Saturn of Henderson closing

Findlay Automotive Group is closing Saturn of Henderson in Valley Auto Mall effective March 31 and turning it into a Lincoln Mercury dealership, an executive for the Henderson-based company said Wednesday.

Findlay set about rebranding its Saturn dealerships last year after General Motors eliminated the brand, converting Saturn of West Sahara in Las Vegas to Findlay Kia in June and Saturn of St. George, Utah, to Findlay Volkswagen in January.

Throughout the transition, Findlay has been able to convert each Saturn dealership to a different brand, utilizing and refurbishing existing facilities.

"Saturn dealers around the country are going out of business," said Tyler Corder, chief financial officer for Findlay Automotive. "I feel fortunate to get another franchise in those locations and keep all of our employees. From our standpoint, that's the highlight."

Findlay has represented Saturn since 1990 and found the franchise to be quite successful for two decades, Corder said. Saturn of West Sahara was the No. 1 dealership in the country from 1991 to 1996 and helped fuel the company's growth.

It's sad to see the Saturn dealership at 310 N. Gibson Road close, he said.

"Nationally from GM's standpoint, Saturn became a victim of the parent company's bankruptcy," Corder said. "They had to trim costs. They eliminated both Pontiac and Saturn."

Most of the parts and service workers from Saturn of Henderson are relocating to Findlay Chevrolet at 6800 S. Torrey Pines Drive and Findlay Cadillac at 993 Auto Show Drive. That's where owners of Saturn cars under factory warranty can go for service work.

A few sales representatives will remain at Findlay Lincoln Mercury, with the rest transferring to other dealerships, Corder said.

Chrysler and General Motors last year announced plans to close 1,900 dealerships, resulting in the loss of some 100,000 jobs and hurting the economy in many communities across the country. About a dozen automobile dealers in Las Vegas have shut their doors in the last two years, including Bill Heard Chevrolet, Pat Clark Pontiac, United Hyundai and United Jeep Chrysler.

New-car taxable sales in Clark County dropped to $1.2 billion in fiscal 2009, compared with $1.4 billion in 2008, economic consultant John Restrepo of Restrepo Consulting Group said. The six-month period from July through December saw a 17 percent decline from the year-ago period.

"I don't necessarily think it's a problem with the auto industry," Restrepo said. "It's consumers not buying large-scale durable goods. It could be a car, a boat, expensive appliances. Anything over $1,000 is probably not doing good. It has to do with a reduction in consumer spending combined with rebalancing their debt load."

Founded by the late Pete Findlay in 1961, Findlay Automotive Group owns and operates 22 dealerships in Nevada, Arizona, Utah and Idaho.

Contact reporter Hubble Smith at hsmith@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0491.