All Cars, All the Time

Dealers Lining up For smart

With 30-50 initial franchises for smart in the USA, dealers are starting to beat down Roger Penske's door. Penske says that he has already received 400 requests from dealers asking about obtaining a smart franchise. With visions of Mini mania dancing in their heads, its easy to see why dealers are willing to gamble the estimated $200k-250K setup costs.

Penske said that he expects DaimlerChrysler-brand dealerships will follow Toyota's lead with its Scion brand, setting aside a distinct area in the showroom. Other dealerships likely will have separate facilities for smart.

Will smart pack a wallop when it arrives in the USA in early 2008? Penske points to that fact that in the two weeks following DC’s announcement, smart’s USA website received more than 200,000 hits, with 8,400 people registering for more information and smart's higher than expected sales in Canada.

You can check out the full Ward's article here.