We haven’t made real money since Covid with this brand!

I sold my point last year and I don't regret it. The real estate was worth more than the franchise at that stage and I decided to take the money while there was still someone willing to pay it. Market conditions for CDJR are not going to dramatically improve in 12 months regardless of what leadership says at NADA. Especially with Carvana buying up stores.

To answer your three-part question honestly: at our CDJR store it is all three but not equally. The market piece is real and not your fault. Ram truck margins have compressed industry-wide as inventory normalized and the competitive set got stronger. The brand piece is also real and also not your fault. Years of overpriced overstocked product trained customers to expect discounts and trained your salespeople to lead with them, and that habit does not reset just because Filosa changed the messaging. The management team question is the only one you can actually control right now so that is where I would focus. The stores I know that are holding gross on Stellantis product in this environment are the ones that stopped leading with payment and started selling the product first. Not revolutionary but it requires consistent management pressure to actually happen on the floor every day.

The Carvana point from the earlier reply is worth expanding on because it has direct implications for anyone still holding a CDJR point and trying to decide what to do. Carvana and other large used vehicle retailers acquiring former franchise locations changes the competitive landscape for used vehicle sales in those markets in ways that are hard to reverse. More importantly it signals to the broader market that the real estate and infrastructure value of a dealership point is increasingly being separated from the franchise value itself. If you are evaluating whether to stay or sell, the question is not just whether Stellantis recovers in 24 months. It is whether the franchise premium you would get today is higher or lower than what you would get after 24 more months of margin compression and brand recovery uncertainty. That is a financial modeling exercise worth actually running.

High prices and overstocked lots are hurting these dealers.

The Ram truck margins have compressed industry-wide as inventory normalized and the competitive set got stronger. The brand piece is also real. Years of overpriced overstocked product trained customers to expect discounts. The management team question is the only one you can actually control right now. The stores I know that are holding gross on Stellantis product in this environment are the ones that stopped leading with payment and started selling the product first.

It’s a struggle. Between high floorplan costs and Stellantis’s aggressive pricing, our margins are basically non-existent. We’re moving units, but the profit just isn’t there. I’m seriously starting to look at the real estate value like Reply 2 suggested—it’s getting harder to justify the headache.

The inventory glut is the real killer. It's hard to hold gross when your lot is full of overpriced units that are out-positioned by the competition. Stellantis needs to get realistic about their market value if they want the dealer network to stay profitable and loyal.

It’s brutal right now. The pricing strategy has been a disaster for dealer loyalty, and we’re basically just paying floorplan interest on units that sit because the MSRP is detached from reality. It’s hard to stay optimistic about a recovery when the margins just keep shrinking.

It’s definitely a grind right now. Between the high MSRPs and the floorplan costs, we’re barely treading water. It feels like Stellantis is completely out of touch with what’s happening on the ground. Management can only do so much when the product is priced out of the market.

It’s a tough spot. Between the high MSRPs and the inventory glut, we’re essentially working for the bank right now. Stellantis really needs to address these pricing issues before more dealers decide the real estate is the only thing worth holding onto. It's a brutal market for CDJR.

Still in it and the honest answer to your question is it depends entirely on which rooftop and which revenue line. Ram truck service is carrying our store right now. Warranty work volume is high because the product reliability issues that hurt Stellantis retail have a flip side: those vehicles come back to the service lane frequently and on the brands where we have good technician depth we are capturing that work. Front-end gross on Jeep and Chrysler is genuinely difficult. But if your fixed ops is not pulling its weight on a CDJR store in this environment, that is the more urgent conversation than whether the new CEO is going to fix the brand in the next two quarters. The dealers I know who are surviving this stretch are running their service departments like a standalone business and treating new vehicle sales as a traffic source for the back end.

Reply 12 hits the nail on the head. If you aren’t leaning hard into Fixed Ops right now, you’re in trouble. Front-end margins on Rams are basically gone. We’re all just waiting to see if leadership actually fixes these insane MSRPs before more of us exit.

Reply 12 is spot on. If you aren’t crushing it in Fixed Ops right now, a CDJR franchise is a massive liability. The front end has basically become a loss leader for the service department. It’s hard to stay optimistic when floorplan costs are eating every bit of profit.

It’s brutal seeing CDJR stores turn into loss leaders for their own service departments. Between the floorplan interest and those insane MSRPs, it’s no wonder people are eyeing the real estate value. Stellantis needs to get real about pricing before they lose their best dealers for good.

It’s wild how disconnected Stellantis corporate is from the reality on the lot. Between the insane MSRPs and high floorplan costs, dealers are basically just working for the bank. If Fixed Ops isn't carrying the store, there’s no profit left. The brand equity is being lit on fire.

The disconnect between corporate pricing and lot reality is wild. If Fixed Ops isn’t carrying the store, you’re basically just paying floorplan interest to the bank. Stellantis needs a major reality check on their MSRPs before more dealers decide the real estate is worth more than the brand.

The consensus here is pretty bleak but matches what I’m hearing. When front-end margins vanish and you're just working for the bank to pay floorplan interest, something has to give. If Fixed Ops isn't 100% dialed in, these CDJR points are becoming massive liabilities for owners.

It’s painful to see how many dealers are just treading water because of those MSRPs. Relying entirely on service departments while paying huge floorplan interest isn't sustainable long-term. Corporate really needs to listen to the people actually moving the metal, or the exits will just keep coming.

The consensus here is brutal but accurate. Stellantis has priced itself out of the market, leaving dealers to survive on Fixed Ops alone. It’s hard to stay optimistic when you’re essentially running a service center that happens to sell overpriced trucks on the side.

It’s sobering to hear this from the front lines. When floorplan costs and detached MSRPs turn a franchise into a liability, something has to break. Stellantis needs to realize that a healthy brand requires profitable dealers, not just high margins on paper. The Fixed Ops reliance isn't sustainable forever.

What I will add from the service side is that the fixed ops story is actually not terrible right now if you have the right mix of Ram and Jeep in your market. Ram 1500 service volume is solid, parts margins are decent, and warranty work on older inventory is keeping my lanes busy. The problem is the front end subsidy model that kept floor traffic coming is mostly gone and leadership is still acting like the product story is going to close that gap. It is not. You are running a service business that happens to sell some cars now, not a car business with a service department.

It’s wild seeing so many dealers essentially turning into service centers just to survive. If the front end is a loss leader and floorplan costs are eating the rest, the brand is in serious trouble. Stellantis better listen before more dealers decide to just sell the land.

Our traffic is virtually nonexistent on new vehicles.

Hearing this confirms my fears. The shift toward becoming a "service business that sells cars" is a dangerous path. If Stellantis doesn't address these floorplan and pricing issues soon, they're going to see a mass exodus of franchise owners looking to cash out on their real estate instead.

The consensus here is sobering. Relying on Fixed Ops as a crutch while new sales bleed out from floorplan costs just isn't sustainable. Stellantis really needs to fix these MSRPs before their dealer network completely evaporates or turns into real estate plays.

It’s brutal hearing that Fixed Ops is the only thing saving these stores. Stellantis really screwed up the pricing, and now dealers are just paying interest to the bank. If they don’t fix the MSRPs soon, there won’t be a dealer network left to save.

It’s wild seeing how disconnected corporate is from the lot. When your front end becomes a loss leader for service, the business model is broken. Stellantis needs to fix these MSRPs fast, or more dealers will definitely just cash out for the real estate. Such a tough spot.

It’s wild seeing how many CDJR stores have basically become service centers that happen to sell cars. When MSRPs are this detached from reality and floorplan costs are eating everyone alive, corporate really needs to listen before they lose their entire dealer network to real estate plays.

The consensus here is sobering. It’s tough watching legacy brands struggle because corporate won't budge on unrealistic MSRPs. If Fixed Ops is the only thing keeping the lights on, Stellantis is in deeper trouble than the press releases suggest. Truly a brutal market.

The consensus here is eye-opening. When actual dealers are saying the real estate is worth more than the franchise, you know corporate has lost the plot. Relying on Fixed Ops to cover floorplan interest isn't a long-term strategy. Stellantis needs to get realistic about their MSRPs fast.