Audi, VW, Stellantis, Buick-GMC and Hyundai dealerships change hands in Q3 deals

A general manager and a family running a used-car store each bought their first new-vehicle dealerships while two regional auto retailers continued expansions in separate third-quarter transactions.

Here's a look at the deals involving domestic, import and luxury dealerships in Vermont, New York and Pennsylvania.

General manager buys first store, dealership group expands in Vermont

A general manager said he achieved his "American dream" and a company nearly doubled its franchised dealership count when retiring Stephan Maeder of Rutland Auto Group, formerly known as Kinney Motors, sold his three Rutland, Vt., stores to two buyers Sept. 29.

Maeder, in one transaction, sold Audi Rutland/Rutland Volkswagen and Rutland Dodge-Ram to brothers Barry and Patrick Lundgren of Lundgren Automotive Group, a family-owned business in Auburn, Mass. Rutland is east of the New York state line.

The Audi-Volkswagen store kept its name, while the Stellantis store was renamed Lundgren Dodge-Ram, Barry Lundgren confirmed. With the purchase, Lundgren Automotive now has five franchised dealerships, including two Honda stores, in Auburn and Greenfield, Mass., and a Subaru store in Bennington, Vt.

Lundgren Automotive also has a collision shop and classic car shop and provides insurance services. In June, the group sold a Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram store in Greenfield to McGovern Automotive Group.

In the other Sept. 29 transaction, the former Rutland Subaru was sold to Jose Oliver, a first-time dealership owner.

A native of the Dominican Republic, Oliver came to the U.S. by way of Boston in 2001. He took an auto sales job in 2006 that inspired him to earn a bachelor's degree in business administration. He worked his way up to being a general manager, most recently at Twin City Subaru in Berlin, Vt.

Oliver wanted to own a store, but the process and transaction proved challenging, according to Nancy Phillips, president of Nancy Phillips Associates Inc., a brokerage firm in Exeter, N.H.

The firm represented the seller in the transaction but also advised Oliver, Phillips told Automotive News. Oliver, who had saved up money, said many brokers and automakers didn't return his calls as he sought to become a franchised dealership owner.

Phillips said she saw something in Oliver and wanted to help him succeed. A Chase Auto program providing floorplan funding to minority candidates, lending from Live Oak Bank and Phillips' help all came together to help Oliver realize his dream.

A warm welcome from the community paired with an amazing staff made the first days after the renamed Oliver Subaru opened even better than he expected, Oliver told Automotive News.

"People are showing up to shake my hand, saying congratulations," he said. "It's been pretty good. It's pretty humbling, too."

Oliver also believed in himself when others didn't.

"You know, almost everybody told me it wasn't possible," Oliver said. "But if I believed in what people said all the time, I wouldn't be having this conversation ... today."

Nimey family acquires new-car dealership in New York

Lee Buick-GMC Trucks became Matt Nimey Buick-GMC on Sept. 19, with the Nimey family acquiring the Boonville, N.Y., dealership from the Lee family.

This is the Nimey family's first new-car dealership, owner Matt Nimey said. The family's automotive ties began in 1964 with a Utica, N.Y., used-car dealership that Matt began to run alongside his parents in 1999. Boonville is north of Utica.

The new-vehicle store is a next step in the Nimeys' expansion plans, Matt said, adding he had previously purchased a vehicle from the Lee family and was familiar with the dealership. Most staff remained following the ownership transition.

"We're going to try to perfect what we have and continue to grow and scale," he told Automotive News. "And with the team that we have currently, I don't see any limits."

The Nimeys will offer an expanded used-car selection at the Buick-GMC store.

The family also wants to keep the hometown, family-business feel at the new dealership, said Cindy Nimey, Matt's mother. The two run both dealerships together.

"We're not a big conglomerate coming in and taking over and changing things and making it more [of] a corporate world," Cindy said. "We like treating our employees like family, and we want to keep that feel here."

The Buick-GMC dealership's previous ownership also has long-standing family ties. The Lee family joined the Boonville automotive retail landscape in 1953.

"Matt and Cindy are all about family, and we know they'll treat our team and our customers with the same care we always have," Randy Lee, former vice president at Lee Buick-GMC Trucks, said in a statement. "They have the same values we do."

Timbrook Automotive adds first Hyundai dealership

Timbrook Automotive on Sept. 30 acquired Hamilton Hyundai in Chambersburg, Pa., marking the group's first Hyundai dealership, said Dave Ainsworth, partner and Pennsylvania platform manager at Timbrook.

The Cumberland, Md., group wanted to work with the Hyundai brand because it has handled inventory shortage challenges well and has successfully launched several electric vehicles, Ainsworth said.

The dealership was renamed Chambersburg Hyundai and is Timbrook Automotive's third Pennsylvania dealership. Chambersburg is in south-central Pennsylvania.

The group operates 12 new-vehicle dealerships, with locations also in Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia. It also sells Kia, Ford, Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, Honda and Nissan vehicles. And it has two powersports stores.

The sellers, Rick Hamilton and Ken Shreve, share many of the same missions and values as Timbrook, Ainsworth said.

The store "had a great core base, and we'll build upon it and grow," Ainsworth said.

Timbrook Automotive, headed by President Fred Timbrook, also plans next year to begin a revamp and expansion of the dealership under Hyundai's facility image program, Ainsworth said. The improvements will include EV infrastructure and a new showroom.

In May 2021, Fred Timbrook, Ainsworth and Lee Wilson of Timbrook Automotive bought Hazleton Honda in Hazle Township, Pa., from Lithia Motors Inc.

Rob Lee, director of the Northeast region for buy-sell firm Tim Lamb Group in Columbus, Ohio, represented the seller in the Hyundai dealership transaction.