Sonic CEO Scott Smith steps down, succeeded by brother

Sonic Automotive Inc. CEO Scott Smith is stepping down and the nation's fifth-largest auto retailer said it promoted his brother David Smith to CEO and named Jeff Dyke as president. The two appointments are effective Wednesday.

Scott Smith, 50, co-founder of Sonic Automotive, has been CEO since July 2015. Before being named CEO, he was president and chief strategic officer since March 2007. The 21-year veteran of the company also was a member of the board of directors, where he is also stepping down.

He will take on a new role with Sonic to help with a smooth leadership transition and to advise the company on strategic moves, Sonic said in a statement.

"Sonic Automotive is a fantastic company run by thousands of fantastic employees to whom I am deeply grateful for their hard work and dedication," Scott Smith said in the statement. "It has been a pleasure and great privilege to lead the company. I am excited to move into a different role that will allow me to spend more time with my family and I am also committed to help David, Jeff and our other teammates with a smooth transition."

Scott and David Smith, 44, are the sons of Sonic co-founder and Executive Chairman Bruton Smith. Marcus Smith, another of Bruton Smith's sons, is CEO and president of Speedway Motorsports Inc., which owns several race tracks across the country. Bruton Smith is also the founder and executive chairman of Speedway Motorsports.

William Belk, Sonic's lead independent director, said the management changes follow years of succession planning.

"The company's independent directors have strong confidence in David and Jeff," Belk said in a statement. "We also are appreciative of Scott's great work over the past two decades and know his continued role as an adviser to David, Jeff and the rest of the leadership team will be invaluable."

David Smith has worked at Sonic for more than 20 years and in March was promoted to executive vice chairman and chief strategic officer. He also was vice chairman, executive vice president, senior vice president of corporate development, vice president of corporate strategy and a dealer operator and general manager of company dealerships. He has been on the company's board of directors since October 2008.

Dyke, 51, who joined the company in October 2005, has overseen Sonic's automotive business as executive vice president of operations since October 2008.

Bruton Smith, 91, said he was grateful to Scott Smith for his years of service and leadership with the company.

"He has been instrumental in charting our course and helping to build one of the nation's largest automotive retailers," Bruton Smith said in a statement. "At the same time, we have a very talented executive leadership team and we are confident that David's and Jeff's deep knowledge of our businesses, commitment to our culture, and focus on value creation for stockholders have prepared them well."

Sonic, of Charlotte, N.C., ranks No. 5 on Automotive News' list of the top 150 dealership groups based in the U.S., retailing 133,728 new vehicles in 2017. It retailed 123,489 used vehicles for the same period, ranking it No. 6 on Automotive News' list of the top 100 dealership groups in used-vehicle sales.