Auto dealerships applaud service departments

 

 

While national car makers warn of tough times ahead, two local auto dealerships are thanking residents of the Santa Ynez Valley for community support.

“We are doing very well,” said Mike Sell, owner of Rio Vista Chevrolet, 390 E. Highway 246, Buellton. “Our service department had a record month in November with sales up 20 percent.” He said that auto sales always slow down at this time of year but “we are still doing very well and better than last year,” which was also a slow year for car sales, according to national economists.

 

“Our sales are similar to the national numbers,” said Jim Vreeland, Jr., owner of Jim Vreeland Ford, 340 E. Highway 246, Buellton. “We do better with trucks here than the national average, however,” he insisted. “Nearly everyone in the Valley has a truck in their driveway and the farmers and ranchers have two or three.”

He blamed the mortgage market for the slide in local sales. “When adjusted mortgage payments kick in after homeowners have been paying interest only, it makes a definite difference in income and what’s left to spend on a new car.” He said sales have been the same across the board for both imports and domestics.

 

This year has been fairly consistent, with no real ups or downs, Vreeland added. “I don’t see any changes in the market for the next couple of years. We have our slow times and we just have to be patient until the good times come back – and they always do.”

Sell said that the community has made the difference with his business. “It makes for a win-win situation, even in a tough economy,” he stated. “Domestics are doing pretty well this year, in spite of the higher gas prices. People are shopping for more economy cars, though, because they don’t see gasoline going lower.”

 

Rio Vista Chevrolet has a staff of 37, including six in sales and eight service technicians. He recently has seen an increase in service requests, which he attributes to people deciding to make their vehicles last instead of trading them in on a newer model.

 

Jim Vreeland Ford employees a staff of 32, including six in sales and nine in the service department. “Our service technicians are very talented,” Vreeland said. “By the end of the year we will have five with master certifications.” He said since Lompoc Ford closed a few weeks ago, he has seen a major increase in service traffic as residents of Lompoc come into the area seeking to have their vehicles serviced and repaired.

Vreeland said the best-selling vehicles, in addition to trucks, have been the Ford Edge, the Escape Hybrid, and the Ford Fusion. “We sell them as fast as we get them on the lot,” he explained.

Both Vreeland and Sell come from families involved for generations in the automobile industry.

 

Vreeland’s affiliation with the industry goes back five generations when the family was selling trucks in Texas and Michigan. After graduating in1987 in automotive marketing from Northwood Institute in Michigan, he began selling cars at family dealerships, finally taking over the Buellton lot when his father retired.

Sell, also a Northwood graduate in automotive marketing, is the third generation in his family to own a dealership. He grew up in the Santa Ynez Valley and looks forward to handing over the books someday to his son, Sam, who is now a partner and general sales manager with him at Rio Vista Chevrolet. Mike’s wife, Tresha, also works at the Buellton lot, which adds to the family atmosphere of the dealership, he said.

 

Sell owns a Cadillac/Saab dealership in San Luis Obispo and expects to open Rancho Grande Motors there shortly to sell Pontiac, Buick, GMC, Subaru and Hyundai models.

“We’ve had a successful business here for 17 years, and we have to give the credit to this great community and our service team,” Sell added. “It may be tough times in the car business, but we’re all determined to get through the next year together, and we believe we have the right mix of sales and products to make that happen.”