Mark Richardson
Active Member
I have been given all the company files for all dealership activities of Bear Cat Motors during their only operating year of 1967. This includes all records of Bearcat buying cars from Ranchero Motors and selling them to the public. I have records of business activities including employee records, time sheets, all receipts and financial records, all correspondence with suppliers including Ranchero Motors and customers, all promotional and advertising activities, some promotional material including 8mm & 16mm promotional film, and legal documents. I also have a large amount of newspaper clippings and articles about Amphicars as well.
Digging through the thousands of pages of information, they tell an interesting story of an Amphicar dealership’s struggle to start up in 1967 Detroit and attempt to profitably operate in the last year of the existence of Amphicar Corporation.
“The Bearcat Files”.
The Beginning.
After trading his Volkswagen for an Amphicar with the owner of a radio shop in 1966, Yusif “Joe” Barakat quickly realized that the Amphicar was so popular he might be able to sell a few himself. He decided to travel to Ranchero Motors in NJ in the fall of that year to buy some. While there he was convinced by the executive Vice President, Glenn Flinn, to open a franchise dealership to sell the cars in Detroit.
On December 28, 1966, Yusif Barakat was legally granted sole Amphicar distribution rights to the state of Michigan for the coming 1967 year. Barakat quickly secured financing, located a facility with a showroom and service bay, and established his incorporated business with the state of Michigan including all licenses and insurance to operate the dealership and hire employees. He accomplished this in less than 90 days and in January of 1967 he and his team excitedly opened for business at 13111 Dexter Street, Detroit, Michigan at a building that once housed a former Packard dealership called Dexter Packard, then a Studebaker dealership called Kotzen Motors.
Documents indicate the initial estimate for sales by Mr. Flinn at Ranchero Motors for Bearcat Motors was 190 cars annually which is an ambitious average of 15 cars a month, or one every other day. Barakat himself wanted to sell 800 a year by eventually establishing a dealer network of satellite distributors all over the state, greater Midwest, and Canada. He was very optimistic and enthusiastic about the cars and his new venture becoming a huge success according to his early correspondence with Glenn Flinn at Ranchero Motors. Everything was in place, and they were ready to begin the selling season as the cold winter turned to spring.
Shipments of cars:
The first planned shipment from Ranchero Motors to Bearcat Motors was to be 12 cars with an additional 15 cars 90 days later. In February of 1967, records show six cars were shipped to Bearcat from a Milwaukee storage facility. Once Bearcat received and inspected them their condition was determined to be too degraded and damaged to sell as new vehicles at full price, and according to the work orders for parts and labor, all of them required some sort of warranty repairs before they could be sold. A very frustrating start to business and weeks of delays which quickly tested his staff and his relationship with Ranchero Motors even before selling the first car. From the VIN codes of the first 6 cars shipped 4 were made in 1962 and 2 made in 1961, which means they had been moved around for 5-6 years! We also know from the VIN codes that all Amphicars were made before 1963, so every car Bearcat received to sell as new was on average already 5 years old by 1967.
With all the repairs made, sales started very slowly and just 4 cars were sold in March. Things picked up and 11 were sold in April (their highest sales month), and by May records show another 12 cars were in transit by rail from a depot in New Orleans. Business was booming and on track to sell over 100 cars in the first year, but only 10 cars would sell in the next 3 months. When the cars arrived from New Orleans, the condition of them was far worse than the first shipment. We know the cars were now several years old, and when delivered almost all had transit damage too. The claim forms filed against The Chesapeake & Ohio Railway show many had missing spare tires, dents, smashed lights, missing ash trays, wiper blades, knobs, owner’s manuals, and many other items which had to be repaired or replaced by Bearcat to sell the cars. Reading the report makes you imagine a band of criminals descending on the train stripping the poor Amphicars of anything they could carry away.
Being a new start up dealership stocking no spare parts, all parts would need to be ordered from Ranchero or local parts or hardware stores, then repairs made to make them look more like new cars to attempt to achieve the expected corporate selling price, which was still almost $3000.00. Bearcat was still paying the dealer cost of $1700.00 for each car with some extra charges for prep and accessories.
From the first shipment of 18 cars to Bearcat each had some degree of warranty repair, and now parts supply issues from Ranchero Motors cropped up. Dealership staff time had to be spent to compile and submit pages of warranty claim orders to Ranchero for all the damage, deterioration, and missing parts. Labor dollars would be spent to repair the cars and small parts and supplies would be used to repair what should have been brand new cars. Some required rust repair and painting and the mufflers on most cars seemed to require touch up. This activity was not something Barakat budgeted for and becoming a refurbishing facility for cars that had been sitting around for years before selling them quickly became a contentious theme in his correspondence with Ranchero Motors and especially Glenn Flinn.
It was now clear to Barakat that Ranchero Motors was dumping old inventory (there was no new inventory) and shipping it to Bearcat in hopes of him finally selling them.
Repairing the new cars arriving became an increasing liability to the dealership. Every car that came in had to have some sort of repair work done to make them sellable, at a cost to the dealership. All the cars were several years old and had the VIN number plate dates changed or left blank, and some even had thousands of miles on them. The tires were worn, rubber seals cracked, had poor body repair work, and mismatched paint and even replaced hoods and trunk lids that did not match.
When the cars sold, they would invariably turn up disabled somewhere in the city only to be towed in at dealer expense and repaired by Bearcat under the factory warranty. Once a car even died in a customer’s driveway while being delivered. The more cars Bearcat sold, the more the problem snowballed and the less profitable the business became. As sales decreased cash flow became an issue. Barakat knew that the factory warranty of 6 months or 6000 miles only included parts and not labor, but he told me he never charged customers for labor (or parts in many cases) because he knew the cars were not new or in good condition when sold. This caused the dealership to operate at a loss and created a larger rift with Ranchero Motors. In August of 1967 Bearcat only sold 4 cars and troubles continued.
By September of 1967, records show another 11 more cars were shipped to Bearcat Motors. Invoices now showed dealer prices fell from $1718.00 per car to $1448.00 and some $1000.00 all marked “As Is” on the invoice. It was clear the end was near by the discounted prices of the dealer invoices and monthly dealer bulletins. Ranchero suggested to dealers not to decrease prices to sell off inventory because, they theorized, demand would actually rise because there was no alternative amphibious vehicle currently available, and consumers would rush to buy an Amphicar before they were gone.
Ranchero sent another dealer notice that they received a limited quantity of “new” vehicles in 1967 from Germany that were available on a bid basis, first come first served. They speculated about a 1968 model, but seemed to know there would not be one, although learned that any car imported before the end of 1967 would not have to meet the new 1968 safety & emissions standards. They also hoped to continue in business supplying parts for the cars already sold, although at much higher prices. Given that Bearcat was still repairing cars under warranty, the higher parts prices was another cause of friction with Ranchero.
In October of 1967 Ranchero sent a letter that terminated all dealership contracts as of December 31, 1967. It was clear the end had come only nine months after Bearcat had been incorporated. Then, on October 18, 1967, Bearcat received notification from Ranchero Motors that due to new governmental safety regulations there would not be a 1968 model and all dealer franchises would terminate as of December 31, 1967. Manufacturing and import of cars would cease and that Amphicar Corporation would remain in business selling parts only.
As of January 31, 1968, documents show Bearcat Motors had the largest stock of cars of any remaining dealer in the country. He had 9 cars remaining, but his dealer license had expired with Ranchero Motors. We know from the last Bearcat invoices in 1968 that they sold for less than a thousand dollars to get them off the lot.
(Please see Part 2 for conclusion and video link)
Digging through the thousands of pages of information, they tell an interesting story of an Amphicar dealership’s struggle to start up in 1967 Detroit and attempt to profitably operate in the last year of the existence of Amphicar Corporation.
“The Bearcat Files”.
The Beginning.
After trading his Volkswagen for an Amphicar with the owner of a radio shop in 1966, Yusif “Joe” Barakat quickly realized that the Amphicar was so popular he might be able to sell a few himself. He decided to travel to Ranchero Motors in NJ in the fall of that year to buy some. While there he was convinced by the executive Vice President, Glenn Flinn, to open a franchise dealership to sell the cars in Detroit.
On December 28, 1966, Yusif Barakat was legally granted sole Amphicar distribution rights to the state of Michigan for the coming 1967 year. Barakat quickly secured financing, located a facility with a showroom and service bay, and established his incorporated business with the state of Michigan including all licenses and insurance to operate the dealership and hire employees. He accomplished this in less than 90 days and in January of 1967 he and his team excitedly opened for business at 13111 Dexter Street, Detroit, Michigan at a building that once housed a former Packard dealership called Dexter Packard, then a Studebaker dealership called Kotzen Motors.
Documents indicate the initial estimate for sales by Mr. Flinn at Ranchero Motors for Bearcat Motors was 190 cars annually which is an ambitious average of 15 cars a month, or one every other day. Barakat himself wanted to sell 800 a year by eventually establishing a dealer network of satellite distributors all over the state, greater Midwest, and Canada. He was very optimistic and enthusiastic about the cars and his new venture becoming a huge success according to his early correspondence with Glenn Flinn at Ranchero Motors. Everything was in place, and they were ready to begin the selling season as the cold winter turned to spring.
Shipments of cars:
The first planned shipment from Ranchero Motors to Bearcat Motors was to be 12 cars with an additional 15 cars 90 days later. In February of 1967, records show six cars were shipped to Bearcat from a Milwaukee storage facility. Once Bearcat received and inspected them their condition was determined to be too degraded and damaged to sell as new vehicles at full price, and according to the work orders for parts and labor, all of them required some sort of warranty repairs before they could be sold. A very frustrating start to business and weeks of delays which quickly tested his staff and his relationship with Ranchero Motors even before selling the first car. From the VIN codes of the first 6 cars shipped 4 were made in 1962 and 2 made in 1961, which means they had been moved around for 5-6 years! We also know from the VIN codes that all Amphicars were made before 1963, so every car Bearcat received to sell as new was on average already 5 years old by 1967.
With all the repairs made, sales started very slowly and just 4 cars were sold in March. Things picked up and 11 were sold in April (their highest sales month), and by May records show another 12 cars were in transit by rail from a depot in New Orleans. Business was booming and on track to sell over 100 cars in the first year, but only 10 cars would sell in the next 3 months. When the cars arrived from New Orleans, the condition of them was far worse than the first shipment. We know the cars were now several years old, and when delivered almost all had transit damage too. The claim forms filed against The Chesapeake & Ohio Railway show many had missing spare tires, dents, smashed lights, missing ash trays, wiper blades, knobs, owner’s manuals, and many other items which had to be repaired or replaced by Bearcat to sell the cars. Reading the report makes you imagine a band of criminals descending on the train stripping the poor Amphicars of anything they could carry away.
Being a new start up dealership stocking no spare parts, all parts would need to be ordered from Ranchero or local parts or hardware stores, then repairs made to make them look more like new cars to attempt to achieve the expected corporate selling price, which was still almost $3000.00. Bearcat was still paying the dealer cost of $1700.00 for each car with some extra charges for prep and accessories.
From the first shipment of 18 cars to Bearcat each had some degree of warranty repair, and now parts supply issues from Ranchero Motors cropped up. Dealership staff time had to be spent to compile and submit pages of warranty claim orders to Ranchero for all the damage, deterioration, and missing parts. Labor dollars would be spent to repair the cars and small parts and supplies would be used to repair what should have been brand new cars. Some required rust repair and painting and the mufflers on most cars seemed to require touch up. This activity was not something Barakat budgeted for and becoming a refurbishing facility for cars that had been sitting around for years before selling them quickly became a contentious theme in his correspondence with Ranchero Motors and especially Glenn Flinn.
It was now clear to Barakat that Ranchero Motors was dumping old inventory (there was no new inventory) and shipping it to Bearcat in hopes of him finally selling them.
Repairing the new cars arriving became an increasing liability to the dealership. Every car that came in had to have some sort of repair work done to make them sellable, at a cost to the dealership. All the cars were several years old and had the VIN number plate dates changed or left blank, and some even had thousands of miles on them. The tires were worn, rubber seals cracked, had poor body repair work, and mismatched paint and even replaced hoods and trunk lids that did not match.
When the cars sold, they would invariably turn up disabled somewhere in the city only to be towed in at dealer expense and repaired by Bearcat under the factory warranty. Once a car even died in a customer’s driveway while being delivered. The more cars Bearcat sold, the more the problem snowballed and the less profitable the business became. As sales decreased cash flow became an issue. Barakat knew that the factory warranty of 6 months or 6000 miles only included parts and not labor, but he told me he never charged customers for labor (or parts in many cases) because he knew the cars were not new or in good condition when sold. This caused the dealership to operate at a loss and created a larger rift with Ranchero Motors. In August of 1967 Bearcat only sold 4 cars and troubles continued.
By September of 1967, records show another 11 more cars were shipped to Bearcat Motors. Invoices now showed dealer prices fell from $1718.00 per car to $1448.00 and some $1000.00 all marked “As Is” on the invoice. It was clear the end was near by the discounted prices of the dealer invoices and monthly dealer bulletins. Ranchero suggested to dealers not to decrease prices to sell off inventory because, they theorized, demand would actually rise because there was no alternative amphibious vehicle currently available, and consumers would rush to buy an Amphicar before they were gone.
Ranchero sent another dealer notice that they received a limited quantity of “new” vehicles in 1967 from Germany that were available on a bid basis, first come first served. They speculated about a 1968 model, but seemed to know there would not be one, although learned that any car imported before the end of 1967 would not have to meet the new 1968 safety & emissions standards. They also hoped to continue in business supplying parts for the cars already sold, although at much higher prices. Given that Bearcat was still repairing cars under warranty, the higher parts prices was another cause of friction with Ranchero.
In October of 1967 Ranchero sent a letter that terminated all dealership contracts as of December 31, 1967. It was clear the end had come only nine months after Bearcat had been incorporated. Then, on October 18, 1967, Bearcat received notification from Ranchero Motors that due to new governmental safety regulations there would not be a 1968 model and all dealer franchises would terminate as of December 31, 1967. Manufacturing and import of cars would cease and that Amphicar Corporation would remain in business selling parts only.
As of January 31, 1968, documents show Bearcat Motors had the largest stock of cars of any remaining dealer in the country. He had 9 cars remaining, but his dealer license had expired with Ranchero Motors. We know from the last Bearcat invoices in 1968 that they sold for less than a thousand dollars to get them off the lot.
(Please see Part 2 for conclusion and video link)
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