Waco, TX (FOX 44) — As the UAW almost reaches a month on strike, local car dealerships are starting to feel the impact.
Allen Samuels general manager Ted Teague says they’re still getting inventory shipped in on a daily basis. However, the auto worker strike is making it hard to get certain car models.
“We’re still getting inventory shipped daily everywhere except from the Jeep Wrangler plant and the Jeep Gladiator plant. The cars that were outside on the property have shipped and everything else is shut down, so we’re waiting for those products to start being built again,” said Teague.
Another problem Teague is seeing is in its parts depot for Stellantis and GM.
“They’re going after our customers because when your car breaks and it needs parts, now there is a huge delay that we didn’t have before,” said Teague.
The delay in getting car parts is holding customers in need of repairs. Teague says they’ve even had to buy parts from outside vendors to get cars back on the road.
“A parts depot, from what I understand, will have between 60 and 80 people per se, and right now, like the one in Houston, I’m thinking they have like three to five people that are pulling parts,” said Teague.
On overall car prices, Teague says changes may come in the future.
“You won’t see any prices go up from this until everything is settled, and nobody knows when that’s going to be. Ultimately, the consumers pay for everything that happens in the economy,” said Teague.