Automotive News NADA Show Daily - February 13, 2010 - 3

SATURDAY NADA DAILY FEBRUARY 13, 2010 • 3 Reports show if price is right VAuto Inc. is unveiling an interactive online product at the convention (Booth 1631) that allows dealers to see how prices of their used vehicles stack up against the competition, says Dale Pollak, president. The RealDeal Report shows how the price of a used vehicle compares with the prices of similar vehicles on sale in a dealer’s market. RealDeal creates the reports by monitoring more than 40,000 third-party and dealer-owned Web sites that sell used vehicles, Pollak said. RealDeal will be sold only to vAuto subscribers. Ed Tonkin: Wounds to heal, work to do Healing wounds with manufacturers and dealer members is a priority for the National Automobile Dealers Association in 2010, says NADA’s incoming chairman, Ed Tonkin. But the association also has internal improvements and regulatory concerns to pursue. Tonkin, 55, is vice president and general counsel of the Ron Tonkin Family of Dealerships in Portland, Ore. He spoke with Staff Reporter Amy Wilson. You say NADA needs to be more efficient internally. How do you do that? We need to have more open discussion and debate — at the board meetings, within committees. Board members need to be more involved in bringing what they know about the marketplace and their regions to the whole group so we get a better understanding about what’s going on around the country. What dealer issues do you want to tackle this year? questionanswer Incoming NADA Chairman Ed Tonkin: The threat to dealer survival is not over. Some of them we don’t know yet. The IRS is endeavoring to force dealers to capitalize certain expenses in their stores rather than expensing them. It’s a big issue because it would result in a huge tax adjustment for dealers at a time when business isn’t good. We’re continuing to work with the Congress on LIFO. CAFE is a very big issue for us. They’ve kind of gotten back-burner status because of what happened with the manufacturers and the market this last year. There’s an awful lot of regulation coming through on the credit side. We dodged a bullet in the House, but now the Senate will be taking it up. Will 2010 be a better year for dealers? The forecasts are that it’s going to be, but we don’t know. My goodness, look at how quickly the market just fell apart. It was stunning, and we’d love to see it pop back like that, but that’s not in the cards. So the threat to dealer survival and stability is not behind us? Definitely, it is not. I think we’ll see more attrition. Manufacturers and some very prominent voices in the industry, such as Roger Penske, say there are still too many dealers. If there are too many dealers, the marketplace will adjust that. Water seeks its own level. Dealers will consolidate. Dealers will decide to close their business, or they won’t be able to survive, unfortunately. And you will economically, on its own, get the right number. As chairman, do you want to carry on your dad’s legacy? Should we expect the Rough Riders to come back? No, no. There won’t be any Rough Riders. My dad was a phenomenal NADA president. Critical times call for critical measures. At that time, the dealers were really getting beat up with fleet subsidies, and he was the cause that really put an end to that. He really made a mark. Now, I’m not my dad. My dad has been a great teacher, but I’m my own guy. Look, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. I’m an advocate, and I speak my mind. But everybody tends to do things a little differently. I didn’t take this job on to create a personal legacy. I’m doing this because this industry has been great to me and my family and our employees, and I enjoy and want to serve it. My job is to work as hard as I possibly can while I’m in this position and try to leave it in better shape than when I came in. c Wachovia will change name Wachovia Dealer Services is changing its name to Wells Fargo Dealer Services. The name change takes effect March 20, although Wells Fargo Bank completed its purchase of Wachovia Corp. Dec. 31, 2008. Wachovia Dealer Services is the nation’s highest-volume used-car lender and third-largest lender overall, based on Experian Automotive data. For dealers, 2009 was a year like no other Mary Beth Vander Schaaf mvanderschaaf@crain.com Ford honors dealers Ford Motor Co. has honored dealers for dedication to their communities. Ford’s Salute to Dealers, conducted under the guidance of Edsel Ford II, a member of Ford’s board of directors, was held Friday evening. The program was established in 2001 to show Ford’s commitment to its dealers who improve the lives of those in need. This year’s honorees are: Gregg Middlekauff of Middlekauff Ford-LincolnMercury in Twin Falls, Idaho. Daniel Pfeiffer of Pfeiffer Lincoln-Mercury in Grand Rapids, Mich. Don Price of Lafayette Ford in Fayetteville, N.C. Phil Smith of Dick Smith Ford in Raytown, Mo. Northwood gives awards Northwood University in Midland, Mich., will present seven Dealer Education Awards at a breakfast Sunday at the Rosen Centre Hotel. These dealers will be honored for contributions to public or private education: Ronald Charron of Boulevard Auto Center in Signal Hill, Calif. Joe Falzon of Signature FordLincoln-Mercury in Owosso, Mich. Manfred Jetzlaff of Northeim, Germany. Raj Lally of Orange BuickGMC in Orlando. Barron Meade of Meade Group in Utica, Mich. Kevin Reilly of Alexandria Hyundai in Alexandria, Va. Bob Velthuis of Terwindt & Hekking in the Netherlands. Pain, tumult and change. That’s what auto dealers went through last year as the industry collapsed. And those were the lucky ones. They survived. Automotive News reporters asked dealer leaders representing 27 brands about last year and the outlook for this year. The series of interviews begins today in the NADA Daily. After a year unlike any other, here’s where dealers say their brands stand. Suzuki is struggling. Last year didn’t help. “It was one of the weirdest I’ve seen,” said Texas dealer Greg Chaney. With safety recalls shattering their brand’s quality image, Toyota dealers are on the hot seat. Over the next few weeks, 2.3 million Toyota owners are invited to visit the 1,235 Toyota store service lanes for vehicle repairs. Surviving Chrysler dealers will continue “to fight for every piece of ground we cover,” said Ohio dealer Chuck Eddy. But this year they have an added challenge: keeping customers of rejected stores in the Chrysler fold. Chevrolet dealers also are trying to keep customers of disappearing stores. Buick-GMC dealers need to find their way without Pontiacs to sell. Hummer dealers are unsure about their futures. They are waiting for General Motors Co. to close the deal to sell Hummer to Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Co., of China. Greg Chaney, Suzuki dealer council chairman, called 2009 “completely unexpected.” Suzuki dealers are counting on the new Kizashi sedan to turn things around. EXPOSITION 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Orange County Convention Center WORKSHOPS 11 a.m.-12:15 p.m. GENERAL SESSION 2:10 p.m. Pre-session entertainment 2:30-4:30 p.m. Chairman’s address: John McEleney Keynote address: Stefan Jacoby, CEO, Volkswagen Group of America Time Magazine Dealer of the Year Awards Industry message: Mike Jackson, CEO, AutoNation RECEPTIONS, by invitation only Women’s Dealer Breakfast The Peabody Orlando Ballroom 7:30-9:30 a.m. Women’s Automotive Association International Spirit of Leadership Awards Luncheon The Peabody 11:30 a.m. -1:30 p.m. Autobytel reception Hard Rock Café Roots of Rock Room and Terrace, Universal Orlando 6-8 p.m. Cobalt reception Norman’s restaurant Ritz-Carlton 6-9 p.m. Dealer leader interviews Automotive News talked with dealer representatives for almost all car and light-truck brands sold in the U.S. Read the interviews in our 3 NADA Dailies. Here’s where to find them. Acura Audi BMW Buick-GMC Cadillac Chevrolet Chrysler Ford Honda Hummer Hyundai Infiniti Jaguar Kia Day Sat. Sat. Mon. Sat. Sat. Sat. Sun. Sun. Mon. Sat. Sun. Mon. Mon. Sat. Page 14 12 14 10 6 4 6 4 4 28 24 18 28 24 Land Rover Lexus Lincoln-Mercury Mazda Mercedes Mitsubishi Nissan Porsche Subaru Suzuki Toyota VW Volvo Day Mon. Sun. Mon. Sun. Sat. Mon. Sun. Sun. Sat. Mon. Sun. Sun. Mon. Page 12 22 24 12 22 6 28 10 18 10 14 18 22 Volvo dealers also are wrestling with uncertainty as Ford Motor Co. negotiates Volvo’s sale to Chinese maker Zhejiang Geely Holding Group. Said Arizona dealer Mike DiChristofano: “Everybody wants it over.” c GMAC CEO will attend NADA convention Michael Carpenter, named GMAC Financial Services’ CEO in November, is attending the convention Sunday and Monday to get acquainted with dealers. He also met with dealers during the Detroit auto show in January, viewing auto retailers as GMAC’s prime clients. Carpenter, 62, who has served on GMAC’s board of directors since May, intends to shape GMAC into a bank that specializes in automotive finance. Several other executives also are attending the convention, including President Bill Muir and Tim Russi, executive vice president of North GMAC CEO Michael Carpenter intends to solicit business from dealers of all brands. American automotive finance operations. The executive team and regional management will attend the Chrysler make meeting on Sunday. As a bank, GMAC intends to solicit business from dealers of all brands. Through agreements with the manu- GMAC teams with DealerTrack ➤ 29 facturers, it serves as the preferred lender for the General Motors and Chrysler Group dealer networks. Last year, GMAC introduced an incentive program called Ally Dealer Rewards to GM and Chrysler dealers. Its share of the U.S. retail finance business was 30 percent for GM and 26 percent for Chrysler in the fourth quarter of 2009. GMAC provided inventory credit lines to 91 percent of GM dealers and 77 percent of Chrysler dealers. — Donna Harris

Automotive News NADA Show Daily - February 13, 2010

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