General Motors (GM) and Chrysler want to drop as many as 3,000 U.S. dealers and are expected to start sending notifications as early as Thursday, several sources told Reuters. GM, facing a U.S. government-imposed deadline of June 1 to restructure or file for bankruptcy protection, is expected to send termination notices to up to 2,000 dealers—one-third of its 6,000 U.S. dealers, the sources said. Chrysler, which filed for bankruptcy on April 30, will tell up to 1,000 of its 3,189 dealers that it is terminating their franchise agreements, sources said. The moves to close auto dealerships underscore how the economic trouble caused by the near-collapse of both automakers is spreading far beyond their operations centers in Detroit.
