Attorneys Back Republic Hired Legal Experts Support Company In Feud With Automakers
Twenty-three former state attorneys general said Thursday that Republic Industries Inc. has the right to buy dozens of car dealerships, despite efforts by Toyota and Honda to block the sales.
One of those dealerships is in Spokane. The owners of the Appleway Group on East Sprague announced in June that they would sell the dealership to Republic for more than $42 million in stock.
Toyota has sued Republic in several states to protect limits on how many Toyota dealerships one individual or company can own. Honda has a similar lawsuit pending in federal court.
Republic, run by billionaire H. Wayne Huizenga, has bought 108 dealerships in less than nine months, becoming the nation’s largest new car retailer. But the Japanese automakers represent a potential roadblock to further growth.
At a news conference Thursday in New York City, Former Illinois Attorney General Neil Hartigan said states generally favor a dealer’s right to sell out, provided the buyer is sound financially and has the consumer’s interests in mind.
“In our collective opinion, the bottom line is Toyota and Honda don’t have the legal right to unreasonably block dealership transfers to a qualified dealer such as Republic,” Hartigan said.
Republic paid the former attorneys general to study the situation and present their findings Thursday.
Jim Press, the senior vice president of Toyota’s U.S. sales arm, called the event a public relations stunt.
“Republic is tap dancing around the legal system to avoid any definitive conclusions being issued,” Press said. “This Republic PR stunt was held in New York to entertain Wall Street.”
The nationwide dispute has driven down Republic’s stock price because of the uncertainty of various state franchise laws.
Though Toyota has not filed an official objection to the Appleway sale, spokeswoman Nancy Hubbell said that’s in the company’s plans.
“We plan to contest each one of the dealerships Republic has proposed to purchase,” she said. “Our name is not for sale. We need to approve who gets to use our name.”
Tim Pring, who owns Appleway with his brother, Brad, was encouraged by the action taken Thursday by the former attorneys general.
“Our position has always been along the same lines,” Tim Pring said. “Toyota does not have the right to prevent the sale. We’ll sell our dealership to whoever we want to, as long as the buyer is qualified.”
Earlier this month, the Prings asked the state Department of Licensing to intervene and force Toyota Motor Sales Inc. to approve the sale. Under Washington law, the licensing department must hold a hearing within 120 days.
Toyota and Honda are concerned that Republic will gain too much control over their retail operations, enabling demands for volume discounts or specific types of vehicles.
Republic insists it won’t demand discounts and says it would negotiate limits on how many dealerships it will buy.
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The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = Alison Boggs Staff writer The Associated Press contributed to this report.