1970-1980s

When the state widened the roads in 1970, Lee Gartner purchased 4.37 acres of land from Eugene Casey and relocated Reed Brothers Dodge from its original 1800-square foot lot in town to a new state-of-the-art 26,000-square foot showroom and Dodge/Chrysler/Jeep service complex at 15955 Frederick Road, between Rockville and Gaithersburg.

Breaking Ground for the New Location, 1970

From left: Edwin Becraft, Phil Vetter, George Ward, Lee Gartner, President (others unknown).

Lee Gartner, center

Lee Gartner with the ceremonial shovel onsite in 1970

Lee Gartner with the ceremonial shovel installed in his office in the new building.

The completion of Reed Brothers new home, a complete automotive sales and service facility, marked 55 years of selling Dodges. The state-of-the-art dealership contained the newest customer-focused features that combined technology and comfort throughout. It featured a modern new vehicle showroom, 30 service bays, a comprehensive detail and car wash area, a parts department, a body shop, and the newest technologies to service vehicles, providing customers with a one-stop convenient location to purchase and service their automotive needs.

The Reed Brothers Dodge dealership was designed with a New Formalist influence, as demonstrated in the above hand-drawn architectural rendering by Cooke Brackett of Washington, D.C.

Character-defining elements of auto dealerships representative of this period include, but are not limited to:

• One story
• Rectangular form with secondary service areas
• Flat roofs are most prevalent
• Large expansive showroom windows and minimal windows at service areas
• Extensive use of corporate branding including street signs, rooftop signs, and various brand color schemes
• Set back from, and parallel to, the adjoining major roadway

Design and construction of the new dealership was managed by the Glen Construction Company, a Gaithersburg-based development firm. 

Reed Brothers Dodge Celebrates 55 Years in Business

1976 New Car Showroom & Lot

New Dodge cars displayed on the showroom floor at Reed Brothers.

A line of cars all lined up in rows on the side lot awaiting prospective buyers.

1972 Washington Auto Show

Gathering around the Charger Topper on display at the Washington meeting are (from left) Lee Gartner, President/Dealer Principal and Phil Vetter (at wheel), Service Manager of Reed Brothers Dodge.

The 1972 Dodge Charger “Topper Special” was a custom-equipped economy Charger specially equipped with the canopy vinyl roof, hidden headlights, side paint stripe, contour moldings, bumper guards, Rallye instrumentation, security inside hood release, whitewalls, wheel covers, left remote control mirror, extra chrome, and  fender mounted turn signals.

And for adding these beautiful touches, your dealer can offer you a vinyl roof. Free. Want power steering and power brakes? See your Dodge Dealer about his offer on the specially equipped Charger Topper X. Dodge, Depend on it.

The First Chrysler Bailout, 1979

By the end of the 1970s, Reed Brothers was doing good business, but Chrysler was not. The chairman of the Chrysler Corporation, Lee Iacocca, requested $1.5 billion from Congress to guarantee their loans– a bailout that was granted in 1979. At the time, it was the largest rescue package ever granted by the U.S. government to an American corporation. 

Chrysler released the first of the K-Car line: the Dodge Aries and Plymouth Reliant, in 1981. Released in the middle of the major 1980-1982 recession, the small, efficient and inexpensive front-wheel drive cars sold rapidly. These models were soon followed by what would become a home run product for Chrysler: minivans.

In 1983, sales improved dramatically. Because of the K-cars and minivans, the company turned around quickly and was able to repay the government-backed loans seven years earlier than expected. 

Chrysler Corporation Chairman, Lee Iacocca

The 1984 Dodge Caravan was an immediate success. It brought the company back from the brink of bankruptcy, and reinvigorated the automotive market. Many buyers had to wait weeks to have their orders filled because there was so much demand. Dodge created an entirely new market with the minivan, and other models soon followed suit. The early 1980s was an extremely painful period for Chrysler, but Reed Brothers survived.

Watergate Fame: Before the summer of 1972, the word “Watergate” meant nothing more than an office and luxurious apartment complex in Washington, D.C. As a result of a “third-rate burglary” on June 17 of that year, it came to be associated with the greatest political scandal of that century and would change the lives of the many people involved — especially President Richard M. Nixon. Many celebrities have purchased cars at Reed Brothers Dodge, but the most infamous purchase was a van used in the 1972 Watergate scandal … that van was returned.

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