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Car salesman sells 1,582 cars breaking record of 1,425 in 1973

Alex Snyder

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https://www.freep.com/story/money/cars/2018/02/16/salesman-record-car-sales/337814002/

Detroit Free Press said:
Ali Reda sold 1,530 new vehicles and 52 used vehicles in 2017, averaging about 130 vehicles a month, according to Les Stanford Chevrolet Cadillac. The new vehicle total alone, recognized by General Motors, would be enough to break the record.

But Joe Girard ain't having it...

Detroit Free Press said:
A Cadillac and Chevrolet salesman from Dearborn appears to have set a single-year sales record in 2017. But the Chevrolet dealership retiree listed by Guinness World Records for more than 40 years says he doesn't believe it.

"This guy claims he beat my record of 1,425 new cars that I sold in 1973," said Joe Girard, 89, of Grosse Pointe Shores. "What I did immediately, I called my attorney."

Opine below.
 
A great read! I'm not sure if Joe thinks the total included Fleet or if the dealership is just lying, but he (unfortunately) comes across as a cantankerous, bitter 89-year-old.

My two favorite lines: "He had his wife call the dealership and challenge the claims." (This cracked me up...)

and

"'We thought it would be nice, like handing over the green jacket at the PGA,' Reda said." (Of course, the Green Jacket is part of The Masters, not The PGA; which is a different tournament. The quote made me think of the Animal House line "Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?")