The No. 1 public auto retailer continued its flurry of buy-sell moves with the sale of a Stellantis store, a growing dealership group added its fourth Volkswagen store and another bustling group added three dealerships — all in fourth-quarter transactions.
Here’s a look at the deals involving domestic and import brands and dealerships in Oregon, Pennsylvania and Texas. Each transaction involved an auto retailer on Automotive News’ top dealership groups list.
Top public auto retailer Lithia Motors Inc. divested a Stellantis store in Portland, Ore., in the group’s first buy-sell transaction of the fourth quarter.
Time Auto Group on Nov. 17 purchased Driveway Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram of Portland, Lithia spokesperson Michelle Watson-Schwartz confirmed in an email.
The dealership generated about $80 million in revenue and retailed about 1,700 new and used cars a year, according to Brian Evans, a principal with Ozog Consulting Group of Scottsdale, Ariz. Evans represented Lithia in the sale.
Time Auto CEO Daniel Crainic told Automotive News the store’s location added to its appeal. “We were definitely looking for the right acquisition and this one happened to be in our backyard,” he said.
Time Auto, of Portland, renamed the store Time Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram of Portland.
The group’s last acquisition was the former Gresham Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram, which it purchased from Boyland Auto Group CEO Dorian Boyland and partner Daniel Kaiser in August 2022. That marked Time Auto’s first Stellantis store.
Time Auto owns seven franchised dealerships and one used-car store — all in Oregon. Crainic said the group is looking to grow and would consider dealerships outside the state. He said he loves working the transactions and learning more about different groups over the months it takes to complete a deal.
“Buying a dealership from somebody becomes pretty intimate,” Crainic said.
November’s transaction marks at least the 10th move in the buy-sell space in the U.S. for Lithia this year, which included a 14-store acquisition this summer. The company in June purchased from Dennis Ellmer the majority of Virginia’s Priority Auto Group, an acquisition expected to add $1.2 billion in annual revenue, Lithia said at the time.
In August, Lithia exited North Dakota with the sale of two dealerships and on Sept. 11, it divested a Honda store in Montana. The group also sold to two big-name buyers this year — #1 Cochran Automotive and John Elway Dealerships.
Lithia, of Medford, Ore., ranks No. 1 on Automotive News’ list of the top 150 dealership groups based in the U.S., retailing 271,596 new vehicles in 2022. Lithia’s sales figures include dealerships outside of the U.S.
Bustling Ciocca Dealerships added a fourth Volkswagen store to its portfolio with the group’s latest acquisition.
Ciocca Dealerships on Nov. 14 purchased Fairfield Volkswagen in Montoursville, Pa., from Fairfield Auto Group.
CEO Gregg Ciocca said Fairfield Auto, owned by Bill Manos, will retain its building and Ford dealership there. Fairfield Auto, of Lewisburg, Pa., owns three other stores in the state, according to its website.
Ciocca Dealerships is relocating the Volkswagen store to nearby Muncy, Pa. It was renamed Ciocca Volkswagen of Williamsport.
Volkswagen made a “good, strategic partner with us and they were very helpful in putting the deal together,” Ciocca said.
About five years ago, Fairfield Auto sold stores retailing BMW, Toyota, Hyundai and Honda to Ciocca Dealerships, all on the same campus where Volkswagen and its new building will go, Ciocca said. The new store will be located next to the BMW dealership.
“We have plenty of land up there and it was an opportunity to build a new Volkswagen store,” Ciocca told Automotive News.
For now, Volkswagen is operating out of a temporary facility on the property. The group also just celebrated a grand opening for a newly built Hyundai store on the campus, Ciocca said.
The transaction followed an October announcement that Ciocca Dealerships would buy Apple Automotive from Stewart Cos., of York, Pa. That deal, expected to close Feb. 15, includes 10 franchised dealerships in southern Pennsylvania near the Maryland border.
Ciocca, a 2022 Automotive News All-Star recognized for his dealership consolidation prowess, last year said he wanted to reach 50 stores within five years. Once the Apple Automotive deal closes, the group will exceed 50 stores. Ciocca expects its dealerships to employ about 3,000 people and earn $3 billion in annual sales.
In May, the group also purchased Forrer Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram in Duncannon, Pa.
Ciocca Dealerships, of Allentown, Pa., ranks No. 51 on Automotive News’ list of the top 150 dealership groups based in the U.S., retailing 15,247 new vehicles in 2022.
Gilchrist Automotive, of Hudson Oaks, Texas, outside of Fort Worth, added stores north of the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area with the purchase of three dealerships from Tom Durant and Eric Bryant.
Gilchrist Automotive on Oct. 30 bought Classic Toyota of Texoma, Classic Honda of Texoma and Classic Nissan of Texoma, all in Denison, Texas. Denison is near Lake Texoma, which forms part of the Texas and Oklahoma border.
The three dealerships were renamed Platinum Toyota of Texoma, Platinum Honda of Texoma and Platinum Nissan of Texoma.
This transaction gives Gilchrist Automotive its second dealerships each for Toyota, Honda and Nissan, said Stephen Gilchrist, dealer operator for Gilchrist Automotive.
Stephen Gilchrist said in a phone interview that he is the dealer principal and co-owner with other family members for the three new dealerships. His father is Charlie Gilchrist, dealer principal for the group and the 2019 chairman of the National Automobile Dealers Association.
The group is returning to the Texoma area. It sold a Buick-GMC store in Sherman, Texas, in 2022.
This year, Gilchrist Automotive also bought Buick-GMC, Honda and Mazda dealerships in Lawton, Okla., and a Ford store in Pilot Point, Texas. Durant this year also bought a Buick-GMC dealership in Houston.
Gilchrist Automotive ranks No. 99 on Automotive News‘ list of the top 150 dealership groups based in the U.S., with sales of 8,922 new vehicles in 2022.