Back in 2001 GM hired my university professor to study what could be done with the dealer network. Even then it was clear dealers were of no use in the long run

Back in 2001 GM hired my university professor to study what could be done with the dealer network. Even then it was clear dealers were of no use in the long run, but there were no practical ways of getting rid of them. Forcing dealers to do repairs only effectively meant risking that best dealers would switch to other brands, other dealers would have to charge more for the service and these two factors could potentially kill any brand. No single manufacturer could pull it off, and even if they could find a way to work together to change legislation, it would be way too costly and way too risky.