Group 1 Automotive Inc. last week purchased 28 of 30 Prime Automotive Group dealerships that were part of an $880 million acquisition announced in September. One Toyota store was dropped from the deal because of limitations posed by Group 1's framework agreement with the automaker, while the status of a Subaru dealership remains up in the air.
On Wednesday, Nov. 17, Group 1 bought 27 dealerships from Prime, plus three collision centers and real estate, and then the next day closed on Prime Toyota-Saco in Maine.
Group 1 executive Pete DeLongchamps told Automotive News that the nation's fourth-largest new-vehicle retailer came to an agreement with Toyota to remove one of two Toyota dealerships from the transaction. Framework agreements between large dealership groups and automakers can limit how many stores of the same brand a retailer can operate in certain regions.
Also this year, Group 1 bought Hyannis Toyota and Orleans Toyota in Massachusetts from Prime.