Carl Moyer, founder of Karl Chevrolet, dies at age 83

Longtime auto retailer Carl Moyer, owner and founder of Karl Chevrolet in Ankeny, Iowa, a flagship store that led to the creation of Karl Auto Group, died Sept. 28. He was 83.

Moyer started Karl Chevrolet in January 1978 with a one-car showroom in Ankeny, north of Des Moines.

Tony Mills, who handles marketing for the group, said Moyer was a huge philanthropist.

"He gave a tremendous amount of money back to the community, to the Ankeny community and to charities that mattered," Mills said. "He was just an icon in our community and within General Motors, too."

In 1983, Moyer relocated the Chevrolet dealership within the town to a 32-acre lot, where he maintained manicured grounds with perfectly lined vehicles.

A huge boulder emblazoned with the iconic Chevrolet logo and phrase "Like A Rock" helped punctuate the dealership's entrance, according to a 2011 Automotive News video report. Mills confirmed the rock remains, often with a Chevy Silverado pickup parked on top — a detail with rock 'n' roll history attached.

Moyer told Automotive News in 2011 that he had to cut a deal with Michigan rock star Bob Seger to use the words "Like a Rock" on the boulder.

"The deal that I made with Seger was, we could never park anything up there except a truck," Moyer said.

Moyer told Automotive News in another story from that year about how he built his store to be a top U.S. Chevrolet sales performer.

Moyer and his dealerships have garnered stacks of accolades from the automaker including receiving the 2023 Chevrolet Dealer of the Year for Retail award, marking a 20th time, according to GM.

He got his start in auto retail in a nontraditional way. Moyer acknowledged he had been kicked out of high school for fighting and had dropped out.

"I'm not proud of that, but I've got to tell you: Whatever caused me to be a success in this business, I didn't learn it in school," Moyer said at the time. "I learned it from just doing it and practicing."

Moyer, an amateur cartoonist, designed his company's logo: the recognizable, backward red "K" that marked his flagship Chevrolet dealership and later Karl Auto Group. Moyer added and sold dealerships over the years, Mills said, but he didn't get a second franchised store until 2017 when he formed Karl Auto Group.

Moyer's Karl Auto Group grew to include several franchised dealerships, including stores selling GM brands in Stuart, Webster City and Marshalltown, all in Iowa, as well as Ford and Stellantis stores, a used-vehicle dealership and a wholesale parts store in Des Moines.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Moyer began a holiday tradition where visitors could check out his Iowa home to see his car collection, holiday decorations, and enjoy snacks and photos with Santa after. Mills said the tradition continued past the pandemic and likely will again this year.

Moyer is survived by his wife, Penny; sons Brad and Bret; and daughter, Pam. The children hold various positions in the auto group, and Bret Moyer is expected to take over day-to-day operations, Mills said.