Wyoming GM Dealers Drop Buick Over Electric Vehicles

Sales of all Electric Vehicles (EVs) across America have not been good.

There was an initial spike in sales, but a dramatic dropoff followed that in the market.

Reasons for the dropoff vary from performance problems with EVs to charging issues. Performance and charging on cold winter days was an eye-opener to many current EV owners. (Business Insider).

Then there is the issue of price. Despite multiple government tax breaks and subsidies, EVs are expensive for many consumers.

But at least one company seems to think that EVs will soon replace the old internal composition engine.

Buick plans to produce and sell only EVs by 2030 (Electrek).

Buick has informed franchise dealerships that they will have to switch to all-electric cars on their lots if they want to remain a Buick dealer.

That push caused a backlash from Buick dealerships across the nation.

According to the Detroit Free Press:

General Motors said nearly half its Buick dealers took buyouts this year rather than invest in selling and servicing electric vehicles as the automaker's brands transition to all electric by 2030.

That means GM will end 2023 with about 1,000 Buick stores nationwide, down 47% from where it started the year.

Just two months into 2024 a growing list of dealerships are dropping the brand.

Two Wyoming dealerships are dropping Buick.

Denny Menholt Chevrolet GMC in Cody and Yellowstone Motors in Powell don't believe that there is much of a market for EVs in Wyoming.

“If they had kept a strong mixture of [internal combustion engines] and EVs like GMC and Chevrolet, we would have kept Buick,” said Bert Miller, general manager of the Cody dealership. (Cowboy State Daily).

 

At last count, 17 auto dealerships that sell EVs in Wyoming, along with over 3000 dealers across the nation, have sent a letter to President Joe Biden telling him to "tap the brakes" on a proposed government electric vehicle mandate. (Cowboy State Daily).

“... enthusiasm has stalled” because EVs are “not selling nearly as fast as they are arriving at our dealerships – even with deep price cuts, manufacturer incentives and generous government incentives,” the letter says.

“With each passing day, it becomes more apparent that this attempted electric vehicle mandate is unrealistic based on current and forecasted customer demand,” according to the letter.

“Already, electric vehicles are stacking up on our lots, which is our best indicator of customer demand in the marketplace,” the letter noted.