Longtime local car dealer Phil Bachman Jr. passed away on Monday at the age of 87.
His 54-year auto dealer career began in May 1967 when Bachman was 29 and purchased Pless Pontiac-Cadillac on Tusculum Boulevard, making him the youngest Cadillac dealer in the United States.
In 1973, Bachman built and relocated to a new dealership facility on what was, at the time, a farm on the outskirts of town. In 1976 and 1978, he acquired what would become Phil Bachman Toyota in Johnson City and started Phil Bachman Honda in Kingsport. Bachman moved Honda Wheels in Greeneville to Morristown and renamed it Honda Morristown. In 1984, Myron Bernard became Bachman’s partner in the Greeneville dealership, and it became Bachman-Bernard. Bachman built an automotive network comprised of four dealerships across four towns in Northeast Tennessee.
Bachman served on the board of directors of Greene County Bank, later renamed GreenBank, from 1967 until 2007. He was also a member of the Greeneville Rotary Club for 56 years, the club’s longest-serving member.
A memorial service will be held in the sanctuary at First Presbyterian Church on Thursday, August 7 at 3 pm. Bachman will be laid to rest at Glenwood Cemetery in Bristol, Tennessee after a private family service. Jeffers Funeral & Cremation Service is in charge of the arrangements.
