Ford, Chevy and Chevy-Buick dealerships sell in Q1 acquisitions

Three domestic-brand dealerships sold in separate, first-quarter deals to growing dealership groups.

Here's a look at the deals involving dealerships in Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and Wisconsin. One transaction involved a group on Automotive News' top 150 dealership groups list.

#1 Cochran Automotive made its first acquisition in more than three years, CEO Rob Cochran confirmed, when it bought a Ford dealership in late March.

#1 Cochran, of Monroeville, Pa., on March 23 bought Butler County Ford in Butler, Pa., north of Pittsburgh, from Cathy Glasgow.

"After much consideration, I felt it was time to pass the torch," Glasgow said in a statement.

The dealership was renamed #1 Cochran Ford of Butler County. It's the second Ford dealership for the group. #1 Cochran is planning to build a new Ford showroom and service center for the dealership within two years.

"As Ford continues to ramp up its EV and traditional engine businesses, we plan to give customers a best-in-class buying and ownership experience from an all-new, leading-edge facility," Rob Cochran said in a statement.

In early 2019, #1 Cochran bought two Kenny Ross Automotive Group dealerships, Chevrolet and Nissan stores in Zelienople, Pa., from GPB Capital Holdings, a New York alternative asset management firm.

#1 Cochran ranks no. 61 on Automotive News' list of the top 150 dealership groups based in the U.S., retailing 14,195 new-vehicles in 2021.

Brothers Jay Dillon and Tom Dillon sold their Chevrolet dealership in Greenfield, Mass., on Feb. 2 to McGovern Automotive Group, marking the group's first Chevrolet store.

Dillon Chevrolet opened in 1962 under the Dillons' father.

Jay Dillon and Tom Dillon exited the business with the sale and will retire, according to Woody Woodward of the Eastern Region of DCG Acquisitions. Woodward, along with Brian Traugott of DCG Acquisitions, a Dave Cantin Group company, handled the transaction for the buyer and seller.

The dealership was renamed McGovern Chevrolet of Greenfield. The McGovern group now sells 18 new-vehicle brands at dealerships in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and New York, according to its website. The group also has two used-vehicle stores.

All 35 employees were retained following the sale.

McGovern Automotive Group President Matt McGovern is dealer principal and the dealership is run by one of his employees, Ben Muenzberg, who is general manager, Woodward said. McGovern plans to expand the facility's sales and service areas.

Woodward said the McGovern group hopes that Dillon Chevrolet, which sold about 200 new vehicles and 350 used vehicles in 2021, will help it grow not only in retail-vehicle sales, but also in government- and fleet-vehicle sales.

Wheelers Family Auto Group, led by a brother-and-sister team who grew up in the auto retail business, last month purchased Charles Automotive Inc., a Chevrolet-Buick dealership in Coloma, Wis.

The Wheelers on March 1 bought the dealership, renamed Wheelers Chevrolet-Buick, from Charles Plach.

It's the Wheelers' fifth new-car dealership, all in Central Wisconsin, and all with General Motors franchises. Mary Jo Wheeler-Schueller is president and dealer principal, and Daniel Wheeler is CFO for the group. Wheeler-Schueller also chairs the GM Women's Dealer Advisory Council.

Wheelers, based in Marshfield, Wis., also has a used-car dealership in Abbotsford, Wis., two body shops, and a standalone Wheelers auto repair and tire center in Marshfield.

Wheeler-Schueller said in a phone interview that her family and the seller had known each other for many years.

"I think it goes a long way, if you've got a good relationship with the neighboring dealers," she said. "We don't work through brokers."

Wheeler-Schueller said GM has recognized Wheelers Family Auto as an "early adopter" of electric vehicles and the family business is participating in a GM effort to build publicly available EV charging stations at dealerships.

She said the Level 2 charger at Wheelers Chevrolet of Merrill, Wis., is one of a just a few opportunities for EV drivers to recharge between Minneapolis and Northern Wisconsin or Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

"We all love EVs and what they can do, but the problem is, the infrastructure is not there," she said. "We can use dealerships to help implement that."