Recent Stories
More than 100 high school students participated in the two-day North Texas Automobile Dealers Association contest and career fair held at Texas Motor Speedway.
Dealerships participate in Texas school auto tech competition

Local dealerships partner with competing schools leading up to the event to mentor the fledgling technicians.
Adam Haner, service director at Helfman Motors in Houston
Rise in catalytic converter thefts fills up dealership service departments
BRONCO-MAIN_i.jpg
Dealerships get in the accessories game

Auto dealerships are offering a menu of accessory options for shoppers aimed at tailoring new vehicles to their lifestyle, hobbies or work.
POWERBROKERS-MAIN_i.jpg
Dodge aims to solidify its performance cred

Dodge's Power Brokers program grants qualified U.S. dealers exclusive access to selling, stocking and installing Direct Connection parts and services.
RECONDITIONING-MAIN_i.jpg
Teamwork can speed used-vehicle reconditioning

Most dealerships can recondition used vehicles in four to five days. Some stores can turn around a car in three days or less.
Manheim centers boost dealer recon capacity

For a franchised dealership considering outsourcing some or all of its reconditioning work, Manheim is one option.
BILL_FICK-MAIN_i.jpg
Ford dealer-cowboy knows the customer service ropes

It's not unusual for the Huntsville, Texas, dealership to come to the rescue of customers left stranded hundreds or even thousands of miles away.
Ford, Texas dealers team to train Army vets for service dept. jobs

The mission is designed to counter the dire shortage of trained auto technicians while helping soldiers land on their feet as they transition to civilian life.
The unique service bay needs of muscle cars

While bleeding-edge, modern-day muscle cars deliver unprecedented acceleration and speed, they also can become speed bumps for dealership service and parts departments.
Customer reviews on social media can make or break a service department
Online customer reviews of dealership service departments are the farthest-reaching, longest-lasting form of word-of-mouth advertising. Fixed operations managers need to appreciate and harness the power of social media, which increasingly drive consumers to — or away from — service lanes.
Hurricane spared most Houston dealerships, but some were hit hard
The din of repair work is the background music for Houston area dealerships — and their service departments — that were hit hardest by Hurricane Harvey.
Harvey recovery: From burned out to back in business
Gay Family Auto suffered enormous damage from Harvey. But the group exemplifies how quickly the region's retailers are bouncing back, at least initially.
Houston dealers assess damage
Virgil Skinner, past chairman of the Houston dealers association, laid out what he expects his peers to do in the next few days. The message he is sending is that the post-Harvey recovery will be tedious and painful, but vital. "It's going to take the better part of a week for dealers to actually get into their stores, assess the damage and come up with a plan to get back in business," Skinner said. "Not just for themselves but especially for the employees."
Ike's lessons helped Ford dealership cope
Planet Ford Spring, north of Houston, learned its lessons when Hurricane Ike hit in 2008. Here's how the family owned dealership is coping this time.
Dealers, automakers work to phase in thinner engine oil
Toyota and Honda work with U.S. dealers to convert to thinner engine oil in some cars