Top Chains Bask in Sunbelt

The top eight megadealers in the U.S. have clustered their stores in six Sunbelt states, following the nation's population growth and avoiding the North's seasonal weather problems.

A Ward's Dealer Business survey shows that 495 dealerships owned by those eight top-volume dealership groups, or 51 % of the total of 957, are located in California (155), Texas (129), Florida (73), Georgia (51), North Carolina (46) and Arizona (41).

The concentration on warm climates for dealership growth has left 13 states, mostly in the Upper Midwest and Northeast, without any stores owned by the six publicly owned megas and two privately owned stores ranked in the upper bracket, Van Tuyl, Inc. and Hendrick Automotive Group.

In building their networks, four of the top-ranked megadealers amassed their largest holdings in their home states: AutoNation, headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, has 47 stores in Florida; Group 1 Automotive, based in Houston, has 33 stores in Texas; Lithia Motor, headquarters in Medford, has 16 stores in Oregon; and Hendrick, of Charlotte, has 25 stores in North Carolina.

California and Texas are the only states where all eight top megadealers are represented. No. 1 AutoNation has amassed 59 dealerships in California, more than AutoNation owns in Florida, and 14 more than Sonic Automotive has there. The top-volume national dealership chain also has acquired 30 stores in Texas. That puts 136 of its 287 stores in three of the most populous states.

UnitedAuto Group and Sonic are the most diversified of the eight in number of states where stores are located. UAG operates in 20 states plus Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom and Brazil; its largest state holding being 18 in Arizona. Sonic, operating in 15 states, has gone cross-country for its largest state collection of 45 in California, followed by 21 in Texas and only six in its home state of North Carolina with headquarters also in Charlotte.

Other “Big 8” highlights:

Where Top 8 Megadealers Play in the U.S.A.