2010 Nov-Dec

Leaders in the Sale of Quality Mopar Parts

November - December 2010 Newsletter

Chrysler Group LLC Hosts President Obama and Vice President Biden at Kokomo, Ind., Facility Visit Highlights Recent and Planned Kokomo Investment Announcements of More Than $1.1 Billion President and Vice President tour Indiana Transmission Plant II Investments would retain nearly 3,500 U.S. jobs Chrysler’s total investment in U.S. facilities would climb to nearly $3 billion since June 2009 Obama recognizes two ITPII employees whose jobs were retained as result of investments

Employees at Chrysler Group LLC’s Indiana Transmission Plant II welcomed President Obama and Vice President Biden Tuesday November 23, 2010 as they toured the Kokomo, Ind., facility to celebrate the Company’s recent announcements that it would invest more than $1.1 billion locally for the production of future transmissions and retain nearly 3,500 Indiana jobs.

The Company confirmed today that it is looking to invest $843 million in its Indiana Transmission Plants and Kokomo Casting Plant to accommodate the production of a new advanced front-wheel drive automatic transmission for future Chrysler Group vehicles. The investPresident Barack Obama speaks about the recovery of the U.S. auto ment would fund the installation of equipment and speIndustry, Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2010, at Chrysler's Indiana Transmission Plant II in Kokomo, Indiana. (J. Scott Applewhite - AP) cial tooling to modernize its Indiana Transmission Plants and the Kokomo Casting Plant. The project would extend the life of both manufacturing facilities and help retain nearly 2,250 jobs.

Chrysler Group will be partnering with Friedrichshafen, Germany-based ZF Group on the next generation frontwheel drive transmission, which is making its designs and technology available to the Company and its Kokomo plants.

Earlier this year, Chrysler announced that it would invest $343 million in Kokomo to expand capacity at its existing facilities and support the production of an eight-speed transmission while retaining nearly 1,200 jobs. To(Continued on page 2)

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gether, these investments would make the City the recipient of the largest investment in a single year in a single community, pending the Kokomo City Council’s approval of Chrysler Group’s tax abatement application on Dec. 13, 2010.

In addition to these investments, Chrysler Group has made significant progress toward building a successful enterprise since June 2009, including:  reporting an operating profit of $565 million year-to-date 2010; reporting seven consecutive months of year-over-year sales gains;  announcing a $600 million investment in its Belvidere (Ill.) Assembly plant;  announcing an investment of $1 billion in its Sterling Heights (Mich.) Assembly plant and surrounding stamping facilities as well as its GEMA (Dundee, Mich.) facility;  adding a second shift of production – or nearly 1,100 jobs – at its Jefferson North (Detroit) Assembly Plant;  announcing that it would add nearly 900 jobs on a second shift at its Sterling Heights (Mich.) Assembly Plant in the first quarter of 2011;  launching the all-new 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee in May;  announcing that it will invest $179 million to launch production of the 1.4-liter, 16-valve Fully Integrated Robotized Engine (FIRE) at the company’s Global Engine Manufacturing Alliance (GEMA) plant in Dundee, Mich., creating more than 150 new Chrysler jobs.

Obama and Biden tour plant; President shares stories of Chrysler employees Escorted by Plant Manager Jeremy Keating and UAW Local 986 President Richie Boruff, President Obama and Vice President Biden toured the plant where the W5A580 5-speed transmission for the Chrysler 300, Jeep® Grand Cherokee, Dodge Nitro and Dodge Charger are produced.

The group stopped at the final assembly line where the clutch and supporting components are manually assembled to the transmission. The President and Vice President talked with employees about the changes that have been implemented to improve the efficiency of the line as a result of World Class Manufacturing (WCM), an extensive and thorough process to restore all Chrysler Group facilities to their original and maximum functionality.

Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne listens as Obama speaks about the recovery of the U.S. auto industry. (J. Scott Applewhite - AP)

In a speech to a group of more than 150 employees and invited guests, he highlighted two ITPII employees, whose futures were changed as a result of the Company’s recent investments and the support of the administration. Sharron Ybarra, 56, was hired in September 2010. Ybarra previously worked for 20 years at the local papermill, which shut down, leaving her out of work for five years. Ybarra later found work at a communications company paying $9 per hour.

James Faurote has been a Chrysler employee since 1998, when he was hired at the New Castle (Ind.) Machining Plant. In January 2004, Faurote was laid off due to the plant closing and relocated to Kokomo where he has been laid off and back to work multiple times over the past five years. It wasn’t until after the bankruptcy that Faurote has been back to work at Chrysler for more than a year.

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A Message from the desk of Dan Hutton Tom O’Brien CDJ Mopar Masters Guild President In my home state of Indiana, President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden visited and greeted workers at the Kokomo Transmission in Kokomo, Indiana today.

The unemployment rate in Kokomo has dropped from 20 percent last year to 12 percent this year. Chrysler Group LLC said on Tuesday it planned $843 million dollars of improvements at its Kokomo, In., plants that will build more fuel efficient transmissions, retaining about 2,250 jobs. This shows that Chrysler is moving in the right direction.

Nada 2011 is coming up and the NADA planning committee is working hard to finalize our meetings in San Francisco. With the challenges of today’s business and with the new products coming out in 2011, it’s more important than ever for all of us to get together and meet in San Francisco. If you are planning on attending please sign up as soon as possible. The deadline is just right around the corner.

I know travel is expensive, but I can’t believe more MMG members aren’t signed up for 2011 NADA. We, as a group, get together and come up with some of the greatest profit making ideas for our parts business. As much as I think everybody should attend both NADA and the Super Performance Group, this is a great time to build on our friendship and to root for your favorite NFL team at our Mopar Master Guild Super Bowl party.

In closing I would like everyone during the holidays to spend more time with your families and friends, and also not to forget the real meaning of Christmas. Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and goodwill, to be rich in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas.

Blessings

Dan Hutton

Also In This Issue It’s the Little Things that Add Up NADA 2011 Tentative Itinerary Performance Group Composite MMG Supporting Vendors The Big Get Bigger!

FenderBender UPS ADP Tracy Industries Annual Vendor Trip Aftermarket Parts: Are they the Same?

Shandy

Page 4 Page 6-7 Page 9 Page 12-13 Page 15 Page 17 Page 19 Page 22-23 Page 25 Page 26-27 Page 29

NADA 2011 San Francsico Never Attended a Mopar Masters Meeting?

10 Step Plan for Taking Back Lost Customers Parts Returns Corporate Billing LLC Reynolds & Reynolds OEConnection Tracy Industries Outside of Work!

Financial Jump Start 2010-2011 Mopar Masters Guild Committees

Page 5 Page 8 Page 10-11 Page 14 Page 16 Page 18 Page 20-21 Page 24 Page 26 Page 28 Page 30

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It’s the little things that add up to great products Submitted by Rick Monteiro - Jack Powell CJD

Mopar Masters Guild Meets with ADP On October 18th, 2010 the Mopar Master Guild vendor committee met with our partners at ADP. Our annual visit is always productive and this year’s meeting was very beneficial. ADP has great products and is always helping improve our productivity at the dealership.

The MMG contingency included Dan Hutton, Gerry Oakes, Mark Skinner and Rick Monteiro from the guild. ADP’s team included Pat Braziel and Randy Emerick in person. We also had many experts from ADP on conference calls including Ross Kleiner, Don Zogg, Chuck Cooper, Jon Brems, Bill Schwab and Mark Gerbracht during the day.

First we discussed Mopar specific ideas with a request to have Conquest parts appear highlighted or flashing when invoicing so parts advisors would recognize them as potential cost saving parts to qualified body shops. This possible enhancement was identified as also being beneficial to other makes that have similar programs.

Delivery management was our next topic. During this discussion we focused on future enhancements relating to picking, transfer speed, electronic signature capture and reporting. The rest of our day focused on DRIVE, Service Pricing System, Vehicle Inspection, Custom Programming and Quick RO. The highlight for me was the vehicle inspection and write up. This is sure to be a show stopper once it gets out in general release. The repair order generation starts with the vehicle inspection process and is a vast improvement over current repair order generation.

For those of you that are not updated to DRIVE you need to get a hold of your salesman and take a look. This product has been out since 2009 and has wonderful time saving productivity enhancing improvements that just aren’t available on earlier platforms. Make sure your management team takes a hard look at Drive during our NADA convention.

It’s these meetings with our partners that turn the smallest enhancements and ideas into reality making us more productive and the products we choose more powerful. Thank you ADP, together we are better.

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NADA 2011 - San Francisco I'm sure that we are all feeling that it couldn't possibly be December, already. But here we are staring the last few weeks of 2010 in the face, as well as preparing to celebrate the Holiday Season, once again.

All of this also means that we are quickly approaching our next MMG meeting in San Francisco for NADA 2011-!!!

For those of you that have already registered with the Omni Hotel, thank you. For those of you who have not yet registered, the Mopar Masters Guild is offering an incentive to have your room booked and reserved by December 15th-----!

The (very generous, and style conscious) Executive Committee has chosen to offer a very unique jacket as your free gift for registering before December 15th......A picture of the jacket is included in this issue, as well. The new MMG logo will be proudly placed on the front Chest and the four Chrysler Corporation Logos, (Mopar, Dodge, Chrysler, Jeep and Ram) will be embroidered on the upper back of the jacket as well.

Just by registering by December 15th you have a tremendous opportunity to own a one a kind jacket, which by the way is a $90 dollar value.

Registering is very easy as well by logging onto the following link. http://www.omnihotels.com/FindAHotel/SanFrancisco/MeetingFacilities/ MoparMastersGuildAnnualMeeting2.aspx Remember that we were able to negotiate a very affordable (for San Francisco) rate of $219.00 per night, for this year's event.

I mentioned in our last Newsletter that we were still in the planning stages of our Friday night event, and I am happy to announce that we will, once again be celebrating with our fellow Guild members, and hosting our Vendors and their guests at the John Pence gallery, in San Francisco. Dan Hutton has approved an awesome spread for that evening that will include several stations placed around the gallery with samplings of a variety of foods paired with wine and other refreshments.

We are still making final preparations for our Super Bowl Party which of course will be held on Super Bowl Sunday, February 6th. At the time of this article we are planning on having this event at the Omni Hotel.

So be sure to go online and register with the Omni, as soon as you can, and if you do it by December 15th----You'll be the proud owner of an awesome and stylish new jacket, that you can wear proudly as a member of the Mopar Masters Guild...! ! ! !

Mark Skinner Power Chrysler Jeep and Dodge (soon also to be Fiat) NADA 2011 Planning Chairman

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NADA 2011 www.nada.org

Mopar Masters Guild NADA 2011 Tentative Agenda Thursday, February 3rd Travel and arrive in San Francisco 6:00 PM

Officer & Executive Committee meeting Exact Time & Place to be announced

Friday, February 4th Guild Functions: 7:00am - 8:00am

8:00 am - 12pm 12:00pm - 1:00pm 1:00pm 2:00pm 3:00pm 4:00pm 5:00pm 7:00pm-???

Guild Business/Committee Reports Opening address by Guild President Dan Hutton Welcome Comments from Vice President Mike Mulkins Treasurers Report from Steve Hofer Secretary’s reading of the minutes from Rick Cutaia Guest Speaker - Dr. Jody Janati Lunch TBA Vendor Presentation Vendor Presentation Vendor Presentation Vendor Presentation Adjourn Mopar Masters Reception John Pence Gallery Dress-Business Casual

Saturday, February 5th 7:00am - 9:00am 9:15am 10:30am 11:30am 12:15pm - 1:00pm 1:00pm

Guild Business - Open Discussion Vendor Presentation Vendor Presentation Vendor Presentation Lunch TBA Mopar

5:00pm

Adjourn (Continued on page 7)

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Evening

Open Night: Explore San Francisco

Sunday, February 6th  Super Bowl Party - Place TBA  NADA Convention being held at the San Francisco Convention & Expo Center  Convention Exposition is open from 9:00am to 3:30pm Information on Convention & Transportation will be provided when you arrive Monday, February 7th Super Performance Group Session 7:00am

Super Performance Group Meeting Opening comments from facilitator Topics to be Discussed TBA

Noon 1:00pm-5:00pm 5:00pm

Lunch - (TBA) Continuation of Super Performance Group Adjourn

Evening

Open Night: Explore San Francisco

Tuesday, February 8th Super Performance Group Session 7:00am

Continuation of Super Performance Group Meeting

Noon

Close of Super Performance Group Meeting

Have a safe trip home!

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Never Attended a Mopar Master's Guild Meeting?

The annual meeting is of great value to every MMG member.

Here are some of the benefits:

Presentations from top Mopar corporate managers These are no-bull two-way information exchanges that allow you to plan for what’s coming during the year. You will also likely get a chance to talk informally with these same top managers at the opening reception or another of the guild’s social functions.

Presentations from the guild’s supporting vendors All of the most important vendors to your dealership will have their top brass and technical gurus here to tell you what’s in the pipeline, including new products and software modifications.

Learn what the top Mopar dealership parts managers are doing You’re one of the top, too, or you wouldn’t be a member! Come and share your experience.

Input to the annual Detroit meeting with Mopar Executives Want to put your two cents in? Members assemble a list of “Detroit issues” that the guild executive committee takes to Detroit for candid discussion. Mopar execs ask us our opinion of possible new programs and explain their business positions. These discussions have resulted in many positive changes for all dealers. They also give Mopar a better understanding of our needs.

The NADA convention floor alone is worth the trip! Mopar has a big exhibit with all the right people and info. Check out all the other vendor exhibits; maybe buy some new equipment for the store!

NADA’s educational seminars are presented by the top names in all dealership areas and cover a wide variety of useful topics. You also receive a binder with notes from all sessions, including those you could not attend.

The Super Performance group held in conjunction with the Guild meeting earns you training credits and lets you hear great ideas from managers not in your area. The Dealer Composite lets you compare your numbers to those of every dealer attending. If you notice another member’s number in a certain area (GP on tire sales, stock order discount, etc.) is where you want your number to be, just make a note and ask him how he does it.

Wearables! Make room in your suitcase – you will receive stylish additions to your in-dealership wardrobe, each bearing the MMG logo.

Good food and friendship awaits. Most likely someone you already know will be attending, and, with the wide variety of activities available, it’s even more likely you will strike up a friendly relationship with someone you meet.

The guild has made it possible for all Mopar Masters to enjoy these benefits, which actually amount to a competitive advantage for your business.

What do you need to bring with you? Just a willingness to participate and share your knowledge and perspective. If you are a Mopar Master, you have something to offer the guild. Sometimes the simplest idea, the one you were even a little embarrassed to mention, is just what another member needed to hear.

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PERFORMANCE GROUP COMPOSITE At the MMG Performance Group meeting in St Louis we were exposed to the new format for the composite report.

Some major changes to the report caused some confusion and lack of meaningful discussion.

The old report was ranked by the top performers in each category so it was easy to ask those Parts Managers how they were attaining the outstanding numbers.

The new report had excluded all of our below the line profits and included the fixed expense so the net profit ranking was surprising and disturbing to a lot of us.

To prepare for the upcoming Performance Group meeting in San Francisco I had a conference call with the people compiling and ranking the report. After listening to the logic of the reports creator I had a new appreciation for how it followed the operating statement page by page, how the discounts were added in further into the report, and understood the inclusion of fixed expenses to get the actual net profit.

We decided to make two structural changes to help facilitate meaningful discussion:  The year-to-date for each category was accompanied by the current month to show a trend. This will be replaced with year-to-date current year versus year-to-date prior year.  Fixed expense will not be included in the ranking but will be itemized on a separate page. The fixed expense varies greatly from store to store and no consistent method of expense allocation is used.

I hope the new format will make this a valuable tool for all of the Performance Group meetings.

Mike Gerber Mike Gerber Parts Director Rairdon’s Dealerships MMG Performance Group Chairman

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10 Step Plan for Taking Back Lost Customers Larry Edwards, Edwards & Associates Consulting, was one of the guest speakers at the recent SEBC Service and Parts Business Conference. He gave a very informative presentation which included some of the information below. I thought he had a lot of interesting ideas for all of us to consider and I wanted to share his 10 Step Plan for taking back lost customers and keeping the customers we currently have.

Submitted by Marvin Windham - Benchmark Chrysler Jeep Dodge Larry Edwards 10 Step Plan Step 1: Extend your hours of operation. Having competitive prices, knowledgeable, friendly and caring employees are of no value if you are not open when your customer wants to do business; especially, after 5 pm and on Saturdays. The average dealership aftermarket competitor is open 70 hours each week. If you want to compete, the first step is to extend your hours of operations to at least match your competition.

If you want to beat the competition you must be open as long as or longer than they are!

Step 2: Answer the phones! A research project conduct on 800 dealerships revealed that 40% had a computer answer their phones. Over 50% of those dealerships had a "sorry that mailbox is full" message. And, 20% of the messages left with a call back number, never received a call back.

Your phones should be answered within 3-rings by a live person!

Step 3: Quote only the minimum price. When you call a dealer for a price quote on service, they generally give the "five course meal" price. When you call an aftermarket shop, they quote the basic minimum price and when they get you in their store, they "Up-Sell" the additional items you need. When a customer calls your dealership quote them the basic maintenance service price, once you get them into your service lane, then you can sell them the additional needed services.

Quote only the Manufacturers minimum service requirement prices...Up sell the rest!

Step 4: Stop selling your dealership or your chemical provider’s service maintenance packages. Start selling and quoting your manufacturers recommended maintenance packages. E&A shopped 800 dealers for a 15,000 mile maintenance price quote and the average dealer price quote was $180.00. We shopped aftermarket repair shops for the same 15,000 mile service and they all quoted us from the manufacturer's recommendations and their average price quote was $80.00. If it was your vehicle, which price would you choose, the dealers $180 or the aftermarket $80.00?

Sell Manufacturers recommended maintenance, if you want to add flushes or accelerate the maintenance, then make your employees "SELL" it, don't try and PACK it into a "dealer recommended" package.

Step 5: Stop utilizing the "Tell & Sell" selling method. Aftermarket shops quote the minimum prices over the phone, and then when they have the vehicle in their shop, they utilize the "Show and Sell" method. Statistically, (Continued on page 11)

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customers are 85% more likely to purchase an item they can see for themselves that they need; rather, than purchase an item they are told they need. As an example, it is much easier to sell a customer tires if you can show them their tires are worn.

Implement the Show and Sell Selling Method in your Service Department.

Steps 6: Require your writers to conduct a true walk around. Stop leaving it up to your writers to decide if they think it might be worth their time to conduct a walk around with the customer. Make a vehicle walk around a condition of employment...no exceptions!!!

Walk around should include inspecting; Tires, Battery test, under hood condition, Belts, Hoses, Wiper Blades, Lights, Dents and Scratches.

Steps 7: Require your technicians to conduct a thorough Multi Point Inspection using a standardized form.

Require your writers to review the inspection as part of an active service delivery process.

Step 8: Staff Service to meet demand. Most dealers are staffed to meet the demand that shows up every day. We find that staffing to meet the potential that exists in their market will increase sales exponentially.

E&A staffing guide for service is: 1 Writer for every 12 Customer Pay, Warranty, and Internal Repair orders written daily.

3 to 4 Technicians per writer.

1 Greeter / Porter for every two writers 1 Appointment coordinator for every two writers Step 9: Keep Customers informed. Customers judge the quality of work by how well your staff keeps them informed during the repair process.

E&A Service department customer contact rules: Diagnosis = Call within 90 minutes of drop off Waiters = Have greeter go into the lounge every ten minutes and ask...does anyone need me to check on their vehicle?

All Others = Call at the halfway point between drop off a scheduled (promised) finish time.

Step 10: Make Service Delivery an EVENT! No customer should be allowed to leave your service department without an appointment for their next maintenance service. We recommend that you pull the vehicle back into the lane and review the following items: Raise the hood pull the dipstick and show them the new oil Review the technicians Inspection form Establish an time for the next service appointment Collect their money...the Advisor must cashier their own repair orders For more information click on the link below: http://www.edwardsconsult.com/

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Our Supporting Vendors Support those who support you

Mopar Masters Guild Magazine

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Our Supporting Vendors Support those who support you

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Parts Returns Submitted by Paul Allred - Parts Director - Stateline CJD As an editorial statement strictly from my perspective: If we ( Mopar and the Dealers that represent the brand) want to be leaders in world class customer service, we need the ability to take back any return from a customer as long as it is new, unprogrammed and in it’s new and resalable package without penalty. This would be between the dealer and their customer as well as between Mopar and the dealer. With this ideological point of view becoming reality, we would still have the issues with packaging.

I am sure that all of you have experienced the repercussion of the enforcement of packaging quality regarding returns back to the PDC’s. I understand the reasoning behind the new focus by Chrysler but it is hard to adjust because it has not ever been enforced to the degree that is taking place today.

The biggest concern for the parts manager is protecting the dealer’s investment. We tend to freak out about non returnable parts! This new focus on packaging creates the need for the concerned dealer to inspect all inbound packaging. We have done that at our store and it has created awareness that this issue is larger than most dealers and in some degree Chrysler realizes. We also are aware we have to be more cognizant of what we ship out D2D as well. One issue uncovered as that there are many parts that won’t travel via UPS in the original package without the packaging getting damaged. Many parts need heavier construction to withstand movement of parts that have weight to them. To resolve this we and Mopar have to over pack these shipments.

It is going to take the dealer and Chrysler working together to overcome these issues with packaging.

We as the dealer have a responsibility to report back to Chrysler all of the issues and expose insufficient processes and improper packaging that contribute to the whole dilemma. I encourage all of you to report all packaging issues to Mopar. You can utilize the link on dealer connect under the “News and Information” tab under the policy and procedure section or my preference is to use the Excel document that was sent via D-mail where you can send it to mpe@chrysler.com. Utilizing this means of contact will allow you to attach photos.

We need a method of protecting our investment in good parts in damaged packaging without fear of future rejection. Currently there is not a process that addresses these good parts unless the PDC has applied a blue inspection sticker. Until we have an option that compensates us for these good parts I am going to send damaged packages back via the MRA system (6B incomplete package) with comments that state "packaging damaged".

I hope we can also convince Mopar that dealers need an option for deteriorated packaging that either we or our customers are responsible for. We need a solution to either have a flex fund to enable us to handle the issue in house or maybe a repackage effort where dealers are in a position where they don’t have to absorb the complete cost of the part.

I trust that with everyone getting involved that Mopar and all of the dealers can get this issue funneled into a manageable solution.

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The Big Get Bigger A look at how more and more of the auto physical damage market is controlled by fewer large insurers If it seems that the bigger insurers have been controlling more and more of the available repair business in recent years, it just might be because they have been.

Over the past decade, the largest insurers in the country, as a group, have been steadily growing and increasing their market share to the point that more than half of all auto physical damage insurance in the country is now handled by just five companies. The top five insurers crossed the half-way mark in the latest available figures from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC).

At the end of 2009, according to the NAIC, the top five insurers controlled 50.53 percent of the auto physical damage market, up from 49.02 the year before, and up nearly five percent from ten years ago when, in 1999, the top five insurers enjoyed 46.0 percent of the market.

Private Passenger Auto Physical Damage Sorted by 2009 Rank

But that is just the beginning of the story.

Market Share %

A similar, but more striking, result can be seen

2009

2004

1999

10 year % by widening our view from the top five insurers change

1 STATE FARM

18.42

18.63 19.50

-1.08

2 ALLSTATE INS

11.21

10.48 12.46

-1.25

3

BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY (GEICO)

to the top ten. In 1999, the ten largest insurers in the auto physical damage market controlled 57.90 percent of the business. Ten years later, that figure has now grown by more than ten percent to 67.94 percent according to NAIC figures for year-end 2009.

In 2009, it took more than 15 insurers to cover that same 68 percent of the business. In 1999, the top 16 insurers commanded 68.17 percent of the market according to the NAIC.

7.69

4.94

3.77

3.92

4 PROGRESSIVE

6.94

6.64

4.43

2.51

5 ZURICH INS

6.28

5.36

5.84

0.44

4.63

3.88

3.48

1.15 Over the same ten year period, while the two

7 NATIONWIDE CORP

4.36

4.39

4.05

0.31

8 LIBERTY MUT

4.36

2.75

2.23

9 AMERICAN FAMILY INS

2.18

2.51

2.14

6

UNITED SERV AUTOMOBILE ASSN

10 TRAVELERS

largest insurers, State Farm and Allstate, have lost some market share, they still command 2.13 nearly 30 percent of the market between the two 0.04 of them, down slightly from 31.96 percent ten years ago.

1.87

AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL 10 (AIG)

Total Share Top 5

2.61

50.54

A good deal of the grab for market share over the last decade can be attributed to GEICO and Progressive, who together accounted for 64 percent of the growth in the top ten business (equal to about $4.2 billion in annual premiums).

2.07

46.05 46.00

4.54

Total Share Top 10

67.94

59.58 57.90

10.04

Total Share Top 15

74.65

69.76 66.99

7.66

Total Share Top 25

82.56

79.28 76.59

5.97

Total Share Top 50

90.61

88.68 87.14

3.47

Source: National Association of Insurance Commissioners 2010

Looking further down the list, to the top 15, 25 and 50 largest insurers, the growth is steady, but not as dramatic. The further down the list we go, the less growth we see as a group, indicating that the majority of the growth is concentrated at the top. The market share of the top 50 insurers grew just 3 percent over the past ten years from a total of 87.14 percent in 1999 to 90.61 percent last year.

Source: www.collisionweek.com

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Tracy Industries Annual Vendor Trip Submitted by Mike Mulkins –GO CJD - MMG Vice-President

The annual Tracy Vendor meeting was held on November 9th: Representing the Mopar Master Guild was Mike Mulkins, Steve Hofer, Rick Monteiro & Guillermo Nava. Tracy Industries Senior management team included President & CEO Tim Engvall, National Sales Directors Dave Carroll and Rod Holmsten, Fernando Nunez – West BC Manager & Mike Reilly – District Sales and Operations.

Dave Carroll opened the meeting with a review of YTD sales, and shared with the guild that business was outpacing previous YTD numbers. With the increase in business, it was abundantly clear increasing market share for Mopar Remanufactured Powertrain business was the single highest priority. Dave reviewed all active initiatives in place, to help achieve further growth in the wholesale channel. With ten active initiatives & promotions in place, we dissected and reviewed the following topics:  Assisting Dealerships with business plans to target wholesale Reman Powertrain  Developing a specific prospecting lists utilizing Mopar’s Lead Management System  Enhancing existing Sales & Product Training  Teaming with dealers to make outside contacts  National Core Pickup  Create customized marketing materials for dealers to distribute  Plan, Promote and execute wholesale blitzes & open houses.  Drop Shipments  Guarantee Online order returns  Call Center Support-word tracks and product fit & function Additionally we discussed the current wholesale rebates. Now through December 31, 2010 dealers can offer wholesale customers and prospects cash back on Authentic Mopar Remanufactured Powertrain Units. $200 Cash Back on Engines & $100 Cash Back on Transmissions.

Additionally all rebates are 100% reimbursable through your Mopar One funds.

In addition to the current initiatives, Tim also reiterated the desire to improve and enhance any promotion, or process that would lead to greater growth. Areas that Tracy Industries will be looking to for immediate enhancements were the communication of the current referral system, targeted dealer training, and additional possible pilot process improvements.

The MMG remains very grateful for our relationship with Tracy Industries, and look forward to future growth, as we work together to gain market share, and cultivate an environment of selling and added expanding O.E. value.

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Outside of work!

There is nothing like sitting under an umbrella, digging your toes in the warm Carolina sand, taking in the view, smelling the salt in the air, with a cooler by your side, accompanied by the people you love to put life in its proper perspective!

Some of you are aware and have actually been to our house at the south end of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. I hosted a “Low Country Boil” (shrimp, kielbasa, corn, potatoes and spices) outing when we had a performance group in Myrtle Beach a couple of years ago.

This is my get away. We are around 3 hours away and my wife Barbara and I make treks down there as often as we can. I really enjoy the coast. I have attempted to learn the skills associated with salt water fishing with limited success. It too like just hanging out on the beach creates time of reflection and meditation. It’s therapeutic!

We began last year to rent the house some to assist in covering the expense in these current economic times. I have set up a website http://site.allredbeachhouse.com/ where you can take a look if you may interested in a vacation destination.

Paul Allred - Parts Director - Stateline CJD

Aftermarket Parts: Are they the Same?

Are they Safe? Is there a Problem?

What gives me the right to comment on any of the above issues and why would I want to bite the hand that feeds me? If there were no problems with aftermarket crash parts why would I even care?

I am in business to make money, and to stay in business I need to treat my customers fairly and honestly. Part of being in business responsibly is serving my customers by giving them good and honest value for their money. If there were no problem with these parts I would embrace them and present them to my customers as an added value. I would be an advocate, not a critic, of the aftermarket part.

Some readers have wondered why I am able to speak out as I do on the industry with boldness and confidence.

Because I know that I speak the truth and its hard to argue with that.

I am concerned with the diminished value of my customer’s vehicles and I am compelled to speak out. I have ten years of documented proof along with photos and invoices to prove that what I am saying is true. Aftermarket crash parts are NOT the same as OEM unless they are made on the same assembly line to the same exacting standards.

Recently (last week) I had a 2010 Toyota Tacoma come in for a repair. The estimate listed all A/M parts, even for the front impact bar. This customer did not even know that there was an A/M parts clause in his policy. The difference out of his pocket was $400 plus a deductible. He contacted his insurance company, but to no avail. He (Continued on page 27)

Mopar Masters Guild Magazine

November - December 2010

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(Continued from page 26)

was told, in effect, “too bad.” This is the type of policy you bought—but they will guarantee the parts specified as long as he owns his vehicle.

He asked us if the parts were the same and we had to tell the truth. We told him ‘no, they were not the same.’ If we answered any other way then we would be liable because the Toyota dealer will depreciate this 2010 Tacoma upon trade in.

I have a big problem with this deceit when I am the one expected to do the deceiving. There is a big difference between allowing a well-informed discerning customer to make this decision and one who is not informed, but the former is almost never the case.

Normally I am expected to be the one to convince my customer that these parts will make their car as good as new. The problem is that it’s just not true. It’s a problem for me when the customer is trusting me and my name and reputation is going on the repair.

Do you really think I will keep this Toyota Tacoma owner as a customer if he realizes one day that I lied to him?

What about when trade-in time comes, and he and his wife go to the dealer to pick out their new car and find out that their 2010 Tacoma can’t be traded in without a substantial loss? I wonder if he would blame his insurance policy, or care about the guarantee of these parts then, or would he just be upset with me, the guy who put the parts on his truck?

The problem with aftermarket parts is more in the deceit that must accompany them rather than with the part itself. Because NO ONE, and I mean NO ONE, would choose these over OEM parts if cost were not a factor.

The problem is that the use of these parts have far superseded proper business ethics and the manufacturers want the collision industry to become a party to what are deceitful marketing and sales tactics.

Safety is the issue, but many in the aftermarket crash part industry are bold enough to say this is all fabricated and blown out of proportion. I have been around long enough to say that collision repairs are really not investigated, so to say there is no safety issues at this point is risky foolishness not unlike marketing cigarette smoking.

People were getting cancer from cigarettes years long before anyone was able to prove smoking was responsible.

Either way, safety is not the only issue. There is substantial diminished value, and the parts are not the same, as many of our state laws require.

When will the truth about these crash parts reach the public and when will the insurers properly inform their policyholders of the facts? When will use of these parts be banned from late model vehicles? Since when did fit and finish mean nothing in a collision repair? When will the major insurers realize that using aftermarket crash parts will eventually cost them their customers? Why is the collision industry still held liable for the repair when we really don’t control the decisions in the repair process? When will we quit being the advocates of deceit and tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

Source: www.autobodynews.com Written by Lee Amaradio, Jr. Lee Amaradio, Jr. is the president and owner of “Faith” Quality Auto Body Inc. in Murrieta, California. Lee is president of the CRA as well as an advocate for many other industry groups. He can be contacted at lee@faithqualityautobody.com

Mopar Masters Guild Magazine

November - December 2010

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Financial Jump-Start How grants can help grow a business, especially for young entrepreneurs Suzy Frisch While visiting the local unemployment office after getting laid off from his logging job in Ontario, Canada, Shane DeRusha, owner of Precision Auto Body, learned about grants for entrepreneurs ages 18 to 29. He realized that the province’s Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation grant program could be the perfect vehicle to achieve his long-running goal of starting his own collision repair shop.

In addition to a $25,000 grant that would help DeRusha purchase equipment, Ontario sweetened the pot.

The government provided DeRusha with $20,000 in unemployment benefits during Precision Auto Body’s first full year in business. “That made a big difference,” he says.

Read how with its first year under its belt, Precision Auto Body has overcome bureaucratic red tape, a scarcity of financing—and 35 below zero temperatures—to develop a steady workload in a small town in "Youth Culture."

To apply for the grant, DeRusha needed to complete a business plan, put up some of his own money, and arrange for the rest of the necessary capital. The organization developed an online template for potential entrepreneurs to use when writing their business plans, while field staff throughout the region offers guidance.

DeRusha put his $25,000 grant to use on equipment, including a paint booth, heater, compressor and service jacks. The Young Entrepreneurs program pays suppliers directly for equipment, an important part of the program because vendors often avoid working with inexperienced business people, says Melanie Muncaster, acting executive director of the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation in Sault Saint Marie.

Tapping into resources for entrepreneurs can help in other, less tangible ways. For one, business owners can leverage grants with traditional lenders to gain additional funding. “Banks look more favorably on them because they have equity at their disposal. They have money that’s not repayable so their debt service is low,” notes Muncaster. “That’s a benefit to a young entrepreneur because typically they have a hard time getting access to capital for start-ups.”

This article appears in the December 2010 issue of FenderBender Did you like what you read here? Subscribe to FenderBender »

Mopar Masters Guild Magazine

November - December 2010

Page 29

Shandy I thought I’d include this heartwarming story for all of us animal lovers. This is from a coworker of my wife. I hope you all enjoy!

Don C. Below are a few pictures of our Shandy, a remarkable dog. She is 8 ½ years old and has been wholly blind since birth. We have had her for 7 years. She navigates the house and the backyard by memory.

She has some sort of spatial picture in her brain with regard to distances and direction, turns when she is supposed to turn, stops when she is supposed to stop and rarely bumps into anything.

She chases and retrieves balls by sound and smell, wrestles with the other dogs, runs up and down stairs, leaps off the back porch, gets up on ottomans and beds and has enjoyed leaping into pools (she does need some guidance finding the steps out of the pools since we don’t do that often) She loves rides in the car and finds her own way to the car (when parked in the garage) when we leave, and leaps out of the car and runs a perfect curve to the gate back into the yard when we return. She chases squirrels and birds, and on at least one occasion, a raccoon.

She’s just a completely normal dog with no eyes.

What I’m dying to know though, is what is in her head when she thinks “bird,” “chair,” “steps” or when she thinks of me or the other dogs or the yard or the car. Does she have a “picture”, and if she does, what is it composed of.

So far she’s not telling.

Thomas R. Bender Hanson Curran LLP

Mopar Masters Guild Magazine

November - December 2010

Page 30

2010 Mopar Masters Guild Committees President Vice President Treasurer Secretary

Dan Hutton Mike Mulkins Steve Hofer Rick Cutaia

Tom O’Brien Chrysler Jeep Dodge Go Chrysler Jeep West Park Chrysler Jeep Rick Hendrick Dodge

Executive Committee

All of the above and: Gerry Oakes Paul Allred Rick Monteiro Marvin Windham Alan Yancey Brent Hoge

Baxter Chrysler Jeep Dodge Stateline Chrysler Jeep Dodge Jack Powell Chrysler Jeep Dodge Benchmark Chrysler Jeep Dodge Hayes Chrylser Dodge Jeep Larry Miller Chrysler Jeep Dodge

Membership Committee

Brent Christensen (West) Doug Price (East) Robbie Jackson (South) (North)

Ken Garff West Valley CJD Security Dodge Chrysler Salsbury’s Dodge City TBA

Vendor Chairmen

Paul Allred Gerry Oakes Marvin Windham

Stateline Chrysler Jeep Dodge Baxter Chrysler Jeep Benchmark Chrysler Jeep Dodge

Newsletter Chairmen

Don Cushing Mike Mulkins

Bald Hill Dodge Chrysler Jeep Go Chrysler Jeep West

Performance Group

Mike Gerber

Rairdon’s Chrysler Jeep Dodge of Kirkland

Finance Committee

Brent Hoge Steve Hofer

Larry Miller Chrysler Jeep Dodge Park Chrysler Jeep

UPS

Rick Monteiro Paul Allred Marvin Windham

Jack Powell Chrysler Jeep Dodge Stateline Chrysler Jeep Dodge Benchmark Chrysler Jeep Dodge

ADP

Gerry Oakes Mark Skinner Dan Hutton

Baxter Chrysler Jeep Dodge Power Chrysler Jeep Dodge Tom O’Brien Chrysler Jeep Dodge

Snap-On

Dan Hutton

Tom O’Brien Chrysler Jeep Dodge

OEConnection

Brent Hoge

Larry Miller Chrysler Jeep Dodge

Dealer Tire

Steve Hofer Mike Mulkins Alan Yancey

Park Chrysler Jeep Go Chrysler Jeep West Hayes Chrysler Dodge Jeep (Dan, Brent, Steve, Mike & Alan are the Chairs for Snap-On, OEConnection and Dealer Tire)

Tracy Industries

Mike Mulkins Steve Hofer Brent Hoge Guillermo Nava

Go Chrysler Jeep West Park Chrysler Jeep Larry Miller Chrysler Jeep Dodge Buerge Chrysler Jeep

Reynolds & Reynolds

Paul Allred

Stateline Chrysler Jeep Dodge

NADA 2010 Planning

Mark Skinner

Power Chrysler Jeep Dodge

Website Chairman

Steve Hofer

Park Chrysler Jeep

THE GUILD MOTTO “THE EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION BY LIKE SIZE DEALERS IN A NON COMPETITIVE ENVIRONMENT” This is the reason the Guild exists. The strength of our existence relies not on the voices of a select few, but on the combined knowledge of all. With this in mind, everyone should remember to become as proactive as possible. The Guild is YOURS, be proud of it and be part of it!