Volvo and Benz have the same owner. I have heard that the Benz dealership has been on the market for many years, but all the prospective buyers want a waiver from Benz on the number of off-brand cars on the lot, and so far nobody has been successful in getting it.
Hammer group is the original Canadian BMW importer, was just wondering if they are the ones building the new glass palace. I believe Performance Imports gave up their franchise because they were mandated to build a glass palace, and they did not think they would ever recoup the investment.
I do not think that all these upmarket marques can survive given the size of the market, which is not much bigger than 100k excluding the students. Hell, not all the non-upmarket operations are surviving - the Nissan dealer is so desperate that he has opened another storefront just to sell other brands (used).