock.

2. I can definitely work/use those 'other' markets, and it's something I enjoy- so I could definitely make that work.


There are all sorts of techniques for acquiring God's Chariots, and I would even be open to the dealer being a Seller's Market as well.

- You need the money, I need the car, and I buy it off you etc...


I think it can work- but I just need to do some more legal research on this, see what the spaces in this area run, and really break down the money and time investment it would require.

IDEALLY, I'd like to start with just a space I can store and work on the cars, and sell the cars via internet, and then the deal goes down at the dealership/space and/or I ship them to the buyer. After seeing how quickly or slowly the cars come and go would determine how much more involvement and expansion I'd want.

[Spiff325iS]

you are going to starve if you try doing that with e30s. maybe with e46/e39 you could stay alive.

It wouldn't be my main form of income- it would more of a second income/hobby.


Realistically, it would start as a space where I find cars I can get deals on, fix up, and sell for a fair price- but it would have a legal dealership title over it (so I can sell more that 5 or whatever cars a year), then slowly evolve, but most likely remain a hobby/second income.

Who knows though...

[LuckyHenriksen]

I pretty much do this as a second job already, and I have been quite successful so far. But I am not "legit" as I don't have a company, name, any official documentation. I think it would be awesome if you can get into it, I have always dreamed about doing it full time.

[Matt-B]

I think it would be awesome if you can get into it, I have always dreamed about doing it full time.

i had the same dream

[LuckyHenriksen]

I had it first :P

[woodisgood]

I looked into it here in NC, there is quite a lot that goes into getting your license. The one that I didn't too much care for was something about having to maintain a physical address in a business district. I was wanting to be able to buy cars at dealer auctions to resale.

[SoEm0]

I wish I could do this where I live, but my boss's husband already has a german car dealership. He would put me under with the quickness.

[e34john]

You can be like the 2002ad of E30s.

[MrSlacker]

You can do it, sure. However, there are many ins and outs of the business that you will need to learn. Also, I dont know what state you are in and what your regulations are, but there are costs associated with owning a dealership. My uncle is a dealer and I have been working with him for years. We have two companies, one in NJ and one in NY. A lot of laws and paperwork is different, as well as requirements.
If you want to be legit, you will need to pay to play. Also, you can't just go to an auction and raise your hand to buy a car. You will need to learn how everything works. How does paperwork work, etc.
This isn't something I would ever get into without a mentor or experience so GOOD LUCK!