110 W. New York Ave., DeLand, FL
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BEACON PHOTO/PAT HATFIELD
Vehicle in the Kaiser future – Vice President Deric Kaiser shows off a model of a Mahindra SUV the family-run Kaiser Pontiac-Buick-GMC dealership will offer next year. GMC notified Kaiser it will lose its GMC franchise effective October 2010.
Not going anywhere, Kaiser family vows
By Pat Hatfield
posted Jun 22, 2009 - 8:35:14am
Kaiser Pontiac Buick GMC in DeLand is among the more than 1,000 dealerships targeted for closure by GMC.
President Fred "Rocky" Kaiser confirmed GMC has targeted the dealership for closure effective October 2010.
That doesn't mean the Kaiser dealership is going anywhere.
"We've been here 44 years, and will be here another 44 years — or more," Kaiser said.
The dealership employs 48 people.
Kaiser will change its inventory from General Motors products to a line of Mahindra diesel trucks and SUVs. Prices will likely run in the mid-$20,000 range.
The diesel engines are manufactured to be quiet, with pre-ignition chambers in the cylinders, Kaiser said. They meet the latest EPA pollution and mileage requirements, he said.
The Scorpio SUV model will be the first model to arrive, in December.
Mahindra of India, whose North American Web site is online at www.mahindraNa.com, is the only Indian company among the top three tractor manufacturers in the world, according to its Web site, and is the market leader in utility vehicles in India.
Mahindra now has two tractor factories in the U.S, Kaiser said. The technology company first began making general-purpose utility vehicles in 1945.
Kaiser said his dealership has had a relationship with Mahindra for seven years. He toured the Mahindra plant, north of Mumbai in India, and said the facility is state of the art.
Similarly, DeLand Dodge, employing about 75 people, lost its Dodge franchise effective June 9, and is now known as DeLand Kia. The dealership has been in DeLand for more than 40 years.
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Let's see these fancy new cars last twenty years, like my current car, and then tell me how good they are.
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