J.D. "Dave" Power III is one of the biggest names in the U.S. auto industry, but for the past week or so his name has been mud among dealers, according to the Detroit News. Why? He penned a piece for The Wall Street Journal that described the nation's auto dealers as "insular," called the franchise system "outdated" and said the "artificial and anachronistic controls" of "protective state

franchise laws" can "add about 30 percent to the base cost of a manufactured vehicle."

"The only thing worse, in American automotive terms, would have been to call for the abolition of the United Auto Workers," the Detroit News opined. "Detroit's automakers have been down this path before, thinking they know how to sell cars and trucks better than independent dealers. Both General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. retreated when they learned how difficult retailing cars could be and how infuriated their dealers were at the prospect," the News said in an editorial.

"Competition is the best discipline for improving the dealership experience and restraining prices, not dismantling a bastion of free enterprise and picking a fight with one of the most important constituencies for any automaker trying to sell cars in the United States," the News said. "So GM and Ford now are moving to calm

nerves."

"Across the industry, customer satisfaction with franchised dealerships is on the rise," Ford's group vice president for North American sales and service, Jim O'Connor, told dealers Nov. 7. "We do

not subscribe to the notion that a 'store' with 25 automotive brands under one roof could better serve customers than today's franchised dealers. Automotive retailing remains a one-on-one business."

In a Nov. 5 letter, Power aimed to "clarify" his column, according to the News. "I said in my submitted article ... that post-assembly marketing and distribution costs can represent nearly 30 percent of the price of a new vehicle purchased today through a franchised automotive dealer. Unfortunately, this statement was edited out of the article due to space restrictions."

"Ah, the old 'blame the editors' dodge," the Detroit News cattily replied. "Trust me, David: That seldom works."