GM wants clean and disinfected dealerships, rolls out CLEAN program

GM announced an initiative named CLEAN today. The goal is to provide a clean environment for all of its customers in dealerships by following CDC guidelines in everyday business operations.

It’s an opt-in program, because it does ask dealers to do more than was asked of them before. Any dealer that opts in will have to use CDC/EPA-approved disinfectants to clean their facilities, high-traffic areas and showroom vehicles. They will also have to use the same materials to clean new, used and serviced vehicles before handing them over to a customer. GM’s brands’ websites repeat the same message as GM does. For instance, the “Chevrolet Clean” messaging states that dealers will clean your instrument panel, hard and plastic surfaces, seats and carpet. 

Of course there’s always some lawyer talk in there, too. For example, here’s what Chevy’s website states: “Neither the Chevy Clean Program nor a dealer’s enrollment in the program should be deemed to state or imply that any dealer’s cleaning activities can eliminate or prevent transmission of any virus, illness or disease,” the fine print says. “Each dealer is independently operated and solely responsible for adherence to program rules and CDC guidelines. Cleaning methods may vary.”

You’ll know that a GM dealer is participating in this program through “point-of-sale materials and other customer-facing messaging.” In other words, it should be fairly obvious, because dealers are going to want you to know that you’re in a safe and clean environment.

“With all of the uncertainty in today’s world, we know that our customers’ expectations have changed and that more will need to be done to meet those expectations,” says Barry Engle, executive VP and president of GM. “As a result, our engineering, service and sales teams have worked closely with our dealer network to develop a program that follows best practices regarding the delivery of new, used or serviced vehicles.”

Other cleaning strategies are being explored throughout the automotive world, too. One example of that is Hyundai pursuing interior disinfecting through ultraviolet lighting. UV lighting is capable of killing viruses, and Hyundai is developing a cabin light that could sterilize an interior in the future.

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