Which really started in the '80s.

After the war, OEs would give a sign and cars to just about anyone..."let the market sort them out" .... "we will get the property first"... "keep that big store in the next town honest"... yadda yadda.

Later, it was clear to the OEs that it did not pay to service the stores that were taking less than threshold retail units per month. The idea of a car dealer running like a pharmacy or barber shop was (and is) a no go for a big player.

In the case of the Nebraska Chevy dealer, his agreement predated mandatory allegiance to GM Holdings and GMAC; he owned the building and ran it like a cash business and paid in full for each car that hit the lot. Likewise, if he saw a good trade roll in, he would keep it.

The cars he kept were pretty interesting - if no one would pay sticker, he'd sit on them. To him, unlike a floor planned unit, it wasn't eating the grass, and he could still cover payroll. I'm not sure if it was the industry bankruptcy or a deceased owner with no succession that led to the big sale.

Franchise law makes enforcement or termination of substandard points rather variable from state to state. It remains particularly difficult in areas with elected Attorneys General, where NADA and others were/are big campaign donors. Chrysler still had DeSoto deals on the books in the late '70s... even though the last cars rolled decades earlier.

Before thrashing the domestics, it is also true of big importers like Toyota, who ruthlessly weeded out players who would not invest even as demand outstripped supply for years.

In '85, when I was a wee speechwriter/researcher, a project popped up for Pontiac dealer development. One of the exhibits - a dealer in rural Georgia (Mitchell Motors) took the minimum number of cars per year based on an outdated agreement from the '30s.

One of the leftovers was a 10th Anniversary Trans Am (!) 4-speed W72 (!!) that was still on the MSO and never registered. Alas, the sun had already peeled the paint, and a thoughtless tech set engine parts in the silver leather interior when the trunk was full. There were three other cars on the lot - a T-1000, an A-Body "Goolie" and the last 2nd gen Firebird base model with the DOA V-6.

Take a wild guess at who ran out of the meeting at top speed to look up Mitchell Motors.... but alas, no one answering the phone after many, many calls.