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Attorney John Arthur Eaves and Shop Owner Bill Fowler appear on Memphis Radio to Discuss MDL Suit by Chasidy Rae Sisk
On Tuesday, August 26, attorney John Arthur Eaves and shop owner Bill Fowler, of Bill Fowler’s Bodyworks in Southaven MS, appeared on the Drake and Zeke Show, a popular early morning radio talk show in the Memphis, TN area. The reason for their guest appearance was to explain the MDL lawsuit to consumers and educate them on their rights during the collision repair process in hopes of raising awareness about this important issue impacting collision repair facilities across the country.
To begin, the radio hosts summarized the lawsuit they planned to discuss. In January 2014, Eaves filed a complaint against insurers on behalf of 21 collision repair shops. Though the lawsuit began in MS, it has spread and continues to gain traction so that it is now a national lawsuit, involving six states, which will be tried by a single judge in FL. Multiple insurers have been implicated in the complaint as the habit of insurer steering is an industry-wide problem. Fowler pointed out that steering has become so pervasive in the indusSee Memphis Radio, Page 32
Congress Expresses Support of Repair Industry in Response to Owners’ Trip to Washington D.C. by Stacey Phillips, Assistant Editor
Sixty-five collision repair shop owners recently traveled to Washington D.C. to educate Congress about the struggle body shops face to protect consumers when providing a complete and safe repair. The majority of them were part of a Nationwide AntiTrust Multi-District Litigation filed earlier this year against multiple insurance companies in several states. (See also other cover story this page.) After more than 150 meetings with representatives and senators over a three-day period, the result was an outpouring of support for an industry
VOL. 32 ISSUE 11 NOVEMBER 2014
MSO Consolidations in CA Heat Up Industry by Stacey Phillips, Assistant Editor
Last month we reported on the final closing of the purchase of Holmes Body Shop’s seven locations by Cooks Collision Centers. The Holmes acquisition was initiated in May 2012 and concluded with the seventh Holmes location closing in September of this year, after our last issue went to press. With 35 locations in CA, Cooks is the largest independently owned and operated collision repair organization in the state. But Holmes is not even the latest medium size MSO to be acquired by larger consolidators in California. In September, Service King Collision Repair Centers acquired Marco’s Collision Centers, a medium-sized MSO also having seven locations in South-
ern California. Shortly thereafter Service King reached an agreement to acquire Car West Auto Body, an MSO with seven shops in Northern California. Is there some kind of ‘rule of sevens’ at play here? More seriously, we wanted to know what forces were driving the acquisition of small to mid-size MSOs and why they seem more attractive than individual shops for acquisition. Nearly 20 years ago David Roberts, the co-founder and former Chairman of the Board for Caliber Collision Centers, wrote an article predicting the future of consolidations in the collision repair industry. It was entitled Shop Consolidation: Is it Inevitable? Undoubtedly, Roberts anSee MSO Consolidations, Page 12
Pro Spot is Ford’s Rotunda Supplier of the Year Carlsbad’s Pro Spot is very proud to be awarded the supplier of the year award by the Ford Motor Company Rotunda Program. Pro Spot was approved by Ford to supply aluminum repair equipment to the Collision Repair Program for repairs on the new 2015 Ford F-150 all-aluminum body truck. The Ford Rotunda Dealer Equipment Program is a national program endorsed by Ford
Matt Parker with House Speaker John Boehner
faced with the challenge of insurance companies dictating how they run See Congress Support, Page 40
(l to r) Mike Berardi (Ford Director of Service Engineering Operations), Ashley Olsson (Pro Spot Director of Communications), Ron Olsson (Pro Spot Founder & President) and Steve DeAngelis (Ford Manager of Technical Support Operations). Photo Credit: Ashley Olsson
Motor Co. to their dealer base, selling service and body shop repair equipment. The approved equipment included: the SP Pulse MIG welders— the most sold Ford-required MIG
welders in North America, the Aluminum Dent Repair Stations, Fume Extractors, and the SPR Riveter; all of which contributed to the winning of the Supplier of the Year award. “We would like to thank Team Pro Spot for all of their hard work and all of our customers that have supported us in purchasing our aluminum repair products. This means a lot to our team at Pro Spot,” said Ron Olsson, Pro Spot President, “I’m overwhelmed and very honored to win this award from Ford. We have been working very hard and appreciate the trust in our equipment and of course, the overwhelming amount of orders we have received for the aluminum program.” The 2015 F-150 is revolutionizing the repair industry by mainstreaming aluminum repair. With the hard work by Ford Motor Company in designing a repairability-focused, all-aluminum body F-150, shops across the country are getting prepared to repair the top selling vehicle. Pro Spot is proud to be recognized as a supplier of quality aluminum repair equipment to the Collision Repair Program and the 2015 Ford F-150 truck. Pro Spot looks forward to continuing to design innovative equipment for shops and technicians to repair vehicles back to OE standards.
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2 NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Contents $2 Million Grant to Auto Programs in LA,
Norman Morano is Our Newest Regional Sales Manager
Alcoa Forecasts Record Auto Sheet
Shipments in Q4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
AL, MS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Arizona Body Shop Connects With Customers
Recruit Mötley Crüe to Rock Dallas . . . 14
ASA Celebrates New Location . . . . . . . . . . 6
Attanasio - Gas Monkey Garage and Dodge
Berkshire Hathaway to Acquire Van Tuyl Group,
Largest Privately-Owned Auto Dealership
Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
and Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Attorney John Arthur Eaves and Shop
Owner Bill Fowler appear on Memphis
Radio to Discuss MDL Suit . . . . . . . . . . 1
Drug Transport from Texas to Louisiana
Auto Glass Safety Council Updating
Herb’s Opens New Shop in TX . . . . . . . . . . 6
Axalta Program Provides Shop Owners
Busted, Body Shop Involved . . . . . . . . . 4
Honda and SolarCity Partnership Will Create
Certification Exam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
With More Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
$50 Million Fund for Solar Projects. . . . 38
Cadillac to Introduce New Technology
with Environment-Friendly Fuel Plant
Car Donation Helps Army Veteran Get
Increase in Hyrbid Purchases Possible
in Louisiana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
on 2017 Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Back on the Road . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Man Arrested for Vandalism at Car
Car-O-Liner Participation Enhanced
New Online Tool for OK Insurance . . . . . . . 6
Chevrolet Brings Back the Corvette
Dealerships in OK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Service King Honored Breast Cancer
by Social Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Stingray in Time for SEMA . . . . . . . . . . 42
Awareness Month . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Chevrolet Debuts Pickup Concept
Face Off Over “Junkyard Parts”. . . . . . . 10
Congress Expresses Support of Repair
Sisk - ARA and LA Attorney General
Society of Collision Repair Specialists Welcomes Newly Founded Auto Body Association of
Trucks for SEMA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Industry in Response to Owners’ Trip
to Washington D.C. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Texas as Its Latest Affiliate . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Cruising Through Attleboro, MA in Restored
Fraud Case . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Deer Collision Statistics Range
Anniversary Serving Houston. . . . . . . . 16
Ford Recalls 850,000 Cars for
for Selling Extended Auto Warranties . . 13
I-CAR Launches Two New Refinish Courses. 16
Texas Body Shop Celebrates 50th
Texas Company Sued by MN Attorney General
Police Car for 100th Anniversary . . . . . 43
Throughout the US. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Airbag & Seat Belt Glitch . . . . . . . . . . . 36
WIN Donates Memberships . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Mercedes Will Train 26,000 in the
COLUMNISTS
PPG Waterborne Shop Conversions
Attanaiso - Body Shops are Tapping into
Brand’s New Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Exceed 10,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
the Persuasive Power of Video . . . . . . . 20
Pro Spot is Ford’s Rotunda Supplier
Campaign Catches Fire . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Quest Donates $280,000 in Paint
Survive or Are You Trying to Grow . . . . 30
Recent MSO Consolidations in CA
Attanasio - Chicago Body Shop’s Anti-Texting Franklin - Are You Marketing to Merely
Luehr - Lean Implementation Strategies . . 22
of the Year . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
& Abrasives to CREF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Heat Up Industry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Texas Civil Case Involves Allstate
Roush-Modified 2015 Ford Mustang To
Texas Shop Takes Restorations to
SEMA: Sales of Auto Parts & Accessories
Yoswick - DRPs 20 years ago, Early CCRE,
Senate Subcommittee Looks Into
Yoswick - Energy Transfer in Today’s
Takata Airbag Recall May Include
& Service King. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
a “Radical” Level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
ADP Revises Labor Times . . . . . . . . . . 26
Vehicles Makes Measuring, Multi-Point
Pulling More Important . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 NATIONAL
Aftermarket Auto Parts Alliance Joins
CC TRU Parts Network. . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Contact Norm at: nmorano@autobodynews.com to discuss your advertising needs.
Three Types of Parts Account for 50% of Sales Online
In terms of dollars spent on automotive replacement parts through online purchasing, or e-tailing, three categories represent half of the dollar volume in 2013, according to E-Tailing in the Automotive Aftermarket from the Auto Care Association. The top three product categories are braking systems (primarily pads and shoes); ignition and engine (fuel pumps, alternators, ignition coils, etc.);
Be Revealed at SEMA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Reach $33B. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Effectiveness of NHTSA . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
GM Vehicles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Three Types of Parts Account for
50% of Sales Online. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Toyota Moves to Aluminum Hood
for Camry in 2018 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
WIN 2015 Membership Drive . . . . . . . . . . 46
and glass, mirrors and lamps. The E-Tailing in the Automotive Aftermarket digital study analyzes the online retail market for sales of aftermarket parts, and serves as the foundation for the Auto Care Association to provide a unified estimate of online sales within the aftermarket. For pricing and more information, visit www.autocare.org/etailing.
Publisher & Editor: Jeremy Hayhurst General Manager: Barbara Davies Assistant Editor: Stacey Phillips Online Editor: Victoria Antonelli Contributing Writers: Tom Franklin, John Yoswick, Janet Chaney, Toby Chess, David Brown, Rich Evans, Ed Attanasio, Chasidy Sisk, David Luehr Advertising Sales: Joe Momber, Sean Hartman, Bill Doyle, Norman Morano (800) 699-8251 Sales Assistant: Louise Tedesco Art Director: Rodolfo Garcia
Indexof Advertisers
Texan Sentenced in $3M Auto Insurance
Autobody News is pleased to introduce Norman Morano who joined our team in October as an Advertising Sales Manager. Norm has been a Sales Director for 13 years handling Hammer & Dolly, New Jersey Automotive, New England Automotive, AASP-News/MN and Wisconsin Automotive News. He has also sold exhibitor space for the past four years at the Northeast Automotive Trade Show. Norm graduated from the University of California at Berkeley in 1982 with a BS degree in Environmental Studies. After college he travelled extensively before attending Law School at Rutgers University School of Law. He was admitted to the bar in New Jersey and Pennsylvania and has kept his NJ bar license active. Born and raised in Nutley, NJ, Norm has also lived in Orono, ME, Berkeley, CA, and Sydney, Australia. Before concentrating on automotive advertising he had his own sign company building his sales contacts throughout NY, NJ, PA, CT and DE. When he isn't working, Norm enjoys biking, yoga, surfing, motorcycling, movies, pizza and the New York Times. He has been a resident of the Jersey Shore for the past 26 years. Contact Norm to discuss your advertising needs at nmorano@autobodynews.com.
Absolute Mitsubishi-Hyundai . . . . . 31 BMW Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 35 Bob Howard PDC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Car-Part.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Certified Automotive Parts Association (CAPA). . . . . . . . . . . 23 Chevyland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Classic BMW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Dallas Dodge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Dent Tools Direct USA . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Don Carlton Auto Group . . . . . . . . . 20 Equalizer Industries, Inc . . . . . . . . . . 6 Finnegan Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge . . . . 2 Ford Wholesale Parts Dealers TX, OK, LA, NM. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Fowler Honda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Freedom Dodge-Chrysler-JeepRam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Gillman Acura . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 GlasWeld Systems, Inc . . . . . . . . . . 14 GM Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . 43 Honda-Acura Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24-25 Huffines Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge Lewisville . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Huffines Hyundai Plano . . . . . . . . . 26
Serving Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, New Mexico and adjacent metro areas. Autobody News is a monthly publication for the autobody industry. Permission to reproduce in any form the material published in Autobody News must be obtained in writing from the publisher. ©2014 Adamantine Media LLC.
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New Talent Joins the Autobody News Sales Staff
Box 1516, Carlsbad, CA 92018; (800) 699-8251 (760) 603-3229 Fax www.autobodynews.com Email: news@autobodynews.com
Hyundai Wholesale Parts Dealers . 40 Kia Motors Wholesale Parts Dealers. 33 LKQ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Mac Haik Ford. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Malco. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Mazda Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 45 Mercedes-Benz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Mike Calvert Toyota. . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Mitsubishi Wholesale Parts Dealers . 39 MOPAR Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 29 Motor Guard Corp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 North Freeway Hyundai . . . . . . . . . 36 Ray Huffines Chevrolet . . . . . . . . . . 15 Reliable Chevrolet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Replica Plastics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 SATA Spray Equipment . . . . . . . . . . 7 Scoggin-Dickey Buick . . . . . . . . . . 27 South Pointe Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge. 21 TG Products, Inc. - The Rail Saver . 10 Toyota of Fort Worth . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Toyota of Laredo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Toyota Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 41 Valspar Automotive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Volkswagen Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Volvo Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 44 Young Chevrolet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
www.autobodynews.com | NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS 3
WIN Donates Memberships
Students from South Garland High School in Garland, Texas were recently awarded student memberships to WIN, the Women’s Industry Network. Denise Caspersen and Petra Schroeder, both WIN board members, met with the students at the Collision Repair Education Foundation – Cars, Careers, and Celebrities Expo, a one-day event in Dallas, TX on August 16. Schroeder, Brand Development Manager at Axalta Coating Systems, donated five WIN Student Memberships to the group after meeting them. “I was immediately impressed with the positive attitude that these young ladies displayed,” she said. Craig Baughman, the technical instructor for the Auto Collision Repair Technology program at the school, encouraged his students to attend. “Every year we have more and more young women enter our Auto Collision Repair program,” he said. “I believe relationships which have the potential to develop will influence and encourage their lives more than words ever will.” WIN offers support for women interested in a career in the collision industry through scholarship, networking and mentoring opportunities. To learn more, go to: http://thewomensindustrynetwork.com.
Service King Honored Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Service King Collision Repair Centers and its teammates joined the fight against breast cancer, launching a charitable partnership with the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc.® (NBCF). Service King pledged to match teammate donations to NBCF throughout Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October with the goal of spreading the foundation’s mission of Helping Women Now. “We are honored to partner with a foundation as impactful and inspiring as the National Breast Cancer Foundation,” said Chris Abraham, Service King CEO. “The work they do truly makes a difference in the lives of others, and we are thrilled that both Service King and our teammates will be able to help support and honor those affected by breast cancer.” Service King and NBCF tailored the campaign specifically toward raising early detection awareness. The effort will seek to help provide education and support services, as well as early detection through the National Mammography Program, which offers free diagnostic screenings to underserved women across the United States.
Drug Transport from Texas to Louisiana Busted, LA Body Shop Involved
Two men pleaded guilty in federal court to weapons and narcotics crimes on September 22. Donald “Duck” Jones Jr. and Stokley Austin were charged with trafficking cocaine out of a Marrero car dealership in Louisiana. According to court records, the duo moved multiple kilograms of cocaine from Texas to Louisiana aboard customized vehicles from Austin’s Platinum Imports. Austin, 33, faces a minimum of 25 years in prison for conspiracy to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine and for crack cocaine and weapons charges. Jones, 33, faces at least 15 years, according to reports by Andy Grimm, NOLA.com A series of informants told DEA agents in a criminal complaint filed in 2013 that Austin was moving large quantities of drugs each week from Houston. The drugs were sold out of Austin’s car lot and Jones’ body shop in Destrehan, LA. The complaint also states that Austin paid “mules” to drive cars from his dealership to his suppliers in Texas, after screening the drivers for criminal records. He then registered the vehicles they used to move the drugs in the mules’ names and fol-
lowed the vehicles on their route. Agents tailed one of Austin’s shipments, and engineered a traffic stop where they impounded the vehicle after a search dog alerted on narcotics hidden in a compartment. The Volvo sport-utility vehicle was registered to the driver, but the previous owner was Austin’s car dealership, according to reports by Grimm. Court records say that a few weeks later, Austin broke into the DEA impound after locating the vehicle with a tracking device. When he realized it was a DEA site, he retreated. Officials found more than two kilograms of cocaine, $45,000 in cash and a rifle and pistol upon arresting Austin and searching his home in 2013. They raided Jones’ home on the same day and found another two kilos of cocaine, 269 grams of heroin, an AK-47 assault rifle and three pistols, Grimm reported.
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4 NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
$2 Million Grant to Auto Programs in LA, AL, MS by Jeff Matthews, thetowntalk.com
Central Louisiana Technical Community College will use a $2 million grant to revive its program training vehicle technicians. CLTCC partnered with three other institutions: Lawson State Community College in Birmingham, AL; Atlanta Technical College; and Copiah-Lincoln Community College in Wesson, MS, to secure $10 million in funding. “Today’s transportation vehicles are modern and highly sophisticated,” said CLTCC Chancellor Rodney Ellis. “Our local employers have voiced concerns about a shortage of qualified technicians, and we worked to find a solution. Because of this grant, we will be able to work with numerous employers to train and produce auto body, mobile medium/heavy equipment/diesel, marine and motorcycle repair technicians.” The decision to go after funding to bring back or expand automotive technology and transportation-related programs came from several conversations Ellis had with local employers when he took over at CLTCC. “They talked about all the money they were spending to train their staff,
as well as all the money they were spending to recruit and train new technicians,” he said. Talking with colleagues at other institutions, Ellis found they were having similar issues. With the idea that “we could make this so much more powerful if we do this collectively,” Ellis said, the four schools formed the Southeastern Transportation Network. CLTCC will begin offering programs at its Alexandria and Leesville campuses in the 2015 spring semester. The goal is to expand to some of the other campuses starting in the 2015 fall semester. “We are excited about this training initiative because it means there will be trained individuals in our area to select from when filling these types of positions,” said Clint Murphy, general manager of All-Star Toyota in Alexandria. “Currently, we have to travel outside of Central Louisiana to find skilled labor, which is not our preference. We have good-paying jobs right here, and we want to hire our local workforce.” “The $2 million grant is a great victory for CLTCC and countless others who worked very hard to secure these funds,” said Rand Alford, owner of Alford Motors in Leesville.
www.autobodynews.com | NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS 5
Increase in Hyrbid Purchases Possible with Environment-Friendly Fuel Plant in Louisiana Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced on Oct. 3 a $91 million loan guarantee to help finance an innovative, advanced bio-fuel plant in Rapides Parish, Louisiana. “This partnership is the latest example of the Obama Administration’s continuing support for innovative, home-grown energy sources,” Vilsack said. “USDA’s support for renewable energy projects like this helps create jobs in rural areas, promotes U.S. energy independence, and leads to further expansion of the growing and increasingly significant bio-economy.” USDA reached an agreement with Silicon Valley Bank to provide a $91 million Biorefinery Assistance Program loan guarantee to Cool Planet to help the company finish construction on a biofuel plant at the Port of Alexandria in Louisiana. This unique partnership aims to create jobs, produce advanced domestic fuel and reduce greenhouse gases. The average fuel economy of new cars sold in the US went down from 25.8 mpg to 25.3 mpg in Sept., according to the University of Michigan Transportation Research (UMTRI). An increase in sales of light trucks and SUVs could be responsible for the dip. Still, the national average is up 5.2 mpg since UMTRI started tracking it in Oct. 2007, according
to reports by John Beltz Snyder of autoblog.com. The group’s Eco-Driving Index measures average emissions per distance driven (with a lag of two months) and shows that figure at an alltime low in July of 2014. People are noticing the benefits of Hybrids, and are more likely than ever to invest in one, according to studies by UMTRI that have also found that those who own hybrids are content – 83 percent plan to buy them in the future. Out of the 83 percent, “a third said they’ll be purchasing a plug-in hybrid next, while three percent will opt for a fully electric vehicle. Thirty-three percent of hybrid buyers cited environmental impact as the reason for their purchase, with 28 percent choosing them for long-term costs and 25 percent to use less energy. Price points are a big part of the average person’s decision to buy a hybrid,” according to Beltz. Experts predict an increase in the number of hybrid investments, due to the partnership. The Cool Planet facilities will produce approximately 8-10 million gallons of reformate per year at full capacity. Often referred to as a “drop-in” fuel, reformate is an ingredient in gasoline and jet fuel that can be added during the regular refinery process. Many biofuels, like ethanol, are fuel additives that are
Man Arrested for Vandalism at Car Dealerships in OK
ASA Celebrates New Location
A Broken Arrow, OK, man is accused of vandalizing dozens of cars at dealerships along Memorial. Police say 24-year-old William Knox Jr. smashed car windshields between 41st and 51st. According to officials, Knox used his belt buckle to smash windshields and scratch cars. Witnesses reported all of this to police, and officers caught him near 41st and Memorial. Don Carlton Acura General Manager, John Ashley, came in the morning of Sept. 16 to find 25 damaged cars and $20,000 worth of damage. Seven cars at Don Carlton Honda were also hit. Police said Knox damaged vehicles on at least six car lots. Officials also found oxycodone pills on Knox that he did not have a prescription for.
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An open house was held on Oct. 13 to celebrate the ASA’s move to its new national office at 8209 Mid Cities Blvd., North Richland Hills, TX 76182. ASA board of directors, local businesses and staff were in attendance. “In response to the growing needs of our members, ASA took
A ribbon-cutting ceremony during ASA’s open house Oct. 13 included (l to r): Dan Stander, Collision Division director; Roy Schnepper, secretary/treasurer; Darrell Amberson, chairman; Donny Seyfer, chairman-elect; Bob Wills, Mechanical Division director; and Gary Keyes, general director
a proactive assessment of the specific ways in which we serve the membership and the industry. Our new headquarters puts us in an optimal position to be effective, efficient and pertinent for the long term,” said Darrell Amberson, AAM, ASA chairman. ASA’s new number is (817) 514-2900.
6 NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
instead blended into a finished product to oxygenate fuel. Reformate enhances the energy content of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel. Pine chips will be the feedstock source for the Cool Plant facility, but the company can use almost any type of renewable cellulosic material. Another benefit of the facility is that it will produce biochar, a bioenergy byproduct that has been noted for its ability to sequester carbon and potentially reduce atmospheric greenhouse gas levels. In Sept., Vilsack announced the USDA issued a conditional commitment on a $105 million loan guarantee to Fulcrum Sierra Biofuels, LLC to build a bio-refinery in Nevada to produce renewable jet fuel from municipal solid waste. USDA awarded conditional commitments for other plants in Florida, Iowa, Michigan, North Carolina and Oregon. Sapphire Energy paid off its USDA loan for a plant in New Mexico. USDA’s loan commitment to Cool Planet is being financed from the remainder of the Biorefinery Assistance Program funds authorized in the 2008 Farm Bill. An additional project financed from these funds is expected to be announced. Congress reauthorized and extended the program in the 2014 Farm Bill to include bio-based renewable chemicals and product manufacturing.
Herb’s Opens New Shop in TX
Herb’s Paint & Body opened its eighth collision-repair center in McKinney, Texas, west of U.S. Custer Road and Hwy 380, according to Terry Box, dallasnews.com. McKinney, Celina, Anna, Melissa, Van Alstyne and Sherman areas will be within the 14,000-squarefoot shop’s service range. Dallas-based and family owned since 1956, Herb’s has collision-repair centers in Dallas, Garland, Richardson, Plano, Frisco and Allen. Herb’s was the first in the Dallas area to equip its facilities with waterbased automotive paint, and has achieved I-Car Gold Class Status.
New Online Tool for OK Insurance The Oklahoma insurance department said that residents can learn more about insurance company filings by using a new online tool that contains rate filings for property, casualty, life and health insurance products, the Oklahoma Insurance Department announced. Consumers can now search for rate and form filings using SERFF Filing Access or SFA. SERFF stands for System for Electronic Rate and Form Filing. Filings may be searched at: https://filingaccess.serff.com/sfa/home /OK at no cost.
www.autobodynews.com | NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS 7
Society of Collision Repair Specialists Welcomes Newly Founded Auto Body Association of Texas as Its Latest Affiliate The Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) is pleased to announce the affiliation of the Auto Body Association of Texas (ABAT), a recentlyfounded association dedicated to levelling the playing field for collision repairers across Texas. Currently headquartered in Henderson, Texas, and in existence since June of this year, ABAT was formed by a group of collision repair professionals hungry for information and determined to use that information to influence positive change for the industry sooner rather than later. “A group of us that were getting tired of being told ‘we were the only one’ making requests to ensure fair compensation on our repairs,” said ABAT President Burl Richards; “and we were getting concerned over what we perceived to be insurance overreach through programs like PartsTrader. Most of us were from a rural area and it was becoming obvious we didn’t have enough access to information that would help us make informed decisions and take an effective stand against what we thought were unfair practices. We’d visited the Houston Auto Body Association and saw the power of having a bunch of sharp op-
erators in one room. We also understood that there was a need for education on the fundamentals of estimating and other subjects. Thus, we decided to form our own association.” Forty like-minded shops found themselves together at an educational seminar in Tyler, Texas given by local paint jobber Chad Neal. The prospects of forming an association were discussed and developments moved forward rapidly. “At first people were hesitant to talk about much, because we didn’t really know what the antitrust laws allowed,” added Richards. “With the help of Barrett Smith, a consultant out of Orlando, FL, we quickly got up to speed. After a few more meetings things really took off and we were attracting some of the biggest shops in the state which gave us the numbers we needed to be effective as a united voice. Jobbers, suppliers, and local OEM paint reps that joined were given an equal voice.” United by the motivation to effect positive change in a timely manner, the fledgling association reached out to SCRS. “They had a track record of getting the right things done and getting them done quickly, so it was only natural to turn to them,” explained
8 NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Richards. “They bring a wealth of practical knowledge and educational information to the table, which is exactly what our members were looking for – SCRS has its finger on the national pulse of the industry and that’s especially important to our members given their tendency to be geographically remote.” “There are many areas in this country where repairers haven’t had a consistent local voice to support their businesses and the ABAT is an example of an association that developed to meet that need,” noted SCRS Executive Director Aaron Schulenburg. “Groups like this strengthen our industry and play an important role in the survival of body shops that continue to experience unrelenting pressures on their profitability. We extend our heartfelt welcome to the ABAT, and look forward to providing whatever leadership and assistance they may need as they grow and mature, in addition to providing a national network of experienced professionals at their disposal.
www.autobodynews.com CHECK IT OUT!
Texan Sentenced in $3M Auto Insurance Fraud Case
Nearly a year after being convicted in a Houston courtroom, Earlie Dickerson was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison on September 14. He was charged with defrauding car insurance companies out of $3 million. The 41-year-old is the former office manager at Sanjoh & Associates, a company that represented itself as a law firm but didn't employ any lawyers, according to courtroom evidence gathered by The Eagle, Bryan, Texas. U.S. Attornies obtained a conviction for Dickerson in October 2013. Edward Graham, 38, Chase Lindsey, 46, and Brittany Jessie, 24, who are also Bryan residents, were arrested in connection with the crime. Lindsey and Jessie took plea deals and received sentences of 24 and 30 months in federal prison. Graham was convicted with Dickerson and, nearly a year after being convicted in a Houston courtroom, was set to receive sentencing on Oct. 14, according to The Eagle.
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Southeast Associations
Chasidy Rae Sisk is a freelance technical writer from Wilmington, Delaware, who writes on a variety of fields and subjects, and grew up in a family of NASCAR fans. She can be contacted at crsisk@chasidyraesisk.com.
ARA and LA Attorney General Face Off Over “Junkyard Parts” with Chasidy Rae Sisk
After Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell filed a lawsuit in August against State Farm, accusing the insurer of illegally forcing LA collision repair facilities to install unsafe parts on consumers’ vehicles, his allusion to these parts as “nothing more than used junkyard parts” created quite a stir amongst professional automotive
recyclers across the country who were offended by the derogatory term and connotations thereof. Michael Wilson, CEO of the Automotive Recyclers Association (ARA), and David Gold, Secretary of ARA and co-owner of Standard Auto Wreckers, quickly took up arms to defend their profession while Caldwell clarified his position as being pro-consumer rather than antirecycled parts. In responses to Caldwell’s statement, Wilson says, “In this time of instant communication, sound-bites, and a 24/7 news cycle, it is imperative that public servants are well informed about the issues on which they comment or desire to influence. Attorney General Caldwell - whose responsibilities include serving as both the People’s Lawyer and the State’s chief legal officer - was very ill-informed when he used his public office to issue a statement that hurts both Louisiana’s consumers as well as several industry sectors dependent upon recycled automotive parts. ARA has reached out to Mr. Caldwell to express disappointment with his comments, and we urge him to rescind his statement so that consumers feel confident they can continue to access safe, affordable and environmentally-friendly repairs and upstanding recycled parts, and repair businesses can fully engage in the state’s commerce. In contrast to Mr. Caldwell’s comments, the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals recently affirmed the use of salvage/recycled original equipment
manufacturer (OEM) crash parts in vehicle repairs and, moreover, applauded insurers for using measures to reduce premium costs for their customers. This ruling is a significant step forward for the professional automotive recycling industry and the increased utilization of genuine, recycled OEM parts. It is unfortunate that so soon after the West Virginia ruling, Attorney General Caldwell made his misleading comments. It is regrettable that not all state attorneys general have done their homework and educated themselves about our industry and the critical role that recycled OEM automotive parts play in the market.” Speaking from a professional automotive recycler’s point of view, Gold finds it “very disheartening and discouraging to hear such negative views, especially in regards to the junkyard image which is untrue, particularly of ARA members. Reusing a part is the purest form of recycling, and hearing a government official say this shows a disconnect between the knowledge of senior officials and actuality.” Both Wilson and Gold believe that the automotive recycling industry plays an important role in the collision repair industry by providing quality and cost-effective alternatives to new OEM parts, offering another option for consumers who may not be able to afford to repair their vehicles otherwise. Gold notes, “there is a lot of misinformation out there. Recyclers need to speak up and take a stand. We need positive advocates who understand our industry, are willing to learn, and will present accurate information to help us do a better job of educating the public.” Wilson adds, “as our members’ business partners know, the highest commissioned part is not always the smartest choice. Offering the vehicle owner an alternative to new OEM parts and utilizing a recycled OEM part will help keep that vehicle on the road and returning to that repair shop for years to come. Utilizing recycled parts builds a strong customer base and promotes the environment all while using parts identical to new OEM
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parts. Professional automotive recyclers provide a crucial link in the automotive parts supply industry. Salvage or Green Recycled Parts® are OEM parts, designed by the OEM and built to meet the OEM’s requirements for fit, finish, durability, reliability and safety. They are effectively the same parts, simply distributed to consumers through a different channel – new versus used versions of the same parts.” When questioned about his statement on “junkyard parts,” Caldwell does not differentiate between the terms recycled, used or junkyard parts, but he notes, “whichever term you choose, those parts are only one element of the whole culture of business practices that led us to file our suit against State Farm… Our case is about protecting consumers. Consumers are not protected when they don’t know what types of parts are being used in the repair of their vehicles. Consumers aren’t protected
when no one knows how many miles are on the used parts that are sent to the body shop to be placed on their car. Consumers aren’t protected when it is impossible to tell whether the parts have been stressed or cracked or damaged in some way in their prior life, and consumers aren’t protected when these parts aren’t being tested in any way for safety before they are put on their vehicles without their knowledge.” In response to Caldwell’s objection to the use of unsafe parts, Wilson explains, “While I cannot speak to what other parts suppliers or industries have in place, ARA is confident in the strict quality control and inspection procedures employed by ARA member businesses. Professional automotive recycling businesses have quality control and inspection systems in place to ensure that the product they provide lives up See Junkyard Parts, Page 41
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Continued from Cover
MSO Consolidations
swered, “the answer is ‘yes.’ ” Fast forward to the present time Roberts told Autobody News, “In the last 24 months nearly $3 billion of sales volume in the collision repair industry has changed ownership, which is 10 percent of the entire industry.” Roberts is currently the Managing Director and Automotive Services Group team leader for FOCUS Investment Banking. He said there are several reasons for this sudden acceleration, including the availability of acquisition capital and the number of MSOs looking to sell. “There are more than 44 MSOs with $20 million or more in revenues with another 110 between $10 and $20 million.” “Consolidators are looking to get bigger and achieve more scale, which has rewards for the acquirers as well as for insurers and consumers,” said Roberts, whose company has offices in Atlanta, Los Angeles, and Washington D.C. “Large insurers have increasingly rewarded the best performing consolidators and large MSOs with more volume. Cars are repaired faster, with less hassle, and more predictable costs and quality.” We asked Lillian Maimone, former CEO and co-founder of Marco’s Collision Centers, for her perspective on the industry. She was excited about her upcoming retirement, saying, “Marco and I have nothing to do and all day to do it, and we like it that way. It’s a wonderful sense of freedom and piece of mind.” “Seeing the trends in the new cars and the new equipment that was Lillian Maimone necessary to repair these cars, I saw ourselves having a very difficult time competing against the consolidators. We knew it would cost my company hundreds of thousands of dollars in new equipment and training,” While running Marco’s, which was established in 1972, Maimone said her primary function was ensuring the company was ready and geared for the future. “My focus was on dealing with possible threats and opportunities,” she said. In order to stay informed about
Vincent Romans of MSO Specialists The Romans Group on Consolidation Autobody News asked Vincent Romans, the founding partner of The Romans Group LLC, to comment on the recent MSO consolidations. Romans has over 30 years of consulting and operating experience with domestic and global enterprises. The Romans Group LLC, established in 1996, provides business, market, financial, and strategic development advisory services to the property and casualty auto physical damage insurance, automotive services, property restoration, and related supply chain segments. Why are we seeing an increase in the number of consolidators acquiring MSOs and do you think this trend will continue? We are at the early stage of consolidation, contraction, convergence and constructive transformation in the collision repair industry. Within this industry construct, private equity has stepped up its interest in acquiring MSO consolidators. This interest is backed by unprecedented private equity and strategic buyer cash seeking investment opportunities in the MSO model which today provides strong cash flow, growth through both organic and acquisition growth and shorter term investment cycles that ultimately drive higher valuations. How will it affect the collision repair industry? We will continue to see large multiple location operators (MLOs) be acquired by the four MSO consolidators. The still
trends in the industry, Maimone regularly attended conferences, talked to industry leaders and listened closely to what others were saying in forums such as the Mitchell webinars, for example. “I went to Pepperdine’s business school [and used those skills in analyzing the industry.] I spent a lot of my time looking at what is happening in the industry and how it was affecting my company,” she said. Eventually she and husband Marco decided they “didn’t want to be in the game anymore.” When employees asked why they sold, she explained, “We were the powerhouse in our area. We were the big fish in the little pond.” With the changes in the industry and larger MSOs coming in, she said they realized how increasingly difficult it would be to compete. For example, the benefits they gained as a midsize DRP over the years were no comparison to the gains made by the national DRP programs. She invited her employees to consider the buying opportunities with the national DRP accounts, rather than local ones. “I figured whatever percentage See MSO Consolidations, Page 15
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fragmented industry will continue to contract to a more normalized number of required collision repairers throughout the United States over the next decade. Today, three collision repair segments, ≥$20M, ≥$10-20M and the franchise multiple location, MLO, operators represent 24% of the US collision repair market. I expect this market share for these three segments to grow over the next three years. Additionally, we should shortly see the first MSO with annual revenue of $1.0B. Through September YTD 2014 we have seen $650.0M in annual revenue transferred through multiple location transaction acquisitions among the four MSO consolidators. What are the relevant issues facing the collision industry today? There are numerous trends and prevailing conditions that offer both risk and opportunity for repairers today. No one trend or prevailing condition has the impact that the confluence of these prevailing trends and conditions have. It is when one understands that these individual prevailing conditions are part of a confluence of many individual dynamic prevailing trends and conditions, that you start to realize the order of magnitude and the exponential impact they have and will continue to have on the new world order of collision repair within the broader auto physical damage ecosystem. We will continue to see how one company's transformation is an-
other's disruption, while one company's innovation is another's disintermediation. Some of the short and long term conditions include, but are not limited to changing macro-economic influences, globalization, consolidation causing industry structural changes, telematics and the movement to an integrated electronic claims process model, accident avoidance technology associated with semi-autonomous and eventually autonomous vehicles (VEHBOTS), private equity and strategic buyers, predictive analytics, down turn in accident frequency, MSO performance contracts, hybrid claims management models, insurers embracing the MSO model, trained technician shortage, parts procurement, repair segmentation, urbanization and others too numerous to mention here. How does an independent shop fit in the picture? Independent high performance, brand recognized shops will continue to provide solid alternatives to the large MSO consolidator model especially with insurance companies that embrace their own customized repair models and prefer to have non-MSO providers in the market or a mix of MSO consolidators and local market independents. Additionally, specialty repairers who perform any number of niche market or high value repair alternatives will have a place in the future collision repair industry. See Vincent Romans, Page 15
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Texas Company Sued by MN Attorney General for Selling Extended Auto Warranties by Jennifer Bjorhus
MN Attorney General Lori Swanson is suing a Texas auto warranty company for deceptive tactics, saying it’s violating its promise of a full refund within 30 days. The lawsuit is part of a broader investigation into extended auto warranty practices, Swanson said. The state is seeking unspecified civil penalties, and restitution for affected customers of Enterprise Financial Group Inc. of Irving, TX. The company has sold more than 3,700 extended auto warranties to Minnesota customers since 2009, according to the state’s lawsuit filed Sept. 24 in Hennepin County District Court. The warranties, also called service contracts, typically cost between $1,600 and $2,600. Auto warranty companies have been a perennial source of trouble for consumers, from annoying robocalls and deceptive warranties to companies collapsing and leaving policyholders on the hook, according to Bjorhus.. In an interview, Swanson said she thinks the improving economy is creating an opening for bad sales practices. “These companies really seem to be on the
uptick here,” she said. A bulletin her office issued Sept. 24 cautions Minnesotans about high pressure sales tactics and urges them to vet companies and contracts before signing up. Scout for prevalent loopholes, it says. The warranty pitches are familiar to many Minnesotans. They come by official-looking postcards or phone calls: the warranty on your vehicle is running out, buy a new extended warranty from us. People may think they are getting bumper-to-bumper coverage when they are not. Enterprise Financial Group did not return several messages seeking comment. Its website says it provides consumer and vehicle protection programs for dealers, financial institutions, insurance companies and manufacturers. According to the lawsuit, Enterprise uses other marketing companies for sales such as Precise Auto Protection Inc. and Auto Processing Center. The warranties go by a range of names such as TechChoice New Ultimate Coverage and Dent Zone Auto Body Guard PDR Contract and Vurge Full Throttle Coverage. They are different from the warranties that come
with a new car, which are backed by manufacturers such as Toyota or Ford and typically cover a much broader range of problems. Enterprise informs customers they can cancel the contracts within 30 days of purchase for a full refund if no claims have been paid. However, the company makes it difficult for people to cancel with confusing instructions and runaround, the lawsuit said. The full story is available at: http://www.startribune.com/local/ 276990761.html
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Axalta Program Provides Shop Owners With More Data
Axalta Coatings Systems announced on Oct. 3 that its ProfitNet™ Collision Shop Management System is now interfaced with Dealertrack Technologies Dealer Management System (DMS). ProfitNet is a software program designed to measure and manage all aspects of the collision repair business. The program provides collision shop owners with access to information that they may need to help make decisions regarding the productivity and profitability of their business. The new interface, approved via Dealertrack’s Opentrack Certification Program, is an electronic bridge between ProfitNet and the DMS to help car dealerships to streamline and create greater efficiencies in managing parts, labor, and production processes within their collision repair centers. “Dealertrack is proud to partner with Axalta Coating Systems to create an interface with their ProfitNet offering that is certified by our Opentrack Certification Program,” says Sharon Kitzman, Vice President and General Manager, DMS, Dealertrack. The interface is designed to save hours of double-entry of data that is used by both systems.
www.autobodynews.com | NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS 13
Media and Publicity for Shops
Ed Attanasio is an automotive journalist based in San Francisco, California. He can be reached at era39@aol.com.
Gas Monkey Garage and Dodge Recruit Mötley Crüe to Rock Dallas with Ed Attanasio
Richard Rawlings loves fast cars, pretty women and having a good time all the time, so it was a no-brainer when the Fast N’ Loud star opened his own bar about a year ago, followed by the purchase of a concert venue in October. The Gas Monkey Garage brand is spreading throughout the country and now, Rawlings has headquarters where he can combine food, music, libations and cars. In conjunction with Rawlings and Dodge, Charger, Challenger and Viper owners are about to get the show of a lifetime in Dallas on Nov. 1. The dealers will convene at Gas Monkey Live to attend a concert featuring Mötley Crüe, while dining on Gas Monkey Burgers, Bock Battered Chick Fried Steak, 3-Cheese Truffled Mac and Red Chile Grits. It’s a oneof-a-kind highly exclusive event open to Dodge owners looking to have an amazing time while showing off their vehicles to fellow gear-heads. Head of Dodge Marketing & Communications, Mark Malmstead, is excited about the upcoming concert and the chance to partner with Rawlings and Mötley Crüe for this unprecedented event.
what’s out there and he has an edge. As we sat down with him and got to know him better, we decided to do more with Richard. So, he appeared for us at the Woodward Dream Cruise in metro Detroit recently and everyone went crazy.”
Mötley Crüe will be performing at a Dodge owner-only event which is part concert and part car show on Gas Monkey Live on Nov. 1 in Dallas
Rawlings and his show couldn’t be any hotter. Discovery Channel currently airs Fast N’ Loud in 80 countries worldwide. The reality TV star has also opened another Gas Monkey Bar N’ Grill in the international terminal of Dallas/ Fort Worth Airport. If the Gas Monkey restaurants continue to do well, Rawlings says he wants to open “15 or 20 more.” He and his team are currently scouting for location No. 3, which will likely be out of
The Gas Garage Bar & Grill will be THE place to be for Dodge Challenger, Charger and Viper owners who can get themselves and their vehicles to Dallas for the concert and car show, which also celebrates Dodge’s 100th anniversary
“We’re big fans of Fast N’ Loud and we met with Richard Rawlings and The Discovery Channel at the SEMA show last year and started discussing the idea of working together. We talked about an in-show placement, which has yet to air and Richard has done some dealer commercials for us. The relationship has just continued to evolve from there. We love the way Richard Rawlings operates, because his show is a little different than
the area, but still in Texas. How did the band, the man and the brand all come together for this one-of-a-kind event? “Dodge is currently sponsoring Mötley Crüe’s Farewell Tour,” Malmstead said. “Last month, Richard purchased Gas Monkey Live, a music venue that was formerly owned by country star Toby Keith. So, Richard asked us, ‘Can you get Mötley Crüe to play at my new place?’ He was pretty insis-
14 NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
tent, so Tim Kuniskis (Dodge and SRT brand CEO) made it happen, basically to get Rawlings to stop asking.” Dodge was pleasantly surprised when it all came together, Malmstead said. “If we can get Mötley Crüe to play at a bar, which they normally don’t do and celebrate our 100th anniversary with a big owner party at Gas Monkey Live, we thought wow. It started out as a crazy idea and now it’s happening. The band was a little reluctant at first and they had to move a few dates around, but then they finally said yes.” Cars, cars, cars will be an integral part of the evening and many of them will get as much attention as Mötley Crüe, according to Malmstead. “We’re hoping for 2,000 people and 1,000 cars, both vintage and late model Dodge Challengers, Chargers and Vipers. People can get thrill rides in a Dodge Viper drift car and a Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat that night as well. We’re going
to provide show parking that night, because the event is foremost a car show. You must own one of these vehicles to attend and you have to send in a photo of it, but the event is free for owners.” Mötley Crüe has been rocking the world for 33 years, and is still going strong. Rock stars Vince Neal, Tommy Lee, Micki Sixx and Mick Mars are all car crazy. Earlier this year the video for Mötley Crüe’s classic “Kickstart My Heart” was re-released with new Dodge scenes added. The video for country music star’s Justin Moore’s version of the ballad “Home Sweet Home” (from the Nashville Outlaws: A Tribute to Mötley Crüe album) also showcases a 2015 Dodge Challenger Scat Pack parked outside the club. For Dodge Challenger, Charger and Viper owners who want more information about the event, visit: www.dodgerocksgasmonkey.com.
Continued from Page 12
MSO Consolidations
of claims would drop as a result of that is enough to make me know that we will be in trouble,” she said. “My employees are better off this way,” said Maimone. “Several have been given a promotion and better opportunities. I couldn’t give them that.” Shortly after acquiring Marco’s, Service King reached an agreement to acquire Car West Auto Body, an MSO with seven shops in Northern California. With these additions as well as the 62 Sterling Collision Centers the company acquired earlier this year in April, Service King now has 191 shops in 20 states, including 18 in CA. Service King, based in Dallas and founded nearly 40 years ago, told Autobody News that, due to company policy, they weren’t able to comment further until their acquisition of Carwest was finalized. However, Service King released the following statement: “Our recent Sterling Autobody acquisition and Marco’s Collision Centers acquisition serve as a platform for our growth in
the California market,” Chris Abraham, the CEO of Service King, said in the press release. “The addition of Car West and their 360 teammates will give us an even greater footprint in the heart of Silicon Valley. We are excited to have the team on board and look forward to delivering the ServFarzam Afshar ice King standard file photo of exceptional customer service and high quality repairs in these communities.” “People are selling because of many different reasons,” said Farzam Afshar, CEO of VeriFacts Automotive, a well-respected training company that describes itself as the industry’s only “independent onsite quality verification service and in-shop technician assessment provider.” One reason, Afshar said, “is that they able to get a very high rate of return on their investment. In addition, business owners increasingly need to compete with consolidators in their backyard while vehicles are becoming more complex. See MSO Consolidations, Page 28
Continued from Page 12
Vincent Romans
Some of these models might include various types of repair segmentation; e.g. aluminum or other new material/technology, fleet, small hit expedited repair, paintless dent repair, cosmollision, ethnic market, and car auction repair. As MSO consolidators gain in the breadth and depth of their reach and coverage in markets around the country, insurers will look to balance their local market networks with strong performing and recognized branded independent operators. The balance of power will be normalized as long as the independent’s metrics and service offering are comparable to the MSO consolidator. Insurers also want to have local market independents and MSOs competing with the MSO consolidator so that the best peer performance is always being established in a market among all current and prospective repairers. What is the benefit/challenge of being an MSO vs. a single-location shop when forming a relationship with insurance companies? MSO consolidators and many non-consolidator MSOs have the personnel, sales/marketing structure and budget to frequently call on insurance company corporate decision makers as well as multi-level contacts regionally. They participate on insurance company advisory or re-
RAY HUFFINES
view boards which brings them to the table for input, old business and new concept discussions, and collaboration on current and future business process and performance models. They develop multi-level personal relationships that help when issues need to be resolved quickly. However, if service deteriorates somewhere in the country for a larger MSO it could have negative ramifications across their national footprint or some other regional market of theirs. The MSO consolidator offer insurers broader multiple market coverage than smaller MSOs and independents. However, local market MSOs and independents can and do market that they provide that laser focus local market performance that insurers want. Many independents and local market MSOs position and market themselves as high performers relative to the MSO consolidator in their geographic niche. A strong recognized brand with top performance metrics relative to a MSO consolidator can give the independent and local market MSO a competitive edge when vying for insurer DRP business. MSO consolidators are also offering self-managed and co-managed capabilities for customized and new DRP models, quality assurance and self-audit process and procedures, call centers, and single point of contact, all of which helps reduce costs for the insurer while positioning the MSO consolidator for business that the independent operator may find more difficult to secure.
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Texas Body Shop Celebrates 50th Anniversary Serving Houston by Victoria Antonelli
Demo’s Automotive in Houston celebrated its 50-year anniversary in business on October 4, 2014. On that day in 1964, Demo Kouzounis opened a single 3,500 sq ft building with three employees. Today, the family-owned facilities take up three acres of land and employee 35 technicians who are Platinum I-Car, Gold I-Car, Master or L-1 Master ASE certified and averaging 23 years experience. According to Kouzounis’s son, Costa, “Demo opened the center because he enjoyed working on cars and liked the idea of running a business his way.” And Demo’s way incorporates “customer satisfaction” and hard work into every job, which Costa said are the keys to the shop’s success over the past half century. Demo’s also offers a free shuttle service that takes customers to and from their home or work to ensure a hassle-free appointment. Their motto, “fix the problem, charge a fair price, and guarantee the work,” is the first thing viewers see on the Demo’s Automotive homepage. Seventy-six year old Kouzounis’ four children all play a role in the
Car-O-Liner Participation Enhanced by Social Media
Car-O-Liner has entered the social media realm, and is now offering a variety of news ways for consumers to connect with the company. These channels include Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Pinterest. Car-O-Liner President Jeff Kern, said he is excited about the new social media communications and anticipates these activities will benefit business relations through technical knowledge sharing. “Our social media connection allows us to not only share our activities, but also join the conversation through communication with both our customers and the industry,” he said. “It is important to listen and be heard as we extend our reach through these interactive tools.” Follow Car-O-Liner at: Facebook: facebook.com/caroline rcompany LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/ company/car-o-liner?trk=top_ nav_home Google+: https://plus.google.com/ 102972787963006534481/posts Twitter: @car_o_liner Instagram: @car_o_liner Youtube: https://www.youtube .com/channel/UCFZEhZcZS4Xo4C wannUGcEQ Pintrest: http://www.pintrest.com/ carolinerauto/
shop’s success- Demo Jr. is the collision repair manager, Costa is the general manager, and both Margo and Katherine are in charge of accounting. Demo and Costa received business degrees from the University of Houston, and began as full-time technicians after graduation. The brothers’
Demo Kouzounis, owner; Demo Jr. Kouzounis, collision repair manager; and Costa Kouzounis, general manager. Photo Credit: Costa Kouzounis
roles at their father’s shop were determined by their strengths and effort. Costa said his favorite part of working in this industry is “seeing a customer smile once they see their finished product.” When asked about his fondest memories over the last 50 years, two particular instances stood out for Costa.
I-CAR Launches Two New Refinish Courses
I-CAR announced that two new courses are now available to Refinish Technicians: Refinish Materials and Application Blending (REF08e) and Color Theory, Mixing Toners, and Tinting (REF09). These courses have replaced Color Theory, Application, Tinting, and Blending (REF03). Josh McFarlin, I-CAR Director of Curriculum & Product Development stated, “Nearly all repairs require some level of refinishing and typically, refinish work gets noticed first by the customer. Refinish Technicians who take these courses will learn how to correctly prepare and refinish a vehicle to ensure proper overall appearance, which can help improve customer satisfaction and increase productivity through better cycle times and reduced rework.” Refinish Materials and Application Blending (REF08e) is an interactive online course, worth 2 credit hours. It is complete with demonstrations on conventional blending and reverse blending, as well as discussions on using a blending additive and a blending bed.
www.autobodynews.com
16 NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
“On one occasion, I saw a customer approach our shop, looking very inquisitive as he walked around. I quickly walked over to him. He commented that he had no idea how many different types of cars we worked on and had heard how great we were. He saw the flawless detail work on our restorations, including one vehicle we were repairing that was a wiring cluster nightmare due to a collision, and asked why we used heat on the connections (which I explained to him). He also saw us using a soap bath to clean the brakes on a Mercedes before we disassembled them. Then, as I walked him back around to the front of the shop, he commented when he saw [one of the technicians] instructing our two apprentices. I told him about how we…mentor the next generation.” “Many years ago, Demo [senior] and I were standing on the service drive and a customer came in and asked for the owner’s business card. That was their first visit. I gave him our company business card. The customer asked me who the founder of this business was. Demo pointed and circled out into the shop and told him all thirty-five of [the techni-
cians] are the founders. Demo told him all of you carry the load of this business on your shoulders each and every day no matter what challenges you all may have. As it now turns out, each of you now have worked on his family’s cars many times over. …he is just one of our model customers you all have helped gain and retain.” Costa says he looks forward to more memorable customer interactions, and making Demo’s Automotive “stronger and even better” for the 100-year anniversary.
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John Yoswick is a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon who has been writing about the collision industry since 1988. He is the editor of the weekly CRASH Network (for a free 4-week trial subscription, visit www.CrashNetwork.com). Contact him by email at jyoswick@SpiritOne.com.
Industry Insight with John Yoswick
Energy Transfer in Today’s Vehicles Makes Measuring, Multi-Point Pulling More Important Some industry observers estimate that only about 20 percent of vehicles in collision repair shops are actually being measured as part of the repair Richard Perry process. Richard Perry, who oversees training for Chief Automotive, believes that changes in vehicle materials and structure mean
that at least four times that percentage should be measured. “If that vehicle is impacted, it should be measured,” Perry said. “We usually know what’s going to happen with the damage; we just don’t know the extent of it, where all it’s gone, how far did it travel through the vehicle. You’ve got to be able to find it to fix it. So before the repair we need to analyze what’s wrong to develop a repair plan. During repair, we need to
Richard Perry of Chief Automotive discusses the value of multiple-point pulling during a recent demonstration in the shop at Chief’s headquarters in Madison, Ind.
provide, almost half of our business is there,” Cranfill said. Vehicle Services Group (VSG) is itself a segment of Dover Corporation, a global producer of equipment, systems and services in a variety of businesses. In addition to Chief, VSG brands include Rotary Lift and Elektron welders. It has about 1,200 employees in the U.S., Germany and China. Its measuring, pulling and welding equipment sales each account for about
21 percent of its overall revenue, but its single biggest revenue source is the vehicle measuring data it sells directly to collision repairers and also to the estimating system providers. Does Chief collect data on the vehicles that shops are measuring with its equipment? “We do not collect it,” Bob Holland, VSG collision director for North America, said. “With our licensing agreement, we
Chief Automotive Sees Itself as Source of Information As Much As Equipment
If you still think of Chief Automotive as primarily a pulling equipment company, think again. Mike Cranfill, vice president of global collision and new business development for the Vehicle Services Group (which includes Chief Automotive) said changes in the company’s revenue sources reflect changes in the industry itself. “I like to think we’re an information company, because if you take the training, the measuring equipment and the data we
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measure multiple points, and monitor those during repair because as you start to make repairs, more than one point is going to move at a time. We need to monitor all those points.” Perry said in the past, technicians might gauge the extent of the damage by checking to see if the vehicle’s doors open and close; if they did, they felt it was safe to presume the damage had not extended beyond the passenSee Energy transfer, Page 39
have the right to collect it, but we do not.” Cranfill some companies, such as those that offer vehicle history information, may seek that information, but Chief doesn’t share it because the information tells only part of the story. “The risk is: What does it mean?” Cranfill said. “Even if the data shows the car measurers to factory specs, can you guarantee the repair was proper? Maybe you used heat when you’re not supposed to.”
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Deer Collision Statistics Range Throughout the US U.S. drivers are nearly three percent more likely to collide with a deer in the next 12 months than they were last year, according to new claims data from State Farm. The odds drivers will hit a deer in the coming year are 1 out of 169, but that likelihood more than doubles during October, November and December, when deer collisions are most prevalent.
Rank
1 2 3 4 5
State
West Virginia Pennsylvania Montana Iowa South Dakota
they are to hit a deer in the next year. The top five states where a driver is most likely to collide with a deer are: Injuries, vehicle damage and fatalities all can result from vehicle collisions with deer. In 2012, 175 deaths were the result of collisions with animals, with deer being the animal most often struck, according to the Insurance Information Institute
2014 Odds
1 in 39 1 in 71 1 in 75 1 in 77 1 in 82
For the eighth year in a row, West Virginia tops the list of states where a collision is most likely. The odds a driver in the Mountain State will collide with a deer are a staggering 1 in 39, nearly a five percent increase compared to 2013. Hawaii rounds out the bottom of the list also for the eighth year in a row with odds of 1 in 10,281. Hawaiians are three times more likely to get struck by lightning in their lifetime than
Percent +/- from 2013
+ 4.92 + 7.83 - 15.44 - 5.55 - 9.3
and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Deer collisions rose by more than 21 percent in Indiana and more than eight percent in Virginia this year. This is the first year South Carolina is in the top 10 with a 1 in 93 chance of colliding with a deer. What causes these significant changes in deer collision rates? “Periods of daily high-deer movement around dawn and dusk as well as
seasonal behavior patterns, such as during the October-December breeding season, increase the risk for auto-deer collisions,” said Ron Regan, Executive Director for the Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies. “Changes in collision rates from year to year are a reflection of changing deer densities or population levels – more deer in a given area increases the potential for collision. Deer populations are also affected by conditions such as new or improved roads with higher speeds near deer habitat, changes to hunting seasons to manage wildlife, winter conditions, and other related factors.” The national cost per claim average for deer collisions is $3,888, up 13.9 percent from 2013 ($3,414), according to State Farm. The months a driver is most likely to collide with a deer in the U.S., mostly due to mating and hunting seasons, are: November, October, December. Ten percent of the country’s deer collisions occur in Pennsylvania (123,941 collisions), though when taking into account the amount of licensed drivers in the state, West Virginia still edges out as number one with a likelihood of 1 in 39 compared to Pennsylvania’s 1 in 71 (second ranked state).
Alcoa Forecasts Record Auto Sheet Shipments in Q4
Alcoa Inc, the largest US aluminum producer, forecast profit from auto and aerospace components will increase in the Q4 as it sells a record amount of the metal to carmakers. Alcoa, which is shifting its focus to manufacturing components and alloys, said it would deliver a record amount of aluminum sheet to automakers this quarter as car and truck manufacturers use more of the lightweight metal. Earnings in the company’s rolled products segment, a supplier of aluminum sheets to car, airplane and packaging manufacturers, will more than double from a year earlier. Alcoa is benefiting from higher commercial-jet orders and a shift to aluminum components instead of steel among automakers such as Ford Motor Company, which plans to make its F150 pickup truck with aluminum body panels. Mr Lloyd O’Carroll, a Richmond, Virginia based Analyst at Northcoast Research Holdings LLC said that “Auto body sheet has a much higher margin than anything except aircraft. I think 2015 is going to get a pretty big lift of usage on the F-150 and of course all of the margin benefit of that.”
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Social Media for Shops Body Shops are Tapping into the Persuasive Power of Video with Ed Attanasio
In a world where we are constantly bombarded by texts, tweets, status updates, and emails, it’s no surprise that many people read fewer books and seem to have some form of ADD. A young person recently told me with pride that he hasn’t read a book since high school. “I like pictures,” he said. So, on a planet where almost everyone has a short attention span, how do we communicate effectively with the masses? The answer for some is through video—short, sweet and to the point. Several body shops have experienced great success by working with the same video production/marketing company and the videos they’re producing are creating a buzz throughout the collision industry nationwide. Absolute Perfection Media (AP Media) in Sykesville, MD, is the company producing these attention-getting videos for body shops. They’re the hottest new video production company serving the collision industry and shops are clamoring to work with them. President Lee Emmons is now working with more and more shops owners who have seen his past productions for Mark’s Body Shop in Baltimore City, MD, and K & M Collision in Hickory, NC. The appeal stems from their direct, no-nonsense approach. Emmons has learned the collision industry along the way, he said, and now he’s known as the “body shop video guy.” “The power of video and YouTube has become apparent and now collision shops want to tell their stories using this format,” Emmons said. “These shops are willing to take on the insurance companies and this is the way they’re doing it. We’re also producing videos to educate their customers about things like certifications and the use of OE parts. These shops have learned that these videos are highly effective and very affordable and we can turn them out rather quickly. Once a shop does a few of these videos and sees the response, they want to do more. I’m traveling to K & M next week to produce a series of videos about their manufacturers’ OE certifications. Some of the videos I’ve produced for body shops have gone viral and gained a lot of national attention, so we’re getting new collision clients all the time.”
The Vice President of Operations at K & M Collision, Michael Bradshaw, has produced a series of videos with AP Media and posts them all on his YouTube Channel. “We have approximately 10 on there right now and maybe five more in production. We take an educational
Ed Attanasio is an automotive journalist based in San Francisco, California. He can be reached at era39@aol.com.
great feedback about them from our customers,” Bradshaw said. “Insurance adjustors also tend to see them too!” Mark Schaech, Jr., is the second-generation owner of Mark’s Body Shop in Baltimore City, MD. He started working with Emmons at AP Media several years ago.
Lee Emmons of AP Media shooting a video for K & M Collision in Hickory, NC, featuring their receptionist, Caitlin Adams
approach to many of the consumer-related issues in this industry, including titles such as, Has Your Car Been Repaired Safely (Watch this case and stay safe after an accident)?; Do You Qualify for Diminished Value? (The Insurance Company May Owe you Money); An Epidemic of Unsafe Collision Repairs; Post Repair Inspections; What is Steering?; Who Guarantees Repairs?; and An Open Letter to the North Carolina Attorney General. Short videos with a succinct message have proven to be highly effective, Bradshaw explained, although in some situations longer, in-depth videos also work well. “We were doing longer videos at first, mostly 4–6 minutes in length, but now we’re trimming them down to two minutes and our most recent ones are coming in at 90 seconds. When we’re dealing with certain subjects, the longer videos work just fine, but we also produce shorter ones to convey the message quickly and present the topic in a way that the viewer can absorb easily.” If you’re getting your car fixed by K & M Collision, you’ve probably seen one or more of the shop’s videos. “We loop all of them together and show them on a monitor in our reception area at the shop and we’ve gotten some
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“We have now produced at least five videos with AP Media and they’re being seen by shops all over the country,” Schaech explained. “We let shops use them, as long as they give us an outbound link. These other owners are realizing that these short videos are effective, because they can easily convey the information that we want to communicate, because this is a very complex industry and the average person doesn’t really know what’s going on.” Schaech, 41, took over the business from his father in 2000 and back then they had six DRPS. But, today they have none and some of their videos document why. “The first one we did with AP Media was about a post repair inspection video and it had immediate impact,” Schaech said. “A Mazda had been repaired by another shop under an insurance company’s DRP and it was completely hacked and butchered. It See Power of Video, Page 28
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Lean Operations
Lean Implementation Strategies with David Luehr
David Luehr is the owner of Elite Body Shop Solutions, LLC, a collision business consulting firm based in Nashville, Tennessee. He is a 30 year veteran of the collision repair industry. David is an expert in Body Shop Operations and specializes in Lean, and Theory of Constraints methods. Email him at dluehr@msn.com
One of the biggest complaints I hear from shops is that it is so hard to get people to change their habits and conform to a new way of doing things. Unfortunately, failing to implement a permanent change initiative has become the norm at most collision repair shops these days. Some of this resist-
give someone a task that is critical to success and the task is too difficult, it is human nature that it likely won’t get done consistently if at all. Let me give you an example. Let’s say that at your body shop, you have discovered that checking the replacement parts for correctness (mirror matching) is
ance we bring on ourselves by what I like to call the “Flavor of the Month.” I am sure most of you can relate to this scenario when the boss returns from NACE or some great seminar and all of a sudden he wants to fix everything overnight! These changes rarely take permanent hold in the organization and the more changes management tries to implement, the bigger the joke it becomes to the staff. Sad, but so true! There are many reasons that people are resistant to change, but I am surprised at how often it is the owner or manager himself that is the real problem! The art of communicating and understanding what make your people tick are of utmost importance these days. The old “iron-fisted” management style of yester-year rarely works these days. How are you going to get your staff to buy-into change initiatives and consistently perform the vital steps required with new processes such as Blueprinting, and other lean concepts? Many great books have been written on the subject of change, and I recommend you read them and learn as much as you can to better understand the behaviors and intrinsic values of you and your team. In addition to you doing some studies of your own, I hope you will find these 3 tips helpful to your change efforts.
CRITICAL to your success. So if you remove the old parts from the car and throw them into a big messy pile in the corner, do you really think the parts guy is going to dig through that heap to find the parts he needs to mirror match vs. the new replacements? Probably not going to happen, right? You must make critical to success tasks as easy as you possibly can if you want them to get done. Convenience also means keeping tools, information, and anything else that would be needed to perform a critical task close and easily accessible. Things not getting done are often not a work ethic problem as much as it is a spatial or procedural problem.
“One of the biggest reasons people don’t follow the steps is because the steps are too hard to perform”
Convenience One of the biggest reasons people don’t follow the steps is because the steps are too hard to perform. Call them lazy, call them whatever you want, but the reality of it is that if you
Space If you were trying to shed a few pounds and decided that you need to quit eating donuts, do you think it would be better to have the box of donuts that your rental car provider just gifted sitting on your desk, or would it be better to place the delicious box of devilish delight as far away as possible? My point is to set up your shop space to help drive the vital behaviors to succeed. A classic example of this is when it comes to Blueprinting. One of the vital behaviors of Blueprinting, in my opinion, is to have your estimating computer out with you at the damaged car. Can this happen at your shop, or are your estimators still writing everything down on a piece of paper and then walking this back to their office to enter a questionably accurate supplement into the estimating system? If this
22 NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
isn’t bad enough, I still see many shops that let the technician write the supplement on a piece of paper and then put it on the estimator’s desk to key in. What kind of behavior does this spatial arrangement encourage? Think about it!
and something that has to get done before it can go to the next step. Consider the use of visual quality control in between departments to eliminate defects, and make it hard to screw up! Outcomes • Recommended reading o Leading Change – Kotter
Make it Unavoidable Make it difficult for people to do the wrong thing. Can you think of any tasks critical or otherwise that are being successfully performed at your shop consistently? What is different about those tasks that you can learn from and apply to your new initiatives and critical tasks? The act of moving a vehicle into the technician’s stall makes it pretty unavoidable that it will get seen and worked on by the Would you expect your parts person to dig through this technician. Making a task un- mess to perform a mirror match? avoidable is quite often a visual thing, See Lean Implementation, Page 28
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Historical Snapshot
—John Yoswick is a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon, who has a body shop in the family and has been writing about the automotive industry since 1988. He is the editor of the weekly CRASH Network (for a free 4-week trial subscription, visit www.CrashNetwork.com). Contact him by email at jyoswick@SpiritOne.com.
DRPs 20 years ago, Early CCRE, ADP Revises Labor Times with John Yoswick
Recently I read an article that was critical of industry leaders who had not taken a stand against DRPs. It brought to mind a discussion I once had with (a member) who said there are things associations can do that make some members happy, but that don’t mean anything. He called it “feel good stuff.” For association leaders to denounce all DRPs when half or more of their membership participate in direct repair programs would be nothing more than “feel good stuff.” It feels good to those who are not DRP shops, but what about those member shops who chose to go DRP? It’s very easy to criticize associations that have a neutral position on DRPs, but what would happen if they came out against them? The best any association can do is to rally against the abuses where they exist; to support legislation that protects a consumer’s right to choose the repair facility; and to do what it can to advise its mem-
bers on how to determine if DRPs are a wise business decision for them. There are a number of individuals, some of them leaders, who continue to yell about DRPs without offering any real solutions. But regardless of what they have said, it’s the collision repair professionals who have voted by making the business decision whether to participate in these programs. All the yelling in the world won’t eliminate DRPs. Those of you who can’t accept that reality can keep yelling, or your can roll up your sleeves and go to work on the 65 percent of business that will never be DRP. Learn how to better market your business and sell collision repairs. Bury the DRP bogeyman and get to work. It’s in your best interest. – From an editorial by John LofJohn Loftus
tus, then the executive director of the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS), published in Collision Expert. Loftus retired from SCRS in 2000.
15 years ago in the collision repair industry (November 1999) Mike Melfi said the Coalition for Collision Repair Equality (CCRE) was founded about three years ago as an organization to help like-minded shops owners around the country “take back control” of their businesses and reduce insurer influence over the industry. It was incorporated as a for-profit company so that it would never have to divulge a list of its members (which the organization refers to as “sponsors” or “clients”). About 80 people – including about a dozen attorneys – attended the group’s recent meeting in Phoenix. “These attorneys are just now realizing that there’s money to be made in property damage litigation,” said Ann Spink, a Louisiana shop owner
and vice president of CCRE. “We believe that legislation and education is part of the answer but litigation is the bottom line. The reason CCRE exists is to try to put together the documentation and the expert witnesses to help these attorneys understand how to litigate for us. And because they’re class action attorneys, we don’t have to pay them, just help educate them.” Shop owner Melfi told CCRE participants he had predicted the first nonOEM parts lawsuit “victory” would take two years. “It took three years,” he admitted. “But now I have another prediction. If steering continues, one day on the 6 o’clock news, you’re going to see an executive of an insurance company in handcuffs being put in a federal marshal’s car being charged with federal racketeering.” – As reported in Parts & People. The non-OEM parts lawsuit victory Melfi referred to was the $1.1 billion
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judgment against State Farm in 1999, which the Illinois Supreme Court overturned in 2005. A class action lawsuit filed in Illinois earlier this year alleges that seven of the Top 10 insurers violate federal racketeering laws by illegally conspiring to use their direct repair programs and other means to enforce “an artificial market value for collision repairs.”
10 years ago in the collision repair industry (November 2004) A widespread and significant drop in ADP refinish labor times discovered in recent weeks will be corrected in ADP’s November CD update release, which the company says has been sent to ADP customers. “The operational issues with the refinish times in the October CD are revised in the November CD,” Scott Jenkins, senior director of “Estimating Solutions” for ADP said. “The November CD is consistent with the September CD. If the user did not load the October CD, they were not impacted. We are instructing our customers to load the November CD immediately upon receipt.” The October CD included many decreased refinish labor times of 10 percent or more. Refinish times for 2000-
2004 Ford Taurus hood, for example, dropped from 3.9 on the September ADP CD to 3.4 on the October CD. Times for a 1999-2004 Pontiac Grand Am fender dropped from 2.4 to 1.9, and the front door time for a 1999-2004 Chevy Cavalier dropped from 3.1 to 2.8. Although some have looked for some sort of intent behind the widespread reductions, ADP, while avoiding using the term “mistake,” maintains that the problem was an “operational issue,” not an attempt to shave labor times. “Some of our clients have experienced an operational issue regarding refinish labor on hoods, doors, fenders, roofs, decklid/tailgates and back doors,” Peggy Adams, operations manager for client services for ADP, wrote in an email response to questions about the October CD. “All new estimates created with the November CD reflect the updated refinish labor. We apologize to our clients for any inconvenience we may have caused.” The issue has resulted in a flurry of email activity between shops and industry organizations since it came to light in early November. Part of the concern was fueled by the fact that various ADP personnel were giving conflicting - or, at a minimum, ambiguous
- responses to questions about the labor time changes. An ADP tech support employee, for example, told one ADP shop customer in the Pacific Northwest that the revised times were based on “new time studies” ADP had done. – As reported in Autobody News. Prior to shops accessing the estimating database information over the Internet, the system providers sent monthly updates to the data to shops on compact discs. ADP’s Claims Services Group (including its estimating system) was acquired by Audatex (now AudaExplore) in 2006.
5 years ago in the collision repair industry (November 2009) In the transcript of a small claims appeal trial involving two of customers of G & C Auto Body of Santa Rosa, Calif., California Superior Court Judge James Bertoli took State Farm to task for its rate survey process and arguments regarding reasonable repair costs. Shop owner Gene Crozat’s customers had won after filing small claims court cases against State Farm insureds when the insurer refused to pay all of G & C’s charges. The insurer appealed both cases, and the court heard the two appeals together over two days.
Bertoli said State Farm could use whatever method it specified in the insurance contract to determine a reasonable price in first-party claims, even if they determined that price, “by reading chicken entrails, and consulting with the three witches from MacBeth (which is) just about as accurate as the survey itself is. I think that survey from a statistical standpoint would get a first-year college student a flunking grade.” But in a third-party case, the judge said, a reasonable charge “implies a range of charges” and “no particular charge can be said to be the only reasonable charge.” He said State Farm did not try to establish that G & C’s rate was unreasonable, and it appears to fall within a reasonable range of prices. “Quite frankly with regard to the third-party claims, this Court does not believe they should have been litigated,” Bertoli said in finding for Crozat’s customers. “I think the answer is clear, and I quite frankly see it as an effort on behalf of the insurer to try and suppress the price charged by someone outside of their range.” – As reported in CRASH Network (www.CrashNetwork.com), November 16, 2009.
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Continued from Page 22
Lean Implementation
o Influencer – Patterson, Grenny, Maxfield, McMillan, Switzer
• Setup office and shop spaces to influence vital behaviors o Is communication a problem? Consider how your office is set up.
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• Make critical tasks convenient o Tasks that specifically lead to your company’s success like Blueprint steps, parts mirror matching, customer communication, etc. must be made to be EASY!
• Make critical tasks unavoidable o Think visual o Make it hard for people to screw up!
For the last few years, Chevrolet has used the annual State Fair of Texas in Dallas to preview its plans for SEMA, according to an article written by Mark Williams on pickuptrucks.com. This year, the focus of the state fair and SEMA is pickup concept truck parts. The Silverado “Toughnology” reminds customers that aluminum, the latest material-fad of the auto work, cannot compete with the highstrength of steel, which is located throughout this pickup truck’s frame, cab, body and interior, which, GM has always noted, is “much less cost intensive than more exotic materials.” This concept also showcases GM accessories like unique grille inserts, sidesteps, a hard tonneau cover, a carpeted bedliner, fenderflare accents and tinted headlights. A graphic package, including 20inch wheels and tires, OnStar 4G LTE with Wi-Fi hotspot capability, a wireless charging mat and Siri Eyes Free, is also included. Read the entire article: http://news.pickuptrucks.com/2014/ 09/chevrolet-debuts-a-pair-of-pickup -concept-trucks-for-sema.html
Cadillac will begin offering advanced “intelligent and connected” vehicle technologies on certain 2017 vehicles, General Motors CEO Mary Barra said on Sept. 7 during her address at the Intelligent Transport System (ITS) World Congress in Detroit. In about two years, a new 2017 Cadillac vehicle will offer customers an advanced driver assist technology called Super Cruise and the 2017 Cadillac CTS will be enabled with vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication technology. Super Cruise, the working name for GM’s automated driving technology, will offer customers a driving experience that includes hands-off lane following, braking and speed control in certain highway driving conditions. The system is designed to increase the comfort of an attentive driver on freeways, both in bumper-to-bumper traffic and on long road trips. Barra said the technology could mitigate many collisions and improve traffic congestion by sending and receiving basic safety information such as location, speed and direction of travel between vehicles approaching each other. It will warn drivers and can supplement active safety features, such as forward collision warning, already available on many production cars.
Chevrolet Debuts Pickup Concept Trucks for SEMA
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28 NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Continued from Page 15
MSO Consolidations
“Fixing cars is become more and more challenging than ever before,” said Afshar. “The vehicles are so different now and they may look the same outside but what’s inside is not the same.” With the standards set by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and the Corporate Average Fuel Economy, cars need to be lighter but still pass safety requirements. Afshar said another challenge for those in collision repair is employing proper technicians with the right mind set. Afshar, who sold his MSO Sterling Automotive Group in 1998, said technology is moving so rapidly that detailed knowledge, training and equipment is becoming even more necessary for shops to be successful and he encourages technicians to be open-minded and learn new techniques that they’ve never used before.
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Continued from Page 20
Power of Video
was a death trap and it eventually got totaled and the driver got paid off. Our video told the story and showed the evidence clearly, and that was why it worked so well. Since coming out, the Maryland Attorney General and the Insurance Commissioner has seen the video and body shops show it to their customers all the time. We get great feedback about it and it’s also helping us to get higher rankings on Google.” Currently, AP Media is producing a series of four automotive certification videos for Mark’s Body Shop. “K & M has done a few OE certification videos and they’re powerful, to say the least, so we’re doing the same,” Schaech said. “They did a Porsche certification video and now they’re on top of all the search rankings as a result. We use video to inform and educate our customers, but enhanced SEO is also a big part of it. Years ago, we spent a lot of money on cable advertising and the response was weak, but these videos cost us less and they get us more response. We’ll be making more all the time, because we can new see they pay for themselves in the end.”
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On Creative Marketing
Tom Franklin has been a sales and marketing consultant for fifty years. He has written numerous books and provides marketing solutions and services for many businesses. He can be reached at (323) 871-6862 or at tbfranklin@aol.com. See Tom’s columns at www.autobodynews.com under Columnists > Franklin
Are You Marketing to Merely Survive or Are You Trying to Grow with Thomas Franklin
By now most shop owners and managers have realized that when it comes to marketing, one size does not fit all. Franchises and multiple shop operations that account for about 15 percent of the shops in the U.S. are in a position to approach marketing from an entirely different perspective from the independent shop owner. But 72 percent of the shops are still independent, single-location shops and many of these shops market just to keep surviving. The question then becomes, what do you mean by “grow?” Growth by cloning or opening other locations is more of an operational strategy than a marketing proposition. Real growth for an independent shop is simply about getting more vehicles in the door and enjoying more profit on every job. Franchises and MSOs can afford to advertise just to build name recognition to try to drive business to any shop in the group. But few independents can afford to spend marketing dollars solely on building name recognition. A marketing plan has to differentiate a shop from the competition and provide a strong reason to select that shop over all the others. A recent article in Inc. Magazine might suggest one way to do that. A software company originally called “37 Signals” changed it’s operating philosophy and changed its name to “Basecamp,” the name of a project management product that represented 87 percent of their sales and 90% of their recent growth. This reminded me of a strategic move made by Colonel Harlan Sanders
when he was operating a small chain of fast food operations with about 100 items on the menu. He was having serious trouble trying to grow so he hired a consultant named David Thomas. The first thing Thomas did was cut the menu down to a handful of items and renamed the franchise operation, “Kentucky Fried Chicken.” From there on, the growth was phenomenal. Now obviously most shops can’t eliminate any of the steps needed to restore a vehicle back to pre-accident condition, but they can always choose what they want to emphasize in their marketing. And this may be the key to convincing the buying public that this shop is the right one for them. If you decide to try this approach to marketing, the next question is “what to emphasize?” Paint specialty shops like Maaco have already begun to capture some of the body work that independent shops rely on, but they keep paint as their central focal point. While any shop is free to make refinishing quality their main marketing emphasis, there may be reasons to choose a different emphasis. One big advantage an independent shop has over franchises and MSOs is the very fact of their uniqueness. While these other shops may have a cookie-cutter sameness look, the independent shop owner can individuate any way he or she chooses. I’ve seen a number of shops that emphasize the family aspect of their business. Photos of several generations of owners adorn the walls, the website and any ads. The
Toyota Moves to Aluminum Hood for Camry in 2018
Toyota Motor Corp. is set to become the next global automaker to begin making the expensive shift from steel to aluminum for a high-volume vehicle, according to reports in Automotive News. The U.S.-built Camry, the country’s best-selling car, is slated to get an aluminum hood in 2018, according to a source familiar with the plans. Toyota’s first foray into aluminum closures in North America will come next year when the 2016 Lexus RX 350 crossover, which is made in Cambridge, Ontario, gets an aluminum hood and liftgate, the source said.
The aluminum sheet for the Camry hood likely will come from a joint venture between Toyota Tsusho Corp., a trading company affiliated with Toyota Motor Corp., and Kobe Steel to produce more aluminum sheet metal in the U.S. Toyota will be among the venture’s first customers, several sources confirmed. Production is expected to begin in 2017 and ramp up to full output at the beginning of 2018.
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30 NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
emphasis, of course, is “we care more because for us it’s personal.” Another key factor in marketing emphasis choice is shop location. A shop in Silicon Valley or other hightech region may thrive best with an emphasis on the technical aspects of collision repair. A contemporary focus on hybrids and exotic metal repair specialties could communicate well in an area like this. In an entirely different direction, I ran across a shop in horse country that emphasized a specialty in working on horse trailers and larger transport vehicles. In an age like ours where big box stores have become the norm, a lot of people choose to look for vendors who understand their particular niche in life. Choosing which of these to focus on brings us back to the question, do you want to market to just survive, or do you want to really grow? Whatever you decide to emphasize in your marketing, to make it a
growth proposition calls for an all out effort. For example, a shop located in an area where campers and large SUVs are commonplace might choose to emphasize oversize frame machines and larger spray booths able to accommodate them. To make this a growth move, the shop would have to display these capabilities more prominently with colorful photos and stories of exceptional jobs on the website and literature. But they would have to go beyond this to go out and be involved in trade shows, vehicle shows, club presentations and more. Choosing an emphasis that encompasses a lot of people opens up an entire horizon of opportunities to get out and connect with prospective customers. Not every shop owner is comfortable with this kind of glad-handing, but if the real growth is out there to be gotten, it’s worth while hiring someone with the skill to go out and get it.
Social Media for Shops Chicago Body Shop’s Anti-Texting Campaign Catches Fire with Ed Attanasio
Admittedly, the owner of a wellknown 80-year-old body shop in Chicago was guilty of texting in his own vehicle himself for several years until he saw more than a few damaged cars in his shop caused by his customers’ lapses in attention while texting. Rather than ignore what is now an national epidemic that causes 1.6 million accidents annually, Bob Gottfred, the owner of Erie-LaSalle Body Shop, decided to start his own antitexting campaign. Erie-LaSalle Body Shop was founded in 1934 and over the years it has become a neighborhood institution in downtown Chicago. “We’re the longest continuously owned auto body of its kind in Chicago and Illinois,” Gottfred explained. “We now have a handful of third-generation customers coming in here and it’s great to hear their stories about when their grandfather or even great grandfather brought his car here decades before. Addition-
ally, we have expanded our service area by acquiring a 30-year body shop on the southwest side of Chicago.”
Erie-LaSalle started getting involved in an antitexting campaign after creating this fire hydrant to raise money for 51 Club, an organization that raises money for families of firemen killed in the line of duty
Ed Attanasio is an automotive journalist based in San Francisco, California. He can be reached at era39@aol.com.
Gottfred, 64, had what he described as a “marginal interest” in cars as a kid, so his path to owning a body shop wasn’t part of his life plan, he said. “I grew up working here in the shop as a teenager and to be honest, I wasn’t crazy about it. I had no intention of taking over the shop, but when I came home around Christmas time in 1975, my stepfather told me he couldn’t do it anymore. His health wasn’t very good so he said, ‘If you’re interested -- hop in” or he was going to sell it. So, in January 1976 I started running the business full-time and then eventually bought out my stepfather in 1995.” Today, both of Gottfred’s sons work with him at the shop and eventually the business will belong to them – but not tomorrow, Gottfred said. “Jim (36) and Jay (34) could take over right now and do a great job, because they’ve learned the business and they’re ready. They’re right at the hand-off point now and I know it would be a seamless tran-
sition, but I’m not quite ready to retire. I currently work on customer acquisition and foster the great relationships we have with the insurance companies and agents, so it works well right now. Opening the new shop in a very different market has also been a challenge. I like to be the rainmaker around here and take a lot of the administrative stuff off my sons’ radar, so that they can concentrate on the most important things, such as quality and customer service.” New proposed anti-texting laws have gained more momentum in this country, most recently led by a documentary called “From One Second to the Next,” a cautionary tale about the dangers of texting while driving. The film was funded by mobile providers AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint and Verizon and has received major awards and accolades. The genesis of Gottfred’s anti-texting campaign began when he decided See Anti-Texting Campaign, Page 35
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Continued from Cover
Memphis Radio
try that insurance companies often attempt to take control at the accident scene, moving the damaged vehicle against the consumer’s wishes and trying to coerce the vehicle owner to agree to having the repair completed at one of their DRP shops. Although the consumer has the right to choose where their vehicle is repaired and it could easily be argued that the insurers are taking advantage of their customers, it is easier and cheaper for insurance companies when they get their way, as they often do in these situations. When questioned about why insurers are so adamant about steering despite the possibility of being sued, Eaves noted that insurers profit greatly by this practice as the benefits to them outweigh the risk; this is the reason his pending lawsuit and other lawsuits are necessary. Fowler reminded listeners that this is a battle the collision repair industry has been fighting for 25 years, but it has come to a point where quality repair shops will go out of business if nothing is done to “rectify this travesty.” Moving on to the topic of aftermarket and OEM parts, Fowler said that his opinion has changed. Previously, he believed it should be the customer’s choice whether or not to use aftermarket parts, but because most consumers don’t understand the differences and implications of using these parts, he now feels that it is the collision repair professional’s responsibility to educate the consumer. He reiterated that “testing proves that aftermarket parts do not always perform the same as genuine OEM parts.” In response to the radio hosts’ question about whether “imitation parts” have been implicated as the cause of any accidents, Eaves unambiguously stated that the use of poor quality aftermarket parts has caused a multitude of accidents across the country. Unfortunately, few people are aware of this concern because these settled cases included confidentiality agreements to prevent them from becoming public knowledge. Furthermore, as many parts, including windshields, tires and airbags, directly affect the safety of the vehicle, investment in parts is more crucial than ever. According to Eaves, YouTube features many videos on how aftermarket parts affect vehicle
safety, and documentaries are currently being filmed on this issue as well. Eaves is not optimistic that the lawsuit will go to trial quickly, but he is prepared to fight this battle for quite some time if necessary, noting “this is bigger than just a lawsuit; it’s a campaign!” Part of this campaign includes asking Congress to support legislation to restore the proper balance of power between the insurance industry and the collision repair industry. As precedent for his request, Eaves cited the Consent Decree, a similar situation in the 1960s when insurance companies tried to dictate which parts could be used and how much they would pay for repairs. The U.S. Department of Justice sued the insurance industry, and the resulting ruling was that insurers cannot force collision repair facilities to compromise the quality of their repairs. Thus, the balance of power between these two industries was restored if not enforced. Eaves said he hopes that his current efforts will yield the same results for the modern collision repair industry. Directing his attention to what consumers can do to aid in this battle, Fowler reminded consumers that they have the right to choose the facility that repairs their vehicle, and he encouraged them to act on this right by taking their car to whichever shop they prefer. He cautioned that it is a red flag if the insurer insists on dictating where the vehicle is repaired, and this could indicate that the insurer is engaging in other unsavory practices, such as mandating which parts are used in the repair. Though vehicle manufacturers provide specific repair information to maintain a vehicle’s safety, Fowler said he has experienced firsthand that some insurers will demand used parts be installed, even though both he and the manufacturer warned that such a practice could compromise the vehicle’s safety. Despite insurers’ tendency to use intimidating in their interactions with both consumers and repair facilities, Fowler states, “there are shops that try to do what’s right, but they are vilified, disparaged and essentially squeezed out of business.” Eaves agrees that it is imperative for consumers to trust the facility repairing their vehicle as their lives are being placed in the hands of these professionals, and a poor quality repair jeopardizes the safety of the consumer, their family and anyone else on the highway. The importance of finding a
32 NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
trustworthy repairer is so great that Fowler founded www.safecars.us, a website that promises to place the consumer’s safety above all else and plans to feature member shops who have committed to this goal. Although Fowler believes that some insurance agents would like to do the right thing for their customers, the rules are passed down from the insurance companies’ corporate offices, leaving the agents powerless to make changes. Unfortunately, the insurers are the only ones to benefit, and these practices are actually performed to the detriment of the collision repair facilities, the consumers and even lending institutions as an improperly repaired vehicle is apt to create a situation of diminished value. When radio hosts questioned why some insurance companies have departments that deal in diminished values, Fowler notes, “they pay when they’re forced to pay, but they are never going to voluntarily do the right thing because it’s not profitable, and everything they do is profit-driven.” In fact, he warns that diminished value can occur to such an extent that the vehicle should have been declared a total loss because it is no longer safe
Welcome to the ALL NEW
to be driven on the road! Luckily, diminished value is an issue that consumers are becoming increasingly aware of, and Fowler encourages anyone with doubts about the safety or integrity of a repair to get a post-repair inspection. His shop will gladly inspect repairs and provide objective assessments, as will many shops across the nation. As the show ended, Fowler encouraged consumers to stand up for their rights. Though he would like to believe that the insurers look out for their customers’ best interests, his observations indicate that they are only concerned with profits. “This war has been going on for a long time, mostly behind the consumers’ backs, but it affects everyone because if a car is unsafely repaired and out of control, it is dangerous to everyone on the highway. The U.S. public needs to be concerned with this issue… You never know what battles you can win until you fight them. Doing nothing only ensures you will lose.” To access to the radio broadcast, go to http://www.iaba.info/Documents/ Newsletters/Issues/2014/10%20 October/Full%20Stories/Article%207. html (link is at the bottom of the page).
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Berkshire Hathaway to Acquire Van Tuyl Group, Largest Privately-Owned Auto Dealership Group
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and Van Tuyl Group announced on October 2 that they have entered into a definitive agreement in which Berkshire Hathaway will acquire the Van Tuyl Group, the nation’s largest privatelyowned auto dealership group, ranking fifth among all U.S. auto dealership groups. After becoming a part of the Berkshire Hathaway family of businesses, the company will be known as Berkshire Hathaway Automotive. The company will continue to be led by Larry Van Tuyl, who will become Chairman, and Jeff Rachor, who will assume the role of CEO, as well as its experienced senior management team. Berkshire
Hathaway Automotive will be headquartered in Dallas, Texas and continue to pursue its strategy of operational excellence and disciplined acquisition growth, which is the business model the company has pursued for the last 62 years. “The Van Tuyl Group fits perfectly into Berkshire Hathaway from both a financial and cultural viewpoint. Larry Van Tuyl along with his father, Cecil, spent decades building outstanding dealerships operated by local partners. In recent years, he has shared management with Jeff Rachor, a seasoned auto retailer who will retain a financial interest in all dealerships. The Van Tuyl Group enjoys
excellent relations with the major auto manufacturers and delivers unusually high volumes at its 78 locations. This is just the beginning for Berkshire Hathaway Automotive,” said Berkshire Hathaway’s Chairman and CEO, Warren Buffett. “We are proud of all that has been accomplished with the support of our dealer partners, our employees and the manufacturers that we represent. We are very pleased to have one of the world’s most respected companies, Berkshire Hathaway, assume ownership of our company with the commitment to preserving our unique culture, business model and philosophy,” said Van Tuyl. “I cannot think of a better
steward to continue the legacy of what my father and I have built over the last 62 years, and I am confident this transaction will position the company on a course of continued success.” The transaction is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2015 and is subject to obtaining approvals from the major auto manufacturers as well as certain customary closing conditions, including various regulatory approvals. Stephens Inc. is serving as financial advisor to Van Tuyl Group. DLA Piper is providing legal advice to Van Tuyl Group, and Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP is providing legal advice to Berkshire Hathaway.
CCC Information Services Inc. announced the addition of the Aftermarket Auto Parts Alliance (Alliance) as a supplier to the CCC TRUE™ Parts Network on October 16. The Alliance, which goes to market under a variety of store brands including Auto Value and Bumper to Bumper, becomes a significant contributor of mechanical parts and repair supplies to CCC TRUE Parts Network. “Providing our customers with ac-
cess to the Alliance’s extensive offering of repair parts and related supplies via their robust MyPlaceForParts™ network extends our footprint and provides our repair and insurance customers with even greater choice and flexibility in their parts options,” said David Boden, VP, CCC’s Parts Services Group. “We look forward to working with the Alliance and integrating its parts inventory with CCC TRUE Parts Network.”
“Collision repair shops have a tremendous need for easy access to mechanical repair parts and supplies,” said Jon Owens, Vice President of sales and market development for the Alliance. “Streamlining that access was the purpose of our participating in the CCC TRUE Parts Network and we could not be more delighted with the opportunity to bring our extensive inventory to CCC’s customers.” CCC ONE® Workflow users will
now have access to the Alliance’s network of over 2,200 locations that stock nearly 2,000,000 repair parts and supplies for both import and domestic vehicles.
Aftermarket Auto Parts Alliance Joins CC TRU Parts Network
Mercedes Will Train 26,000 in the Brand’s New Culture
Mercedes-Benz USA and its dealers are spending about $30 million over the next four years to train 26,000 employees and immerse them in the brand’s culture. Later this year, the first wave of employees will go through a two-day program called the Brand Immersion Experience at the Mercedes-Benz factory in Vance, Alabama, near Tuscaloosa. The investment includes a $6 million revamp of the visitor center at the factory for classroom training, including digital interactive displays. “We have been driving hard for the last few years on the customer experience,” said Gareth Joyce, vice president of customer services at Mercedes-Benz USA. “It is not just about the product; it is all about the package and how you look after the customers as well. “This is just one of the building blocks in our portfolio to drive that program forward through our dealer network.”
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Takata Airbag Recall May Include GM Vehicles
The regional recall of millions of U.S. vehicles with potentially defective airbags made by Japan’s Takata Corp. may expand to include General Motors models, according to documents filed in Sept. with U.S. regulators. More than 4.3 million cars produced by automakers, including Honda Motor Co., Fiat’s Chrysler Group and Toyota Motor Corp., are affected by the regional recalls. They began in June in certain high-humidity areas of the United States after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration started investigating reports of airbag explosions in Florida and Puerto Rico. The regional recalls initially affected nine automakers, but documents filed by Takata for a Sept. meeting with NHTSA and the affected companies listed GM for the first time as being potentially affected. The Takata documents, posted online by NHTSA, said the number of vehicles produced by the largest U.S. automaker was undetermined. GM declined to comment.
34 NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
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in the Windy City. As part of his company’s ongoing Anti-Texting Campaign philanthropy, Gottfred decided to participate in the project. “We purchased to participate in the Great Chicago Fire a five-foot fire hydrant made out of Hydrants Project, a public art exhibition fiberglass for the project to decorate,” that celebrates the heroism of Chicago’s Gottfred explained. “We painted the firefighters. This citywide public art inwords ‘Texting & Driving, It Can Wait’ stallation features oversized replicas of on the fire hydrant and then decided to Chicago’s iconic standard fire hydrants, take the whole thing one step further. designed, painted, decorated and/or We had purchased a little Smart Car a dressed by local artists, architects, and while back and we have our logo on the even fashion and interior designers. side of it. We use it to shuttle customers These colorful sculptures are placed around or pick up parts and we love it. throughout the city in tribute to the We thought maybe we can use the work and heroism of Chicago’s beloved Smart Car and the hydrant together to firefighters. At the conclusion of each get our anti-texting message out there. year’s exhibition, the hydrants are gathWe disassembled the front end of the ered for a final exhibition before being Smart Car and parked it out front of our shop and made it appear as though the Smart Car had just bashed into the fire hydrant. We get 40,000 people driving by our shop every day and so pretty quickly everyone was talking about it.” Then last October, Gottfred Erie-LaSalle Body Shop was founded in 1934 and over the decided to use Halloween as years its iconic neon sign has become a Chicago landmark an opportunity to take his antiauctioned, with net proceeds benefiting texting message to another level, he charities that support the families of fire said. “We put a dummy in the front victims and other fire safety programs seat of the Smart Car and deployed an Continued from Page 31
old airbag we had sitting around and strapped it to the steering wheel. Later, I went out there and the local police and fire department were out in front of the shop. Someone had reported a
Bob Gottfred (center) has been running ErieLaSalle Body Shop since 1975 and soon his sons Jim (left) and Jay (right) will be taking over the reins
car accident with serious injuries, and after we explained what was going on, we all laughed about it and they took a few photos. We left it there until the end of November and then the hydrant got auctioned off, raising $500 for the 51 Club. We bought it originally for
$1,500 and that money went to Club 51 too, so we donated $2,000 total, which was nice.” Once Gottfred got involved in his anti-texting campaign, he stopped texting altogether. “When people use their cell phones while driving, the bottom line is that they’re distracted,” he said. “I was doing it too, because you get a text message and your first reaction is to respond to it. But in the end it can really wait. We get damaged cars in here all the time and the customers will never admit that they were texting when it occurred, but I know many of these accidents are the result of texting.” Gottfred teaches CE (Continuing Education) classes to insurance agents and now he has created a class dealing with the topic of texting. “We discuss how to insure teenage drivers and what can happen when they text,” he said. “I show some gruesome videos to get their attention and to raise their consciousness about texting.”
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Quest Donates $280,000 in Paint & Abrasives to CREF
Quest Automotive Products (QAP) donated $280,000 in paint and abrasives to high school and post-secondary collision school programs across the country through the Collision Repair Education Foundation. The products donated by QAP will allow students the opportunity to practice their collision repair and refinishing skills. QAP is committed to bringing awareness of the shortage of technicians within the collision industry and acknowledge that many collision school programs have budgets that are shrinking each year. “QAP strongly believes in supporting the future professionals within our industry and ensuring they obtain the education that they deserve in order to be successful in the automotive profession,” said David Brunori, President of Quest Automotive Products. “QAP has recently been involved with supporting the Collision Repair Education Foundation through donating product and raising money with its first Artists 4 Education auction, held in the Matrix Automotive Finishes booth during SEMA last year, which raised $25,000 for the Education Foundation. We are proud to be working to-
Auto Glass Safety Council Updating Certification Exam
The Auto Glass Safety Council™’s (AGSC) Education Committee met October 7 during Auto Glass Week in Baltimore, MD to review its plan to update the exam technicians must take to become AGSC accredited. Jeff Olive, chair of the education committee, opened the meeting with a discussion about whether the association should publish the questions. Bob Beranek of Auto Glass Consultants, who chairs the AGSC AGRSS Standards Committee and is a member of the board of directors, proposed waiting until the AGSC has developed 500 questions. The group agreed. The exam will feature 70 questions. Members also discussed ways technicians can challenge questions they might have an issue with. Mitch Becker of Abra Auto Body & Glass, recommended adding a “challenge” option as a selection for each question. Once a technician completes the timed exam, he would have the opportunity to explain why he challenged a certain question. The test results would be on hold until the AGSC Education Committee has a chance to address the challenge. The committee members voted in support of this proposal.
gether with them again in 2014 with the second annual auction at SEMA this year (booth 10669).” Collision Repair Education Foundation Director of Development Brandon Eckenrode noted, “This product donation from QAP will have a significant impact on the collision school programs by providing instructors with the needed material in order to provide a quality technical education for students. We look forward to working together with QAP to raise additional funds through the second annual Artists 4 Education auction at SEMA this year. I would also invite collision industry businesses to follow QAP’s lead in providing both product and monetary donations to the Education Foundation so that we can work towards ensuring that the graduating collision students are ready for entry-level employment within the industry.” Industry members interested in helping high school and/or college collision school programs through the Collision Repair Education Foundation should contact Brandon Eckenrode at: Brandon.Eckenrode@ed-foundation.org or 847-463-5244.
Ford Recalls 850,000 Cars for Airbag & Seat Belt Glitch
Ford Motor Co. is recalling 850,050 2013 and 2014 vehicles for an electrical flaw that could cause airbags and seat belt pretensioners to malfunction in the event of a crash, according to reports in Automotive News. The affected vehicles include the 2013-14 Ford C-Max, Fusion, Escape and Lincoln MKZ. Ford said in a statement on Sept. 26 the restraints-control module in the vehicles could short circuit, causing the airbag warning indicator to illuminate. This is the 12th recall of the 2013 Escape, although a spokeswoman said in August that no single Escape has been involved in all the recalls. Flaws that other recalls on the Escape have addressed include fluid leaks that could cause an engine fire, doors that can open while the vehicle is moving and rollover airbags that may not deploy quickly enough.
36 NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
SEMA: Sales of Auto Parts & Accessories Reach $33B
Sales of automotive specialty-equipment products continue to climb, reaching $33 billion in 2013. The number represents a 6.7 percent increase over the previous year and marks the fourth consecutive year of growth, according to the SEMA Annual Market Study that is available at www.sema.org/2014samr. “The Specialty Equipment Market produced the highest growth since the recent recession,” said Chris Kersting, SEMA president and CEO. “There are a number of factors that figure into this upward trend.” The special-equipment market includes products that enhance a vehicle’s performance, styling, comfort, convenience and safety. Among the factors driving the industry’s growth are: ● Street performance products accounted for 26% of sales. The renewed focus on performance models by the OEMs has helped drive interest in this segment. New models such as the Scion FR-S, redesigns like the 2015 Mustang, and high-performance packages such as the Hellcat Challenger have inspired the industry and consumer alike to aim for increased performance. ● There was a healthy upward tick for the truck market. Sales of specialty equipment for light trucks grew 8% in 2013 to post the market’s best sales year
since 2007. New truck sales continue to climb amid anticipation for major redesigns to several flagship pickups. As the SUV/CUV sector continues to grow nine of the top 30 sellers in the US), crossover products present an opportunity to diversify and expand light-truck product offerings. ● The 2014 SEMA Show is shaping up to be the biggest yet as industry optimism continues to build. New this year is SEMA Ignited, a special consumer and media attraction on Friday night after the Show. SEMA Ignited meshes with other consumer-facing association projects, all part of a long-term plan to enhance awareness of specialty products. ● The US economy continues to show positive signs for industry growth, with gross domestic product rising and unemployment rates dropping. Forecasters are generally predicting sustained moderate growth for the US economy over the next few years. Meanwhile, car buyers have shown renewed enthusiasm, pushing new-vehicle sales upward toward pre-recession levels. The SEMA Annual Market Report is conducted yearly to help SEMAmember companies understand the industry and make informed business decisions.
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Honda and SolarCity Partnership Will Create $50 Million Fund for Solar Projects
At the SXSW Eco conference in Austin, TX, SolarCity® and Honda renewed their partnership with a new fund expected to finance $50 million in solar projects. The new commitment will make solar power more affordable and available to Honda and Acura customers and dealerships in the U.S. The companies have completed or initiated a range of solar projects for homeowners, dealerships and corporate facilities that total more than 12.5 MW of solar generation capacity. The two companies have already brought enough solar capacity online to offset more than 400 million pounds of CO2 over a 30-year lifecycle. The $50 million fund is a follow-up to a $65 million fund the companies created in 2013. The partnership, which is aimed at addressing air pollution and global climate change by reducing CO2 emissions and particulate emissions from home, business and transportation energy use, covers the cost of solar equipment and installation and makes it possible for many homeowners to pay less for solar electricity than they pay for electricity from utilities, with insurance, repairs and monitoring service included. Envisioning a future in which personal mobility products will be pow-
ered in large part by renewable energy, the two companies have begun implementing co-marketing programs that specifically encourage owners of either solar powered homes or plug-in electric vehicles to adopt the complementary product. The companies have also collaborated on advanced projects that demonstrate the full potential of distributed renewables combined with plug-in electric vehicles, including Honda Smart Home US. SolarCity (SCTY) installed the high-efficiency and cost-effective solar system used in this project. SolarCity has developed a proprietary system that has greatly simplified the process by which homeowners can go solar. From an initial phone call or Web consultation, SolarCity can quickly assess whether a homeowner is a good candidate for solar, and can design a custom solar system to meet a customer’s specific energy needs. Honda and Acura customers and dealers interested in solar can find more information at: www.hondasolarcity.com. “The first phase of this partnership has proven that Honda drivers have a high affinity for solar power, while owners of solar-powered homes have a high affinity for Honda products,” said
PPG Waterborne Shop Conversions Exceed 10,000
PPG Industries’ (NYSE:PPG) automotive refinish business has now converted more than 10,000 collision centers in the United States and Canada to its waterborne systems, with the majority of these conversions taking place in National Rule areas rather than in low-VOC (volatile organic compound) compliant regions. According to Tim Jones, PPG waterborne segment manager, more than 10,000 collision centers in North America are now using PPG waterborne products, with more than 50 percent of these shops in National Rule markets. This means most PPG customers choose to use waterborne products and systems even though they are not required to do so to meet low-VOC regulations. They do so voluntarily because they want to improve their productivity, he said. “Waterborne is not just a compliance solution anymore,” Jones said. “More than 10,000 PPG customers in the U.S. and Canada see the value in superior color matching, excellent throughput and performance, consistent color mixes and other key qualities that our waterborne products provide. PPG has a long-standing commitment to the collision repair industry to deliver high-quality and time-saving products. ENVIROBASE® High Performance and AQUABASE® Plus products are easier to blend and apply; our customers ap-
preciate this and see a real difference in their shops’ productivity.” Jones attributed the success of PPG’s waterborne products to factors such as a highly-effective and easy CONVERT WITH CONFIDENCE® transition process and the service and support customers receive from PPG and its bestin-class distributor partners. “Collision centers are converting to PPG’s waterborne with great results,” he said. “Shops are finding the actual conversion to waterborne is simple. They’re also finding that we support them and view their productivity as a measure of our mutual success.” Envirobase High Performance and Aquabase Plus products are now in their third generation. PPG introduced its waterborne technology to the international OEM (original equipment manufacturer) market in 1986 and brought the world's first commercialized refinish waterborne basecoat to market in 1992. Since then, PPG has added new primers and clearcoats to the two brands and will, according to Jones, continue to expand the product lines’ offerings. For more information about PPG and Envirobase High Performance and Aquabase Plus waterborne products, call 800-647-6050 or visit www.ppgrefinish.com.
38 NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Steven Center, Vice President of the Environmental Business Development Office of American Honda Motor Co., Inc. “As we look toward a future in which renewable energy will be an increasingly pervasive fuel source for personal mobility products, we are excited about capitalizing on the technological, environmental and market opportunities available through partnerships of this nature.” “Our partnership with Honda is creating local jobs and helping to address air pollution, water pollution and climate change,” said SolarCity CEO Lyndon Rive. “Honda’s commitment is making a difference for the economy and the environment.” Based on its vision of “Blue Skies for our Children,” Honda is working to advance technologies that address society’s environmental and energy concerns through a diverse lineup of products and technologies, including more fuel-efficient gasoline engines, natural gas, hybrids, plug-in hybrids, battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs). Honda is targeting a 30-percent reduction in CO2 emissions from its U.S. automobile product lineup by 2020, compared to 2000 levels. In pur-
suit of its vision for a zero-carbon future, the company is advancing electromotive technologies in many forms, and will introduce an advanced new fuel cell electric car in 2015. In keeping with its commitment to produce vehicles with the lowest CO2 emissions at plants with the smallest environmental footprint, the company is broadly addressing emissions, energy, water use and waste in all phases of its products life cycles. In the manufacturing realm, this includes a 95 percent reduction in waste sent to landfills in North America. Honda is working to extend its “green factory” and “green purchasing” initiatives to its more than 650 parts suppliers in North America and is also pursuing more environmentally responsible business practices among its U.S. dealers through the company’s “Green Dealer” program. Honda is also demonstrating its vision for zero-carbon mobility and living with the creation of the Honda Smart Home US, in Davis, California, which was opened in early 2014 and is capable of producing more energy on-site from renewable sources than it consumes annually, including enough energy to power a Honda Fit EV for daily commuting.
Continued from Page 18
Energy transfer
ger compartment. But vehicle manufacturers have strengthened both the lower and upper structures of vehicles, further reducing the impact of visible damage to the passenger compartment. “I’ve seen some vehicles that had straight-on impacts at 50 mph, yet you can open and close the doors like factory,” Perry said. “The passenger compartment does not react they way
Lee Daugherty, global data product manager for Chief Automotive, points out the type of measuring data available through the company’s LaserLock system
it used to. But that energy is still going somewhere; something further back in the vehicle has to give to absorb that
energy. So that old way of thinking, of not measuring everything, results in overlooking something. That’s why we need to measure the entire vehicle each time.”
Jerry Ralston explains the final assembly processes that Chief frame equipment undergoes at the company’s Madison, Ind., headquarters
Perry believes eight measuring points is the minimum that should be used to ensure all the damage is located, though the total number will depend on the severity of the impact. Start with four on the center structure of the vehicle, he suggests, then one on each of the front and rear corners of the vehicle. When it comes to pulling, multiple towers allow more precise movement, he said, given that damage can be in three directions: lateral, vertical and length-wise. “The more hook-ups you can put
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on at your initial pull, the more that damage is going to come out the way it went in,” Perry said. “But you need to be monitoring it as you pull so you know you’re going in the right direction.” Multiple pulling also reduces the amount of force used at any single point. “If you put more combined force on a vehicle but less at each location by doing multiple simultaneous pulling with equalized pressure, you can repair a lot of things that you couldn’t before because you’re not going to rip and tear it,” he said. “You’re not going to damage and distort it because you’re not putting as much pressure at each location.” Perry shared his measuring and pulling concepts while working on an actual damaged vehicle during a recent demonstration in the shop at Chief’s headquarters in Madison, IN. Among the features of the company’s “LaserLock” measuring system he pointed out was the dual monitors that allow a technician to have both measuring information and OEM repair information readily accessible. “The OEMs used to sit on the sidelines because who knew better
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today, who knows most about a vehicle now? The OEMs. They designed it. They engineered it.” That said, Perry believes another advantage of using Chief measuring
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www.autobodynews.com | NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS 39
introduced at that time. “The law will really be a codification of the policy of the United States that was set in 1963.” It was that year that the U.S. Department of Justice, under the direction of Attorney General Robert Kennedy, investigated the concerns of the collision repair industry and found 265 insurance companies, and the
surance companies manipulated labor go to their DRP body shops or select rates and other charges and weren’t service shops. “That’s a big part of our compensated for their work. lawsuit and one of the things we think is The Mississippi lawyer said the pure violation of the proper balance betheir body shops. lawsuit is largely based on antitrust is- tween the two industries,” said Eaves. “We wanted to make the legislasues that surface when insurance com- “By having the same practices exposed tors aware of what the insurance companies get involved with body shops by all body shops in one litigation, the panies are doing to the consumer,” by telling them what labor rate they judge can more clearly see that this is a said Matt Parker, owner of Parker can charge, what percentages they’re pattern of practice,” said Eaves. Auto Body in Louisiana who is part of not going to pay for, and Eaves said that in addition to the lawsuit. “The insurance industry what parts they have to put these challenges faced by shop ownshould not tell us how to repair cars. on a car. In the 1970’s, the ers, the industry also has to adapt to We’re the professionals here, not labor rate was $16 and the new technology. “Only the shops that them. We have all the liability, they mechanical rate was $15. actually get paid for what they do will don’t,” he said. Currently, Eaves said the have the resources necessary to invest Tony Passwater, Executive Dibody shop rate across the in all of this technology,” said Eaves. rector of the Indiana Autobody Assocination is usually half of the “That’s basically what the lawsuit ation and President of AEII Consulting mechanical rate with no component is all about… making sure Services, said that what started as justification. He said this is that people who do the work and do it multi-district litigation in April with due to insurance companies right get paid for it so they can conjust five states, including Mississippi, that have artificially sup- tinue to provide that service to the (l to r) Joe and Karen Enneking of Enneking Body Shop in Indiana, Congressman Luke Messer and Tony Passwater, Florida, Tennessee, Indiana and Utah, pressed the rate and is a American customer.” Executive Director of the Indiana Autobody Association in and later by Louisiana, is now part of a clear violation of the ConThe next court date is set for NoWashington D.C. much bigger action to regain control sent Decree. vember in Orlando, FL. “The allegathat he termed “The Movement.” three major trade associations that repAnother main component of the tions that are part of the multi-district He said, as part of “The Move- resented insurers, were in violation of lawsuit is against steering. “Most states litigation being heard in Florida are not ment,” shop owners representing a the Sherman Antitrust Act. An An- in the country say it is illegal for insurin line with State Farm’s mission to dozen states went to Capital Hill “…to titrust Consent Order was signed by ance companies to purposely interfere serve the needs of its customers, and discuss the growing concerns for con- these companies on October 23, 1963, in the business relationship of the cusour long, proud history of achievesumer safety, the mandating by insurrequiring that insurers must refrain tomer and the body shop,” said Eaves. ments in advancing vehicle safety,” ers to require repair shops to use from “fixing, establishing, maintain- However, insurance companies do it said Dick Luedke, spokesperson for untested and unsafe parts on vehicles, ing or otherwise controlling the prices regularly, telling customers they have to See Congress Support, Page 43 and the intimidation tactics the insurto be paid for the appraisal of damage, ers use when a repairer refuses to do or to be charged by independent or so.” dealer franchised automotive repair “Most [members of Congress] shops for the repair of damage to auhave had their car repaired and were tomotive vehicles or for replacement very empathetic and were already conparts or labor in connection therewith, cerned about the issue, so we were whether by coercion, boycott or invery encouraged by the response,” said timidation or by the use of flat rate or the lead attorney John Arthur Eaves, parts manuals or otherwise.” Jr. of Eaves Law Firm in Jackson, MS. “If you look at the Consent Decree Eaves said many were still not and read it, it would look like someaware of the Robert Kennedy-era 1963 body from today wrote it because all Consent Decree and now is an excelthe things they’ve been doing since the See these Hyundai dealers below for all your collision parts needs! lent opportunity to ask them to help 40s they are continuing to do,” said Parker. “To be honest with TEXAS you, everything they’re doing is against the law.” Absolute Hyundai Hub Hyundai MES QU ITE HOUSTON Parker, who has been in the business for 30 years, said the 469-221-8018 800-856-2212 Consent Decree mandates that 469-221-8078 Fax 281-955-2311 Fax Mon-Fri 7am - 7pm Mon-Fri 7:30am - 6pm insurance companies are supSat 8am - 5pm Sat 8am - 3pm posed to be in the business of www.hyundaiofdallas.com hubparts290@hubhouston.com insurance, “not telling us how www.hubhouston.com to repair cars, not writing es(l to r) Tony Passwater, Executive Director of the Indiana Autimates, not telling people tobody Association; John Arthur Eaves, the lead attorney for Allen Samuels Van Hyundai the case; and Karen and Joe Enneking from Enneking Body where to get glass put in their CARROLLTON Hyundai Shop in Indiana, during their trip to Washington D.C. car. We’re the only business in NO RT H RICHL AN D HIL L S 972-512-4200 enforce what is the official public polthe world that has to try to figure out 972-512-4202 Fax 800-888-2079 icy of the United States government. how to make a profit when we can’t Mon-Fri 7am - 7pm 817-589-7882 Fax He said the body shops plan to visit even set our own rates.” Sat 8am - 3pm Mon-Fri 7am - 7pm ktaylor@vtaig.com Washington D.C. again in November Sat 7am - 4pm Eaves originally filed the lawsuit www.vanhyundai.com areed@asag.net when congress comes back into sesin April on behalf of more than two sion and the hope is that a bill will be dozen body shops that claimed 16 inContinued from Cover
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QUALITY IS ALL WE THINK ABOUT. THAT AND QUALITY.
40 NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Continued from Page 10
Junkyard Parts
to their customers’ expectations. Often, this includes an extensive inspection and evaluation of not only the automotive part, but the vehicle the part came from. A physical evaluation takes place, along with a review of the vehicle’s history, build codes, build date, verification and testing of mechanical and electrical parts. Parts found to be of a substandard condition grade (Grade C or X, for example), rusted, or otherwise non-repairable, are not listed as available on estimates or sold to customers. These are just a few examples of the quality control measures that are common practices of professional automotive recycling businesses.” Gold believes that recycled parts sold by ARA members are safe and meet OEM standards for fit and functionality, and he asks, “why should we trash good parts and use more of our natural resources to make new parts? It’s only logical to reuse these parts. Professional recyclers aren’t looking to dictate or control the repair process; we simply make these parts available
for collision shops to purchase and use in repairs. Recycled parts often save vehicles that would be declared a total loss otherwise. Speaking plainly, recycled parts make sense.” Fortunately, Caldwell is not completely opposed to the option of using recycled parts in the repair process, provided the consumer is informed of and agrees to their use and that the quality of the parts can be confidently ascertained to ensure that their use does not pose a safety risk to his constituents. “In the manufacturers’ professional opinions, and in the opinions of many body shops that are committed to good, safe and professional repairs, there are parts that cannot be re-used without inherently compromising the safety of a vehicle; however, if consumers are looking to be cost conscious and are thoroughly informed about these alternative repairs, they would seem to be viable options… pending proper disclosure and consent, this might be an understandable option for certain consumers. Our case is not just about junkyard parts our case is about consumers and about any part, any repair process and any business practice that renders their vehicles less safe and less valuable than
they were prior to an accident.” Wilson notes, “We also support consumer choice regarding what part and repair process are utilized for their vehicle. Recycled parts are quality alternatives that provide repairers the option of offering consumers significant additional benefits compared to new OEM parts. When repairers use recycled parts, they are saving costs for consumers and helping them to keep their vehicles on the road. Today over 70 percent of vehicles aged 7years and older are declared by insurance companies to be “Total Loss” after an accident -- many times this is due to the high cost of new replacement parts. The highest commissioned part is not always the smartest choice. Offering the vehicle owner an alternative to new OEM parts and utilizing a recycled OEM part will help keep that vehicle on the road and returning to that repair shop for years to come.” Gold agrees that consumer safety is a top priority which is why ARA has established standards and grading systems as a means of describing the recycled parts in the most appropriate way possible, with an emphasis on any imperfections, in order to allow
the consumer to make a choice. He hopes to see all recyclers join ARA and adhere to these standards to ensure that all recycled parts being utilized in repairs are safe for consumers. Wilson adds, “ARA is known throughout the different sectors of the automotive parts industry as a dynamic organization that, for over 70 years, has provided valuable parts standards and certification programs in order to better quantify recycled automotive parts and ARA member businesses’ level of performance to consumers and auto repair professionals. With programs such as the Certified Automotive Recycler (CAR) and Gold Seal programs, ARA members continue to provide consumers with quality, low-cost alternatives for vehicle replacement parts, while preserving the environment for a ‘greener’ tomorrow.” Looking to the future, “ARA hopes to move the industry to a point where recycled parts are listed in all relevant business platforms and that the market be truly allowed to determine which parts are utilized.”
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www.autobodynews.com | shartman@autobodynews.com NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS 41
Arizona Body Shop Connects With Customers and Community by Stacey Phillips, Assistant Editor
When a Northern Arizona body shop owner heard that the local school district needed a travel bus restored for their students, he said that he didn’t hesitate to help out. It took two months and 100 hours of work removing dents and painting the bus, but Jim Bachler, owner of Vince’s Auto Body, said it was well worth the time. “In business I believe we should give back to the community. What you get in return is always more than you give,” said Bachler, who currently has two locations for his business, one in Sedona and one in Camp Verde, and is planning to open a third within a year. One of Bachler’s employees in Camp Verde told him that the director of support services for the Camp Verde School District, Stacey Barker, wanted to convert one of their school buses to a travel bus for athletic trips. The district offers 13 different sports every fall, winter and spring. Barker had a vision for the bus, which included painting it blue, and worked closely with Vince’s Auto Body to plan what the bus would look like. One of his goals was to ensure that student athletes had a sense of
pride when they stepped off the bus. He said that he has found that it elevates their performance. “I believe in community involvement and bringing the school and community together,” said Barker. During the past summer seven employees at Vince’s Auto Body shop
Rod Consalvo, the lead trip driver for the Camp Verde Unified School District, is pictured with the travel bus
worked on the project, which involved 50 hours of body work and 50 hours of painting. After the work was completed, Alvey Signs in Cottonwood took care of the striping for the bus, spelling out “Camp Verde Cowboys” on the outside, which is the district’s mascot.
Chevrolet Brings Back the Corvette Stingray in Time for SEMA The SEMA Auto Show isn’t just an event for established aftermarket companies to showcase their latest
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creations. It’s also a chance for new players in the business to introduce themselves to the industry. This year, Revorix falls under the latter category, and it’s prepared a special program for the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray. The new aftermarket company has just set up its business in Anaheim, California with the sole purpose of creating aftermarket
“I didn’t grasp the magnitude of the project until we started,” said Bachler, who explained it was the equivalent of painting five small cars. Bachler started working at Vince’s Auto Body in Sedona as a body and paint technician in 1986 when the shop first opened and became general man-
products that highlights a car’s “functional beauty." Seeing as it’s still a relative neophyte in the industry, you can’t fault Roverix from enlisting the help of Rowen Japan, considered as one of the best aftermarket car body specialists in Japan. Together, the two companies created the Revorix Corvette Package, which features a comprehensive list of new aerodynamic components designed to give the Corvette Stingray a sportier look and improved dynamics. There are no performance upgrades but that’s not overly important when you’re a new entry to the market looking to make a name. The important thing is to establish yourself first, and one way to do so is to build a body kit that will catch peoples’ attention, which is exactly what it has with the Revorix Corvette Package. It’s a tough task catching some eyes at the SEMA Auto Show, but Revorix, with the help of Rowen Japan, might have the kit to pull it off.
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ager in 1993. When Vince Lansink put the shop up for sale in 2004, Bachler and his wife decided to purchase it. They realized there was also a need for a body shop in the Camp Verde area. “The closest one was 20 miles away and we were already pulling work from that area,” said Bachler. “The op-
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portunity presented itself in a good way and we decided to make an investment.” The Camp Verde location was opened a year ago and focuses on RV collision repair. Recently they started building another facility on Highway 260 that will concentrate on auto collision repair and is expected to be ready within a year. Bachler has been active in the community for more than 25 years and often shows his support by sponsoring local charities and little league teams. The business donated a minivan to the family of David Zenot, a local police officer who worked in the area for more than 25 years and died in 2012 from brain cancer. Bachler said that he enjoys being able to give back to the community that has supported his business. Vince’s Auto Body has been voted “Best Auto Body Shop” by Kudo’s Magazine every year since 1993 as well as by Red Rock News and Market Surveys of America since 2006. “I attribute it to customer care and concern for the repairs we do for people,” he said. “It takes a lot in a small community to stay on top of the repairs. It’s not about the money, it’s about doing things right.”
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Cruising Through Attleboro, MA in Restored Police Car for 100th Anniversary by Stacey Phillips, Assistant Editor
When the City of Attleboro recently celebrated their 100th anniversary with a parade, one of the highlights of the day was the 1975 police cruiser restored this past summer by two local auto body businesses in MA. The Attleboro Police Department initiated the restoration project in 2011, shortly after Sgt. Ronald Goyette joined the force. Attleboro’s Police Chief Kyle Heagney asked if
The 1975 Dodge Coronet before being restored
he could help restore a police cruiser to be used for city parades and community events. Goyette, the former automotive shop teacher at Attleboro High School, began to search for a vehicle but said it was challenging to
find just the right one. “We ended up running into all kinds of obstacles,” he said. Finally, as luck would have it, in 2013 his mother-in-law mentioned that she found an interesting old car he might want to take a look at. She had no idea her son-in-law had been searching for a car and when he went to see it, he found it was exactly what he had been looking for all along, a 1975 Dodge Coronet. Goyette said it was in immaculate shape for its age. “Unlike most Chryslers of that era, it didn’t have any underbody rot.” Using funds from forfeited drug seizures, the police department purchased the car during the first part of 2014. The police chief asked Goyette if it could be ready by September 6. “Time became our biggest obstacle because once we located it the chief wanted it done in time for the 100th anniversary parade celebration.” The first step was to strip it down. In addition to having chrome accessories not used on police cars in 1975, the prior owner had additional add-ons such as fender skirts. Greg
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McGovern of Better Automotive, a friend of Goyette’s who was experienced in Chrysler restoration, located parts for the vehicle and worked on it for a couple of weeks. Then the car was taken to Charlie Soufy at Chaz’s Autobody, who is contracted by the Attleboro Police to work on their vehicles.
Soufy said their biggest challenge was the time frame. “When we started to take some of the paint off there was a little more work than we anticipated so my guys kicked into high gear,” he said. “Andy Higginbotham ‘Panda’ and Ken Langill ‘Dust Monkey’ stayed late to get the job done.” Goyette said Soufy spent a lot of time getting the paint color just right. “Since DuPont didn’t list an exact number for the paint the city used on their cruisers, Charlie mixed it by eye,” he said. “He kept adding until he got it exactly the way it should be.” David Viera, the police department’s in-house mechanic, also helped out with The police cruiser will be used during parades and the car. It is currently being celebrations in Attleboro stored at the police departThe owner of the small shop in ment during the winter so they can do Attleboro said he has a good relation- some additional touch ups and interior ship with the police department and he work. “I think it’s unbelievable in this wanted to show his support for the community where he grew up. Soufy day and age you would find people has gained some new customers after who are ready, willing and able to dohelping out with this project and said nate their time, services and skill for his motto is, “Without my customers, I the police department, for the community,” said Goyette. wouldn’t have a job.” Continued from Page 40
Congress Support
State Farm Insurance. “A vibrant, profitable auto collision repair industry is in the interest of State Farm,” said Luedke. “At the same time, we are advocates on behalf of our customers for reasonable repair costs. We believe repairer profitability and quality auto repairs that are reasonably priced can both be achieved. “Our customers choose where their vehicles are going to be repaired. We provide information about our Select Service program while at the same time making it clear they can select which shop will do the work,” he said. Parker Auto Body was part of State Farm’s Select Service DRP until earlier this year. Since the business owner left the program in April, he said they have steered a substantial amount of business away from him. “Just in short pays alone I have over $150,000 worth of claims they won’t pay,” he said. “Operations that we actually do the vehicles to make the vehicles safe that they won’t pay us to do.
“These shops need to stand up for what’s right and quit letting the insurance industry run their business for them,” said Parker. “They are just terrified that the insurance companies are going to steer the work away.” Parker acknowledges their concerns but said, “We’re just as busy now as we were because we’re educating consumers.” He has found it beneficial to explain to consumers what the insurance companies are doing. “They need to take their businesses back and they need to run their own businesses.” When Autobody News went to press this month, an additional 25 states were in the process of filing lawsuits to meet an Oct. 31 deadline before returning to court in November. “What we want to achieve is number one, that the safety and the quality of repairs for the American public is restored,” said Eaves. “The industry will never be the same after this.” When contacted by Autobody News, Allstate Insurance Company and Progressive both said that due to company policy, they do not comment on pending litigation. Stay tuned to Autobody News for more developments.
www.autobodynews.com | NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS 43
Texas Shop Takes Restorations to a “Radical” Level by Stacey Phillips, Assistant Editor
“It’s fun to take something beat up and turn it into something nice,” said Klump. “I’m always up for a challenge. For me, there’s never a plan; it just comes to me.” One of his favorite restoration projects was the “Batvan” he built for Rick Crocker, the owner of a classic car dealership in Mesquite, TX called
Before John Klump started his collision repair and restoration business in Royse City, TX, he spent time on the weekends and evenings working on cars. One of his customers, George Kaufman, always told him that his work was “radical.” Thirteen years ago Klump opened a shop behind his home and named it Radical Restorations. He said that having his shop located so close to his house was becoming more than a full time job and four years ago he move his business to Fate, TX. The technicians split their time between collision It took John Klump at Radical Restorations about three repair and restoration work. years to restore the “Batvan” for Rick Crocker of Rick’s Klump said the two sides of Rodz his business complement each other and often customers will Rick’s Rodz. Crocker bought a van that come in requesting one type of serv- had been sitting in a field and filled ice and then learn that he offers more. with chickens and brought it to Klump Over the years he has found collision to restore. The Batvan was designed repair work brings in a steady stream by George Barris, who is known for of income and restoration is some- his famous creations including the 1966 Batmobile, the Munster Koach thing he has always enjoyed.
and KITT from Knightrider. It took Klump about three years to finish the Batvan, which is all steel handbuilt. Some of the highlights include a fake missile that comes out of the roof, a fake .50-caliber machine gun with electric motors that rolls out of the driver’s side and a flame thrower that throws a 10-to 15-foot flame out of the back of the van. “Rick called me one day and asked if I was up for a challenge,” said Klump. “Before he could finish telling me about the van, I said, ‘Let’s do it.’” When he was 13, Klump saved enough money to purchase his first car, a 1976 Montecarlo, and remembers spending time working on it in his parent’s driveway. Before Klump started his own business he used to work for Randy Burrows of Burrows Auto Restoration in Nevada, TX. Burrows encouraged Klump to pursue auto body work and was a big influence in his life and his business. Klump is passing on what he knows about cars to his two boys, 12year-old John and nine-year old Jaxon, and they often help in the shop. When the business relocated to Fate, Klump left a paint booth behind his house and he and his boys often work there on
Roush-Modified 2015 Ford Mustang To Be Revealed at SEMA
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44 NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
ing local businesses is also important to him so he purchases the Matrix paint he uses in his shop at the nearby T&T Color Supply. Giving customers what they ask for is his first priority at Radical Restorations. “My business is taking care of customers, having a good relationship with the customers and making them happy,” he said. “That’s how I got busy. I’m here for them, not just the money.”
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The Roush-tuned 2015 Ford Mustang, featuring body, interior, handling, and powertrain upgrades, will be making its first appearance at the 2014 SEMA show. Roush 2015 Ford Mustang models feature a more prominent grille and front fascia with splitter and grille, accompanied by new hood vents and an available hood scoop, moving the fog lights to the center air
Brembo brakes peek out from behind the new Roush 20-inch wheels with Cooper RS3 tires. Two types of adjustable coilover shocks are said to be available, according to reports by Jason Udy, motortrend.com. Previous iterations of the Roush Mustang came in Stage 1 (cosmetic) and Stage 2 (handling) kits for V-6 and GT models, and Stage 3 (performance) kits for the GT model only. With the new 2015 Ford Mustang, Roush will offer RS for the V-6 model, RS1 for the Mustang EcoBoost model, RS2 for the GT, and an RS3 version that adds a supercharger to the GT’s 5.0-liter V-8. Supercharged versions could offer more than one power level with as much as 674 hp possible, according to reports by Jason Udy, Roush-modified 2015 Ford Mustang. Photo Credit: motortrend.com. www.horsepowerkings.com Roush is also exintake. The doors now feature side, pected to offer many of the parts al a and the rear sports a deck lip spoiler carte for owners who want to modify and a redesigned fascia. This latest their vehicles after purchase. More version features quad exhaust tips details will be revealed at the SEMA peeking out of the new rear diffuser. show in November. Aerodynamics will improve the new body pieces. A set of upgraded
their own “toys.” Klump said he takes pride in his jobs and doesn’t cut corners, often doing things the old-fashioned way, such as airbrushing by hand. Support-
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Texas Civil Case Involves Allstate & Service King by Stacey Phillips, Assistant Editor
The repair of a 2013 Ford Explorer is at the center of a civil court case filed in Jefferson County District Court in Texas on August 15. Hays County residents Micah and Ericka Harrison are suing Allstate Insurance Company; Michael J. Roche, VP of Claims for Allstate; Service King Collision Repair Center in Texas; and insurance adjusters Brian Garret, Chris Thurston, Larry Walker and Ralph Villapando. The Harrisons purchased Allstate auto insurance for their 2013 Ford Explorer. When the car needed repair on January 11, Allstate advised them to bring the vehicle to one of their preferred service providers, Service King Collision Repair Center in San Marcos, TX. The plaintiffs said that as an incentive to use Allstate’s preferred service provider, Michael Roche, VP of Claims for Allstate, wrote that “Allstate guarantees that the workmanship of covered repairs performed by (Service King) will meet auto repair industry standards.” The Harrisons said they were initially told it would cost $10,000 and take 21 days to repair their vehicle. On
February 14, a month after dropping it off, the car had not been repaired and the estimate increased to $18,000 due to additional damage found. In the meantime, the plaintiffs learned that the re-imbursement coverage for the rental car they had been using had run out. According to court documents, “Service King only offered to cover one half of the additional expense which was caused by their delay and negligence.” After speaking with Allstate’s insurance adjuster Ralph Villapando, the Harrisons were advised that “…Allstate should have considered the vehicle a total loss had it been properly estimated at the beginning of the claims process.” When the plaintiffs received their car on March 31, they said they found “…the preferred service provider of Defendant Allstate had not properly repaired the vehicle. There were residual scratches, paint overspray, improperly lined hinges, broken parts, paint runs, paint cracks, mismatched paint, damaged parts not replaced and other issues.” After talking to several other Allstate insurance agents, the Harrisons said they were told they would have to resolve the matter directly
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with Service King. The Harrisons, represented by E. Hart Green of Weller, Green, Toups & Terrell in Beaumont, TX, accuse the defendants of breach of contract, deceptive trade practices, bad faith, fraud, breach of warranty and negligent hiring. Attorney John Causey represents three of the defendants, Allstate Insurance, Chris Thurston and Larry Walker. In response to the charges, they deny the plaintiff’s petition. When contacted by Autobody News, Allstate Insurance and Service King both replied that due to company policy they do not comment on pending litigation. Messages to E. Hart Green of Weller, Green, Toups & Terrell were not returned. When Autobody News when to print, a court date had not been set. Autobody News will continue to follow this story and keep readers posted.
Energy transfer
data is that the company doesn’t just use OEM build data but actually measures vehicles off the tires and in clamps just as is done in shops. That ensures the system offers more accurate, real-world measuring data, he said, because such a set-up takes into account the slight sagging the front and rear of a vehicle does when it is up in clamps. Perry said another key message to technicians in his training is that measuring is almost always the solution to challenging repairs. “If you can’t figure out what the problem is, take more measurements,” Perry suggests. “You’ll find it eventually. You’re just not measuring far enough. You’re not taking enough points to identify all the damage.”
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Senate Subcommittee Looks Into Effectiveness of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration The U.S Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation’s Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety and Insurance recently held a hearing titled, “Oversight of and Policy Considerations for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.” The purpose of this hearing was to evaluate the efficiency of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) highway and vehicle safety programs. The hearing was the latest in a series of congressional reviews that stemmed from NHTSA’s handling of General Motor’s ignition switch failures. Deputy Administrator David Friedman served as NHTSA’s witness. Other witnesses included Joseph Comé from the U.S. Department of Transportation, Jacqueline S. Gillan of the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, Kendell Poole of the Governors Highway Safety Association, and Robert Strassburger of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers. During the hearing, subcommittee members from both political parties had sharp criticism for NHTSA. Sen. Claire McCaskill
(D-Mo.), subcommittee chairman, said: “Nobody on this subcommitTo advertise tee believes that there aren’t peocall Advertising Sales ple [at the agency] trying to doat: the right thing … but it’s hard to sit 800-699-8251 here and listen to you …You want e-mail: toadvertising@autobodynews.com obfuscate responsibility rather than take responsibility.” The remarks echoed the tone of www.autobodynews.com the House Committee on Energy and Commerce Committee’s report released earlier that same day, detailing NHTSA’s perceived shortcomings in regard to the GM ignition switch reSee the N call. Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.), committee chairman, said: “It is tragic that the evidence was staring NHTSA in the face and the agency www.autobodyn didn’t identify the warnings. NHTSA exists not just to process what the company finds, but to dig deeper. They failed. We’ll keep looking for answers, and keep working toward solutions – whether it means changing our laws or pressing for change the companies that To atadvertise follow them and the agencies that call Sean Hartman at: enforce them – but we know for sure 800-699-8251 that NHTSA was part of the problem and is going to e-mail: have to be part of the solution.” shartman@autobodynews.com
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www.autobodynews.com | NOVEMBER 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS 45
Car Donation Helps Army Veteran Get Back on the Road Caliber Collision teamed up with Travelers to help a U.S. Army veteran get back on the road by providing him with a newly refurbished vehicle in September as part of its nationwide Recycled Rides program. Conley joined the Army in 1965 when he was 17 and served his six-year enlistment as an intelligence and security specialist. After leaving the Army, he worked as a pilot for corporations including General Motors, federal contractors and state and local police SWAT units. His responsibilities ranged from flying VIPs in jets to dealing with hostage
and crisis negotiation. About 10 years ago, he began to suffer from a series of medical conditions, including cancer and liver disease, which took a toll on him both physically and financially. “We hope this Recycled Rides gift will help Richard out of his ‘catch-22’ situation in which he is unable to afford to purchase a car but without transportation, he is unable to find employment,” said Rusty Barsanti, Caliber Collision’s VP of Operations. The company plans on gifting more than 20 vehicles during 2014 to military and first responders.
WIN 2015 Membership Drive
The Women’s Industry Network (WIN) is kicking-off their 2015 Membership Drive. WIN membership is annual and based on a calendar year. Their goal is to reach 400 members by 2015. WIN is focused on engaging women in the collision repair industry through education, networking and sharing of resources. This year’s drive will include several outreach opportunities. A membership drive drawing for new members, renewing members and referrals, and an added grand prize of one free 2015 WIN Education Conference Registration Fee will all
be part of the festivities. ● NEW MEMBERS Drawing - for all new members who join before December 31st; ● RENEWING MEMBERS Drawing - for all current & past members who renew before December 31st; ● REFERRALS - for all new, current and past members who refer a new member who joins before December 31st. All entries will be combined into a single drawing for the grand prize, which does not include travel expenses. For more information, visit: http://thewomensindustrynetwork. ning.com/page/join-win-1.
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