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Maryland Dealer Plans to Defy GM and Sell Caprice to General Public

48K views 370 replies 110 participants last post by  isszy  
#1 · (Edited)
Updated!!

Jalopnik

Justin Hyde — When Chevrolet announced last year it would import the Australian-built Chevy Caprice sedan as police-only fleet car, enthusiasts begged for a civilian version to no avail. Now one Maryland dealer says it will buck GM and sell 13 Caprices to the public.
In its advertising touting the models, Criswell Chevrolet of Gaithersburg, Md., touts the car's similarity to the cancelled Pontiac G8, its 355-hp V8 and its performance in Michigan State Police tests. The dealer has specially outfitted 13 detective sedans with additional features for public consumption, such as power windows and power seats. While the list prices run from $31,000 to $37,000 — not a bad price considering GM sells no other rear-wheel-drive, V8-powered sedans in America.

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While GM has said it was strictly limiting the Caprice only to law enforcement agencies, it's not clear what would keep Criswell or another dealer from selling them to the public. GM has to certify the Caprice to all U.S. standards of crashworthiness, pollution and fuel efficiency, just as it does with the Chevy Captiva, the old Saturn Vue it sells only to rental fleets. But the Caprice isn't listed in government databases for fuel economy ratings and crash tests; the efficiency data in particular is required to be displayed on window stickers.

We've got calls into GM and the dealer to see how this is possible, but 13 lucky buyers might be the envy of their local cop shops — or more if other dealers can pull the same trick.
UPDATED
UPDATED: Criswell's sale is legit thanks to a sharp-eyed reading of contracts, and an oversight by GM.

The Caprice is the first vehicle GM has sold in decades that's supposed to be limited exclusively to police departments. But GM didn't explicitly say in the Caprice sales contracts with its dealers that the car could only be sold to law enforcement agencies. That means Criswell — or any other dealer with a Caprice on its lot today — is free to sell them to whomever has the money.

Unfortunately for Caprice fans, Criswell's sale has made GM aware of its mistake, and all future contracts will carry GM's public sale ban. A few lucky Caprice fans will be able to buy one new; the rest will have to wait a year or two for a high-mileage version to cross an auction block.
Just when I thought there was light at the end of the tunnel.
 
#5 ·
:dro:

Does that Caprice look good or what? Looks like they found a loophole to sell these to the public, albeit at a extremely inflated price. This dealer will make megabucks off these Caprices for sure.
Would they have to get GMs permission before they claim them "for sale to public"?
 
#57 ·
As usual you are absolutely correct FanOfDurant. If these cars had of been brought here as Impala SS and Chevelle SS respectively they wouldn't have been able to keep up with the orders. They feed us this line of crap that Pontiac was the performance division. Pontiac was never the performance division it was a division that took cleanly styled Chevrolets and riced them out with garrish body kits and tacky decals and such.
 
#102 ·
I tend to agree.

This is going back a ways---too far for some. But when the 91-92 RS Camaros with the B4C package (police package, inc 1LE brakes, Tuned port engines, none avail in a civilian RS) was offered it too was for law enforcement agencies.

The dealer could sell to the public but would incur penalties from GM for doing so. Nothing was written on paper but GM could screw the dealer over in ways that it wouldn't be worth it.

Then end result was very few if any were sold to the public.
 
#12 ·
Can you imagine how many hits this dealer's website is getting now???
 
#14 · (Edited)
If the dealer has purchased them from GM, the dealer is free to sell them to whomever they so well please. Just as dealers are free to charge exhorbitant prices (if people are willing to pay) for low production models and the manufacturer has no say in it.

GM may be inclined to only sell these to law enforcement, but the only thing GM can do here is sit, watch, and eat their own underwear while these sweet Caprices sell at top dollar.

The contingent of demand for this car is high enough in America to justify GM/Holden produce them for civilian purchase. If GM wants to be smug and arrogent, that's their problem.

This dealer may force GM's hand to sell the Caprice to civilians come hell or high water.

If you know me you know I do not like car dealers in general and have a hard time giving them credit with anything...... but here I give these guys a big kudos for telling GM to go f themselves.
 
#16 ·
Maybe this has been hashed out already; if so, apologies.

I still can't see there being much of a market for the Caprice in the law enforcement community. I thought the guiding rule for most any fleet buyers is parts availability/price - as a GTO owner who plans to hang onto it for a while, I already worry about how much trouble it'll be to find replacement parts in the future. Just doesn't seem like there'd be a really compelling business case for them to bother bringing it over. Dunno, I guess I must be wrong, seeing as how they are going ahead with it.
 
#113 ·
Sorry that I missed you. I was @ FedEx yesterday. Worth it, but it was real humd yesterday and kinda ruined some of the fun. Although it's hard to think whereelse I could drive a Vette GS and a SS Camaro w/out the "dealer experience".

I don't really like Criswell though. Too big, I feel like a # there.
 
#18 ·
What is keeping a dealership from buying these from another dealer, stripping off the police package items, putting on aftermarket wheels and such (as it appears this dealer is) and just selling them as used cars? (After a hefty mark-up I'm sure.)
 
#36 · (Edited)
most wont come with ANY options, a police vehicle spec is stripped and ripped, vynl floors, no dash really as their **** goes in it anyhow.... wo do lots of the RCMP fleet units...

But, how can the dealer "buy" it from GM? I thought GM only sold them to gov agencies.
easy, just order more... still has to go thru a dealer somewhere, we do the RCMP like I said we would jsut order an extra 10 or so under them with different specs, there is nothing saying we have to sell them as fleet, we take rental cars and fleet units all the time from fleet to retail, GM dont kow or care per say, except in this cae, he prolly just ordered 13 models in wiht lots of ooptions under fleet and is selling them as retail..... how do you think small stores pad their inventory all the time, order more thru fleet.....

and ya, they can dow what they want, if they piss off GM, GM will get the last laugh in this case.... Store north of us pissed GM off this spring, the are still waiting on their spring order for Camaros, which you guys say no big deal, but if you live here you dont wany 6 camaros to show up at your store in Sept, its snowing in Oct, and your sitting on them till March next year.... you can park them along side your 2012s.... **** like this GM is good at.

a down side to this is he will prlly lose his ability to sell fleet to govt after this......
 
#86 ·
GM Holden do make a Civilian version, and my god is it one hell of a car, but GM NA seem very complacent and dont seem to realise that civilians in the US want them. Even better is that other GM subsidiaries take the Holden derived product and add lots of good kit to it, like the BUick Park Avenue (i think thats its name).
 
#25 ·
I trust that all of our resident Zeta fanboys are on their way to Maryland to put down their hard, earned money to buy the cars they've been wanting for years.

No?
 
#32 ·
Already have my Zeta sedan. But if they bring a Zeta Ute over like this in a couple of years when I'm in the market, I'll make sure and post up the shots of it on the site here. :D
 
#26 ·
Darn, I was just in Maryland, and would have detoured to drive one. If it rode well, and was fast enough I would have bought it on the spot. I want a RWD big V8 big sedan so bad........
I've been in trucks since the last caprice went away, and while the new 6.2 is great, I still long for the big sedan.
Wonder why the 6.2 wouldn't be put in these cop car Caprices? Availability?
I'm gonna give a few hints about this to our local Chevy dealers.
And I believe that a previous poster is correct, that once a dealer buys one, they own it and can do what they want.
 
#30 ·
You can bank on it.

The dealer got a look at the fines, loss of license to do business, ect. and decided it wasn't worth it. Stupid publicity stunt, anyway.

There are things you can't get away with as a dealer. The best lawyers money can buy have written up GM's dealer agreements. Trust me. And even if you could beat them, they'd cut off your incoming inventory and starve you to death until you went bankrupt. So you might (extremely slight chance) beat them in court) but I promise you wouldn't enjoy it.

GM just smiles and says, "Another one bites the dust".
 
#93 · (Edited)
And that is the issue, there are legal rules and then there are corporate policies and practices... GM was VERY clear about who these cars were to be sold to and why. Yes, this dealer found a way to squeak 13 (soon to be very collectable cars) through a loop-hole.

Hand up who thinks that GM HQ is all warm and fuzzy about this dealer ignoring their VERY PUBLICLY STATED direction? Hands up who thinks that GM HQ is all happy about having to scramble to change sales contracts and agreements? Hands up who thinks that GM HQ likes it when a dealer makes their mistake obvious in a very public way. Hands up, who thinks this dealer won't be getting another set of 13 Caprices any time soon.

If you think that dealers can do things like this without repercussions you are dreaming.

Ask any dealer, their ability to order cars, to get quotas, to source parts, etc are all dependent on an ongoing positive relationship with GM HQ. When GM is looking at which dealers that they are going to shut down next... Where do you think that dealers who have sued GM would be on that list?

Edit... If you go to the dealer's website.. The link to the for sale to the public police cars is blank... Looks like the number will be even smaller than 13. These cars are going to be as rare as a CTS-V Wagon!!
 
#37 ·
A big BOOYAH to whoever owns that dealership. The BoD of GM outta put this guy in charge. He obviously has more cajones than Akerson or Reuss ever dreamed of. I freakin' hate Zeta products, but at least that sedan has some purpose to it. Now where's that Alpha-based RWD Impala SS? Bring back the PRIDE. Bring back the SELECTION.