Showrooms vandalized during protests; dealer says 'it was really horrible'

Over the weekend, several dealerships on the West Coast and elsewhere were vandalized during protests stemming from the death of George Floyd last week in Minneapolis.

On Monday, dealerships in the hot zones were cleaning up and preparing for additional disruptions ahead.

Nick Pacifico, vice president of the Rickenbaugh Automotive Group in Denver, said Monday that one of its downtown locations would move all of its nearly 360 vehicles indoors for the second night in a row to shield the inventory from riots. The dealership, which sells and services Cadillac and Volvo vehicles, is in a location central to the disruption in downtown Denver. The store has 9,200 square feet of indoor space, as well as an offsite warehouse to store inventory.

Thankfully, the store is under construction, so there are no windows to break, Pacifico said.

“There’s two groups of people that are out here. The rioters are young punk white kids that are running around breaking stuff,” Pacifico said.  “We figured, seeing what the rioters were doing, the cars would be too good of a target.”

The city's fire department advised the store to close early on Friday, but Pacifico said the store kept normal hours.

Concerns over the disruptions downtown, which began last Thursday night and commenced every night since, have had a moderate impact on business. Pacifico estimated less than ten vehicle sales that would have otherwise been closed over the weekend were delayed, particularly as more customers opted to finalize transactions in the store.

Pacifico said he’s supportive of the protests, but not the criminal activity that begins later in the evening.

“I understand if you’re angry at the government...but you shouldn’t be angry at the businesses that employ and support the people you love and care about,” he said.

Turbulent weekend

Mercedes-Benz of Oakland, in California, is one of the dealerships that was looted. Photos show broken showroom windows and vehicles that had been smashed and spray-painted with words such as "eat the rich." CBS BayArea reported that the store also had severe smoke damage from fires in the area.

On Saturday, the dealership posted a video on Facebook of its cleanup effort and said, "Our family is rebuilding. We are part of the community. #protectoakland."

Customers of the dealership commented on the post with supportive messages.

"This is so sad," customer Kathy Ryan wrote. "I will be back to support you when you reopen."

Down the street from the Mercedes-Benz dealership is Honda of Oakland. A video from Friday shows a vehicle being stolen and driven through the showroom windows with other people cheering and smashing the store.
 

Tim Thomas, general manager of Honda of Oakland, said damages included broken windows in the showroom, flipped-over desks and computers thrown through office glass windows. He said there was an attempt to set a car on the showroom floor on fire along with broken windows on cars on the floor. Computers and electronics were stolen, he added.

Thomas said cleanup began Sunday morning, with the glass cleaned up and windows boarded. Employees came in to help on their day off. Dealership vendors offered to store cars on their property and to send employees to help clean up.

“There was a lot of outreach for help for us, which was nice to see,” he said.

Despite the damages, the dealership has not closed its doors and even sold eight cars on Saturday, the day after the damage occurred.

Thomas said the dealership had “semi-prepared” for the protests on Friday night by moving cars off the lots and into its service department.

He also said this is not the first time the dealership has dealt with damages, noting the May Day riots in 2015, when demonstrators broke windows on the showroom floor and damaged cars.

“We got through it then and we’ll get through it now,” he said.

In Washington, the showroom windows at Ferrari of Seattle were spray-painted and broken, but the dealership's inventory had been moved in anticipation of the demonstrations.

As the protests continued to turn violent throughout the weekend, the Volkswagen of Oakland dealership was vandalized in San Francisco's East Bay on Saturday night. A video by The San Francisco Chronicle's Matthias Gafni showed protesters smashing the windows of the store.

California troubles

Toyota Santa Monica also sustained damage, with a YouTube video showing several cars in its lot with smashed back windows. The dealership is part of LAcarGuy dealerships.

Mike Sullivan, owner of LAcarGuy dealerships, said three of his Santa Monica locations were damaged, with one suffering more destruction than the others, although he declined to name them. The damages consisted of computers torn off the walls, key machines broken open, stolen cars and cars crashed into each other.

“It was really horrible,” he said.

He told Automotive News that he closed 10 of his 12 dealerships in response to the incidents. He said the people who damaged the dealerships are not from the area and are unrelated to the Floyd protesters. He also said he is in the process of trying to hire armed guards for his dealerships.

“We can protect our lives, but not our property,” he said. “So we all have to understand that clear line.”

A message pops up on the LAcarGuy website that says, “Due to Civil Unrest, we will be temporarily closed today to ensure the safety of our guests and employees.” Also on Facebook, a post says, “Update: for the safety of our employees all LAcarGUY dealerships will be temporarily closed today. Thanks for your understanding. Please stay safe out there.”

Four Toyota stores have been damaged, including two in Los Angeles, one in Reno, Nev., and one in Chicago, Toyota spokesman Scott Vazin said. In addition, another “handful” of Toyota dealerships have closed as a precaution.

'Very fluid situation'

Brian Maas, president of the California New Car Dealers Association, said it was too early to tell how many dealers in his state were affected, noting that "dealers located in downtown areas are more likely to be impacted."

"I think it's probably too soon to tell; it's a very fluid situation," he said. "The hope is that it dissipates and protests stay peaceful."

In another incident, San Leandro Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram in the Bay Area was “ransacked” on Sunday night, according to Carscoops. At least two Dodge Challenger Hellcats, a Dodge Charger and a Jeep Grand Cherokee were stolen. The dealership declined to comment.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles said two dealerships in California and one in Washington sustained damage.

"The iconic tower on the downtown Los Angeles Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge-Ram dealership also sustained some damage, and a Maserati-Alfa dealership in Seattle reported some cosmetic damage to the exterior," FCA said in an emailed statement. "Display vehicles had previously been moved, leaving the showroom empty."

In addition, Mercedes-Benz of Scottsdale in Arizona also was damaged in demonstrations Sunday. A photo by Mark Henle of The Arizona Republic shows a smashed window, although the cars inside appear to be intact.

It's unclear how many stores across the nation have closed as a precaution.

"Over the past few days, we have closed stores early in some localities as a precaution or due to local curfews," used-car retail giant CarMax said in an emailed statement. "We will continue to monitor the situation and take steps necessary to ensure the safety of our associates and customers."

The protests started in Minneapolis on May 26, a day after Floyd, an African American man, died in police custody, and spread to other cities across the country and around the world over the weekend. As of Monday, more than 40 U.S. cities had implemented curfews in response.

Sunday marked the sixth consecutive night of demonstrations in at least 75 cities across the country.

On Sunday night, the Oakland Police Department posted a statement on Twitter. It said, "We will arrest those who would loot, vandalize or otherwise harm our city."

Jacqueline Charniga, Larry P. Vellequette and Vince Bond Jr. contributed to this report.