First, NADA is meeting with the major associations representing the banking and financial services industries to emphasize the fundamental soundness of the existing auto-finance model and to highlight the fact that it is, therefore, in the economic interests of finance sources to continue making credit available for automotive retailing.

In addition, NADA is supporting congressional efforts to stabilize liquidity in the economy and provide government funding that would make available $25 billion in loans for the auto industry. Our message to the financial community and Congress is simple: Auto financing is sound. We just need liquidity to do our jobs.
                                                                                  —Annette Sykora, NADA chairman

In other NADA news…

• Jobs posted on NADA’s job board, Automotive Careers Online, have accrued nearly 10,000 views and as many as 250 views for a single job posting since the site was launched in March. “That’s a solid return on investment for employers registered for the site,” says John Lyboldt, NADA vice president of dealer operations. “More than 500 job seekers have registered for the site and many have applied for dealership jobs.” Automotive Careers Online is a dedicated job board exclusively for NADA members to post openings. Job posting packages start at $200 for a 30-day listing, which is a fraction of the cost of other commercial job boards and classified ads. Employers set the skills criteria for openings. E-mail alerts notify an employer of matching candidates once a resume is posted. The site is free for job candidates, who can post resumes and search for dealership careers. To sign up, visit www.AutomotiveCareersOnline.com.
  

• NADA’s immediate customer follow-up and complaint-resolution program, NADA-24, recently completed its five-millionth interview. Launched in 2005, the program provides feedback to dealers the day after a customer buys or services a vehicle, enabling quick responses to customer problems and helping to build loyalty. Customers are contacted and asked three questions to gauge their level of satisfaction. Visit www.nada-24.com for more.

• NADA has presented its Capitol Achievement Award to Gary Williams, president of the Wisconsin Automobile and Truck Dealers Association. The award, presented in conjunction with the NADA Washington Conference in September, recognizes a dealer or Automotive Trade Association Executive (ATAE) who goes above and beyond the call of duty on Capitol Hill. Williams will retire this year after more than 37 years of service.

• NADA has recognized 20 dealerships that took part in the NADA Energy Star Challenge and cut electricity or natural-gas consumption at their stores by at least 10 percent since January 2007. Three dealers received gold-level status by cutting their energy use 30 percent or more: George Haddad, Haddad Toyota, Pittsfield, Mass.; Jim Hand, Hand Motors, Manchester Center, Vt.; and John Lambert, Lambert Auto Sales, Claremont, N.H. (Hand and Lambert were also among the 13 winners of the 2008 Energy Star Small Business and Congregation Awards—announced by EPA on Sept. 16.) In addition to the gold level, NADA recognizes a silver level for dealers who cut energy 20 to 29 percent, and bronze, for those who cut energy 10 to 19 percent. For more, visit www.nada.org/energystar.

•       Silver-level dealers: Bill Currie, Bill Currie Ford Lincoln Mercury, Tampa, Fla.; Bill and Bob Weiss, Crest Chevrolet and Crest Chrysler, North Conway, N.H.; Jeffrey Wall, George Wall Lincoln Mercury, Shrewsbury, N.J.; Jim Fyles, Gil’s Jeep, Stratham, N.H.; Dennis Roberts, Hillsboro Ford, Hillsboro, N.H.; David Lynch, Lynch Chevrolet, Burlington, Wis.; and John McEleney, McEleney Auto Center, Clinton, Iowa.

•       Bronze-level dealers: Dennis J. Gaudet, AutoServ Tilton, Tilton, N.H.; Karl Wuesthoff, Concours Motors, Glendale, Wis.; Ed Reilly, Ed Reilly Subaru, Concord, N.H.; Paul Holloway, Holloway Mercedes-Benz, Greenland, N.H.; Rich and Linda Lovering, Lovering Volvo at Nashua, Nashua, N.H.; Susan McFarland Moynahan, McFarland Ford, Exeter, N.H.; Chuck Dupler, Nissan of Keene, Swanzey, N.H.; Doug and Greg Grant, State Motors, Manchester, N.H.; and Dan Enxing, Subaru of Nashua, Hudson, N.H.

• Ford Motor Co. president and CEO Alan Mulally will give the keynote address at the opening session of NADA’s convention, being held Jan. 24-27 in New Orleans . Before joining Ford in 2006, Mulally was executive vice president of the Boeing Co. and president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Other speakers include President George H.W. Bush and former NFL quarterback Archie Manning. Registration for the convention is open, and 10 hotels are already sold out. For more, visit www.nada.org/convention. 

• Both exhibitors and attendees planning to attend the 2009 NADA convention in New Orleans may receive e-mail solicitations, phone calls, direct mail or other forms of communications from vendors and contractors claiming to be endorsed or approved by NADA, which many are not. Be on the lookout for these types of solicitations. Following is a list of official NADA vendors and contractors:

•         Freeman (Service Contractor)

•         PSAV Presentation Services (Audio/Visual)

•         CCR Events (Computer Rental)

•         National Plant & Floral, Inc.

•         Experient (Lead Retrieval)

•         HMI – Holiday Models, Inc.

•         Oscar Einzig (Photography)

•         Marshall Robinson & Associates (Security)

•         Experient (Housing – Exhibitor & Attendee)

•         NADA's AutoExec Department (Advertising/Sponsorships)

Please use caution when dealing with any solicitations from companies that are not on this list. Contact NADA conventions at (703) 821-7141 if you have any questions.

• The complete audio and video content of 19 NADA Management Education virtual seminars from the past year is now available. Each seminar archive contains the original presentation from 2007 or 2008, and can be accessed for up to six months. The cost of each seminar is $99. Archived virtual seminars are available for the following topics:

•         Variable operations

•         Fixed operations

•         F&I

•         Legal issues

•         Business management

•         Trucks

For a complete list of archived seminars or to place an order, visit www.nada.org/seminars, or call 800.252.6232, Ext. 2.

• NADA Used Car Guide has introduced two additional trade-in value categories to help businesses better define used-vehicle pricing for a broader spectrum of vehicles.  Beginning this month, new “Rough Trade-In” and “Average Trade-In” values are included in all guide electronic products, and will be part of the printed guidebook this month as a complement to the existing “Clean Trade-In,” “Clean Loan” and “Clean Retail” values. The majority of vehicles in the wholesale market—about 50 percent—are considered “average” in condition, according to NADA market data. Vehicles in the “clean” category represent about 15 percent of the market, while those in the “rough” category—typically considerably damaged but not “salvage” vehicles—are about 20 percent. The remaining vehicles fall into the “extra clean” or “salvage” category.

For more on the guide’s vehicle value categories, as well as its full lineup of electronic and print products and services, visit www.nada.com/b2b.

• NADA Insurance announces that its hole-in-one insurance program, ACECO, will host a charitable golf tournament in conjunction with the 2009 NADA Convention in New Orleans , set for Jan. 24 to 27. The inaugural “Dealers for Charity Golf Tournament” is slated for Friday, Jan. 23, at TPC Louisiana, the only PGA TOUR golf course in the state. The challenging 7,300-yard, par-72, Pete Dye-designed course is set among bayous and old-growth cypress trees. Built in 2004, it is home to the prestigious PGA TOUR Zurich Classic of New Orleans. All proceeds from the tournament will benefit the Brees Dream Foundation, a charitable organization founded by New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees and his wife Brittany. If you’re interested in a sponsorship, contact tournament director Alicia Rodriguez at 888.828.8540 for details. The tournament is open to NADA members only. Fees for the 144-person tournament are $300 per person or $1,200 per foursome. Register online at www.ACECOinsurance.com.

In regulatory news…

•       NADA has finalized two new publications aimed at helping dealers comply with several new federal legal requirements. All members will receive a free printed copy of A Dealer Guide to the FTC Affiliate Marketing Rule (L51) and Electronic Disclosure Rules for Dealership Online Commerce (L52) via mail. However, because the Oct. 1 compliance deadline for each of these new rules is approaching, NADA Management Education is making these two publications available immediately, in PDF form, free to members upon request. Send an e-mail to Management Education at me@nada.org with your request and member identification number.
  
    

• Individuals and organizations with 25 or more trucks, tractors or other heavy vehicles used on highways are required to make their excise tax filings with the Internal Revenue Service electronically, rather than by paper. Form 2290, Heavy Highway Vehicle Use Tax Return, is used to report and pay highway-use excise taxes. E-filing of Form 2290 began in August 2007. Electronic filing streamlines the processing of Form 2290. It is safer and more reliable than paper filing and reduces preparation and processing errors. Another advantage of e-filing Form 2290 is that taxpayers don’t have to wait for a stamped version of the Schedule 1, Schedule of Heavy Highway Vehicles, to be returned by mail. They will almost instantly receive the equivalent of a stamped version electronically. For additional information, contact NADA/ATD Regulatory Affairs at regulatory@nada.org. To view the entire press release, visit www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=185565,00.html.