Brian Castonguay has no regrets.

This time last year, he was converting his Cadillac-Land Rover dealership into a General Motors superstore, dropping Land Rover and adding GM's Buick, Pontiac and GMC brands to his Hubacher Auto Center at the corner of Fair Oaks Boulevard and Howe Avenue in Sacramento.

This week, he has watched GM's stock price plunge on last Friday's report that the automaker had posted a $2.5 billion third-quarter loss, burned through nearly $7 billion of cash in that period and might run out of money next year unless the economy improves. The nation's No. 1 automaker even appealed for a federal bailout.

Yet Castonguay is not circling the wagons. He's happy with his one-stop GM dealership, which also includes GM subsidiary Saab.

"I think it's the only way to go for the future," he said this week. "If you want to succeed, I think you have to have as large a breadth as you can handle. I think that's better than only offering one line."

But Castonguay, Hubacher's general manager, admitted that the barrage of bad news from GM headquarters in Detroit is unsettling.

GM last week reported that October sales at its U.S. dealerships were down 45 percent compared with a year ago. Sales for the year are off 20 percent.

Shares of GM continued their free fall Tuesday, sinking 44 cents, or 13.1 percent, to close at $2.92 after touching a 65-year low of $2.75 earlier in the session. A year ago, GM was trading above $30, meaning the company's stock has lost more than 90 percent of its value in that time.

Other local dealers, Sacramento-area consumers and a host of auto industry analysts also are nervous about GM's future, although most believe the government will not let GM collapse.

The consequences, they say, are too high. They include a projected loss of 2.5 million jobs, including auto workers, suppliers and employees at dealerships nationwide.

Consumers nervous about the days ahead were easy to find at last weekend's Sacramento International Auto Show at Cal Expo.

"Even when GM was losing money a few years back, I thought people were crazy talking about bankruptcy and going out of business," said Patrick Livingston of Sacramento. "Now, it actually seems like it could happen, and yeah, that really worries me."

Wendy Smith of Fair Oaks said she was looking for a GM-made crossover vehicle, "but I'm worried about my budget and (GM's) too. It's probably the best time to buy a new car, that's what everybody says, but I worry about how we're going to hold up and how GM is going to do until this awful nightmare goes away."

Others at the show were more optimistic.

"It is a good time to buy. That's why I'm here," said Sacramentan John Park. "My credit rating is good. I don't have much debt. … GM has some good vehicles, and I know the local dealers want to deal. … I'm looking for a midsize sedan or a small SUV."

Roger Cruz of Folsom described himself as "a GM guy" in the market for a new car.

"I can't envision America without GM, and I don't think that's going to happen," he said. "Whether it's the government or a merger, I don't think GM is going anywhere."

Castonguay said his sales in September were pretty good, but like other dealers, sales slumped in October. He said tight credit, low consumer confidence and a struggling economy have hurt, along with a blizzard of bad financial news.

"I think it's a combination of all those things," he said. "People get tired of all the bad news, and nobody can really see what is going to happen to the economy in the future."

Among local dealers' biggest gripes are reports indicating it's impossible to get financing to buy a car. In many cases, they say, that's not true.

"On the GM side, in terms of financing, we have a lot of alternative banks," said David A. Rodgers, senior vice president and general manager of the local Sullivan Auto Group, which includes John L. Sullivan Chevrolet in the Roseville Automall. "I know it's difficult for some people, but you can get financing if you're credit-worthy."

Rodgers said customers are not obsessed with GM's survival. They're talking deals.

"I can tell you that people who are credit-worthy are asking for deals they normally wouldn't ask for, that's for sure," he said.

Rodgers said the group's Chevrolet dealership "has picked up some since the election. We had a little uptick over the weekend."

Some analysts predicted a postelection bounce, but it's not clear how long it will last.

Jeremy Anwyl, chief executive of Santa Monica-based Edmunds.com, the automotive information site, said better days for GM and other automakers are tied to consumer confidence.

"The lack of consumer confidence must be addressed," he said. "The natural demand for cars in the U.S. is much higher than the sales results we are currently seeing, but buyers will continue to avoid big-ticket purchases until they feel a sense of economic security."

For GM, that time can't come soon enough.

Call The Bee's Mark Glover, (916) 321-1184. Bee news services contributed to this report.