In an attempt to encourage dealers to make the move, GM last week said it plans to give them a choice between systems from two handpicked vendors -- each of which will provide data integration with GM's own business systems, according to company officials.

GM will let its 8,150 North American dealers choose between dealer management systems developed by The Reynolds and Reynolds Co. in Kettering, Ohio, and Quorum Information Technologies Inc. in Calgary, Alberta. GM also said it has signed a deal with Reynolds to supply all 440 of its Saturn retailers in the U.S. with dealer management software starting next year.

The agreements are part of GM's Integrated Dealer Management System (IDMS) program, which is aimed at providing dealers with software that is similar to an ERP system and can work with GM's internal systems.

Robert Ernst, IT manager at Mike Castrucci Chevrolet-Oldsmobile Inc. in Milford, Ohio, is already using a Reynolds-supplied dealer management system running on Windows, and he upgraded to a version with some of the new IDMS capabilities about six weeks ago.

Ernst said the IDMS approach enables GM to see what parts are available in the inventories of dealers, "just like Wal-Mart " can with its suppliers. He said it should also reduce GM's shipping costs because the company will be able to better anticipate when inventories of a particular part need to be replenished.