“Advance Auto Parts: Pull-back creates Buy opportunity - Bloggingstocks.com” plus 4 more

Advance Auto Parts: Pull-back creates Buy opportunity - Bloggingstocks.com
Obama tells autoworkers his policies help them - Charleston Daily Mail
Long-time Le Mars auto and sales dealership changes hands - Le Mars Daily Sentinel
Auto Body Shop Denver - Prestige Imports Announces Cold Weather Auto ... - PR Inside
Right to Repair bill: Good for consumers or unnecessary? - Patriot Ledger

Advance Auto Parts: Pull-back creates Buy opportunity - Bloggingstocks.com

Posted: 18 Sep 2009 01:52 PM PDT

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE: AAP) has pulled-back about $4 since first recommended on May 19, 2009 at a price of $43.38, but view that as a Buy opportunity.

That's because an argument can be made that auto repair represents one of the best sectors over the next one-two years. Here's why:

The increase in the average U.S. vehicle age, less-than-ideal new conditions for new car purchases, and a recession that's created the era of the 'frugal consumer' all bode well for AAP, for an obvious reason: more Americans will have to keep that used car in-shape because a new one is not their future.

Technically, AAP has dropped below its 50-day moving average, and if that persists it would be a concern; but as of now, it signals a better price to scoop up shares. The First Call FY2009/FY2010 EPS estimates for AAP are $3.05 to $3.44.

Stock Analysis: Advance Auto Parts is a moderate-risk stock. If you've already purchased the company's shares, hold them. If not, consider buying a 50% position in APP now; then buy another 25% in three months, if U.S. economic conditions don't worsen substantially. Under any circumstance, don't buy more than 75% of your AAP position before December 2009. Sell/Stop Loss if you were to buy shares in this company: $22.

Disclosure: Lazzaro has no positions in stocks, but does own shares in two Pimco Bond Funds: PHDAX and PYMAX.

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Obama tells autoworkers his policies help them - Charleston Daily Mail

Posted: 18 Sep 2009 09:28 AM PDT

LORDSTOWN, Ohio (AP) - President Barack Obama, claiming credit for an uptick on his watch, told autoworkers Tuesday that the economy is on its way back from the brink because of his policies.

Pledging to stand firm with autoworkers in northeast Ohio, Obama told factory workers in this town outside Youngstown that his administration had no choice but to intervene and prevent the collapse of automakers. He told General Motors employees that their company has retooled itself and is heading back to a solid business, in part, because of its work force.

"Your survival and the success of our economy depended on making sure that we got the U.S. auto industry back on its feet," Obama said, standing near a production line where compact Chevrolet Cobalts are produced.

He said those small cars were among the most popular under his temporary Cash for Clunkers program that offered drivers up to $4,500 to buy more fuel-efficient automobiles. General Motors has increased production of the compact auto and rehired laid-off workers to restore a second shift here.

"Because of the steps we have taken, this plant is about to shift into high gear," Obama said. "A hundred and 50 of your co-workers came back to work yesterday. More than a thousand will be coming back to work in less than three weeks as the production of the Cobalt ramps up."

But in the former steel valley, Obama acknowledged that recovery would not be simple or swift.

"Over the years, we've seen factories close. You've seen friends, neighbors and relatives laid off.," Obama said. "Your daughters and sons have had to move away in search of jobs and opportunity. I know it was painful around here earlier this year when three shifts at this plant were cut down to one."

But he said the nation cannot allow towns like this one - a major employer in a region that has seen steel furnaces go cold as globalization moved jobs abroad - to crack under the economic pressure.

"There are some who see this pain and suggest that somehow it's inevitable, that the only way for America to get ahead is for communities like yours to be left behind," Obama said. "But I know better. We know better. We know that our success as a nation depends on the success of communities just like this one."

He also played to a populist theme, key to this hard-hit part of America.

"As long as you've still got an ounce of fight left in you, I'll got a ton of fight left in me," Obama said. "I've said it before: I'm skinny, but I'm tough."

The president planned to spend his Tuesday before friendly groups of autoworkers and union members, trying to assure blue-collar audiences that the economy is coming back - and that his administration deserves credit for saving some of their jobs.

Later, the president addresses the AFL-CIO convention in Pittsburgh, where he will urge the nation's largest labor federation to support his health care overhaul. Obama planned to tell AFL-CIO members how his health care proposals would help repair an economy that is inching toward double-digit unemployment.

The events are designed to be heavy on working-class appeal in hopes of boosting the White House's credentials with the middle-class voters so crucial to the president's economic agenda.

Obama wraps up his daylong trip at a fundraiser for Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter in Philadelphia. He is expected to tell donors that Specter, who earlier this year switched from the GOP to the Democratic Party, is crucial for pushing the White House agenda through.

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Long-time Le Mars auto and sales dealership changes hands - Le Mars Daily Sentinel

Posted: 18 Sep 2009 09:13 AM PDT

Lynn Nuebel, owner of Nuebel Chevrolet, announced this week that he sold his 26-year-old auto sales and service business to a trio of local men.

Brent Brownmiller, Todd Brownmiller and Scott Taylor purchased the property to open their new venture: Total Sales and Service.

"We will have auto service, a full-line body shop and collision repair," Brent Brownmiller said. "We'll also have pre-owned auto sales."

Eleven people will be employed at Total Sales and Service, he said.

"We're opening immediately," he said.

Nuebel closed his business Tuesday.

"It's been enjoyable meeting all the people who have come through the door," Nuebel said, thanking the customers and employees that made Nuebel Chevrolet the business it was.

"We averaged 25 employees," he said. "And we had longevity with our employees. Some were there 20-30 years."

New part-owner Brent Brownmiller currently owns and operates Total Truck Care with two shops in Le Mars and co-owns Blue Diamond Truck and Tank Wash, which opened July 1.

Todd Brownmiller is co-owner of Brownmiller Leasing and Transportation (BLT) Trucking in Le Mars.

Scott Taylor, who worked 13 years at Nuebel Chevrolet, has been working in Brent Brownmiller's shop since February.

"We're looking forward to serving Le Mars and building a good relationship with the town and the people," Brent Brownmiller said.

The dealership itself has deep roots in le Mars.

First opened in 1913 by Ben Nicholson, it was the first dealer in the United States to hold a franchise for the sale of Chevrolet, according to research by local historian Betty Winterringer.

In 1945, the dealership was taken over by M. H. Harner. Then in 1963 Dwayne Grotewold took ownership. In 1969, Chuck Wood had the dealership, and it changed hands again in around 1976, with Dick Morris taking ownership, Winterringer found. Morris was the last to run the dealership before Nuebel took it over in 1984.

The success of his 26 years was simple, Nuebel said.

"We did it by treating people right," he said.

Then this year, Nuebel Chevrolet was one of 1,100 dealerships across the U.S. which GM announced in May it was severing ties with during the automaker's bankruptcy dealings.

Nuebel continued operating as pre-owned auto sales and service shop until the sale was announced this week.

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Auto Body Shop Denver - Prestige Imports Announces Cold Weather Auto ... - PR Inside

Posted: 18 Sep 2009 08:16 AM PDT

2009-09-18 17:15:22 - Established Denver auto body shop releases list of cold weather auto preparation items as a service to Denver, Colorado area motorists.

Denver, Colorado, September 17, 2009 - Prestige Imports Collision Repair Center today released a public service announcement intended to inform Denver, Colorado area drivers on ways to prepare their vehicles for cold weather driving. Now while approaching the first days of autumn there's sufficient time to plan for cold weather maintenance items. Longstanding Denver, Colorado area Prestige Imports Collision Repair

Center has provided attentive customer service to its loyal customer base from its Lakewood location dating back from the 1970s.

Change in outdoor temperature can significantly impact your automobile's systems. The combination of freezing temperatures, chemical additives to road treatments, as well as winter precipitation itself can collectively impact your vehicle. Among winter specific maintenance recommendations are:

Check Your Antifreeze
This may be among the most obvious cold weather maintenance items but checking the antifreeze merits special emphasis. Follow your car manufacturer's instructions to ensure this item receives proper attention. A complete radiator flush is called for periodically. Check your vehicle's owners manual for and follow maintenance procedures to the letter.

Tire Inspection
The marginally acceptable tires that brought your vehicle through the summer and early fall may be woefully inadequate when the first snow arrives. The National Highway Transportation Safety Board recommends at least 2/32" of depth to be safe. Even that standard may be too lenient in winter. In addition to wear check for proper inflation which can be affected by outside temperature.

Windshield Wipers
Falling precipitation as well as splashback from wet road conditions can combine to impair visibility in cold weather months. Wiper blades don't last forever. Most experts say wiper blades should be replaced every six to twelve months for optimum performance and driving visibility. If your vehicle's wiper blades are cracked, split, torn, brittle, worn or function poorly for any reason then replace them.

Windshield Washer Fluid
Driving even a short distance between an 18-wheeler in splashback conditions can require lots of washer fluid. Check the fluid reservoir regularly and only use washer fluid since it's formulated not to freeze.

The Prestige Imports Collision Repair Center is open Monday through Saturday. Additional information about services is available at the company's website at www.denver-auto-body.com.

About Prestige Imports Collision Repair Center
Prestige Imports Collision Repair Center is a long-established collision repair center located in Lakewood, Colorado. The facility provides expert auto body services for all makes and models of vehicles. Prestige Imports Collision Repair Center specializes in providing auto body services for Audi, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Acura and Honda automobiles. The company is the only Audi and Volkswagen certified "all car" and aluminum structural repair facility in the region.

Contact
Name: Jim Frost
Email: jimfrost@prestigeimports.net
Phone: (303) 238-7391

Prestige Imports Collision Repair Center
1590 Dover Street
Lakewood, CO 80215

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Right to Repair bill: Good for consumers or unnecessary? - Patriot Ledger

Posted: 18 Sep 2009 07:40 AM PDT

Who has the right to turn off that "check engine" light on your car's dashboard?

That is the question raised by Rep. Garrett Bradley's "right to repair" bill that would require auto manufacturers to share information with repair shops about computer-based systems and computer codes needed to repair cars and turn off system warnings.

Supporters of the bill – many of them owners of independent auto repair shops – say it would stop them from losing repair jobs to dealerships that do get that information and would give consumers more choice.

Critics, however, call it an unnecessary move to legislate an issue that should be sorted out between dealers and repair garages.

Bradley, a Hingham Democrat, said some of the 3,000 independent auto mechanics in the state have told him, "We can fix your car, but we can't make the light go off on your dashboard."

"It's not fair," he said.

For Bradley, the issue is about unfair competition, pitting independent auto repair shop owners against the dealerships, which he said are 34 percent more expensive than the independents.

"It is un-American not to have competition," he said.

Some local shop owners agree. Glenn Wilder, owner of Wilder Bros. American Car Care Center in Scituate, said the bill boils down to consumer choice.

"People should be able to bring their car wherever they're used to having it serviced, and if the facility has trained their staff properly, with the right equipment, they should be able to have the car repaired there," he said.

Wilder said customers "by the hundreds" have been filling out comment cards, provided by the shop, in support of the bill.

But Harold Lummin, the owner of Hap's Auto Service in Brockton, believes the bill may be unnecessary, because ongoing negotiations with dealers have increased access.

"We're happy with the way things are going," said Lummin, who has owned the shop for 30 years. "We can fairly well service most vehicles on the road."

Charles Territo, spokesman for the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, spoke out against the bill at a State House hearing this week.

"This is nothing more than a solution in search of a problem," Territo said in an interview. "If independent repair shops are willing to make the investment in the tools and the training, then they have the ability to make the same repairs as franchise dealers."

Territo also said the legislation, if passed, would provide parts-makers with the information needed to remanufacture parts.

Ken Rodrigues, parts and service manager at Braintree's Tufankjian Toyota, said although independent garages are afraid of losing revenue, "the manufacturer is responsible for that computer, and they don't want other people going in and hurting it."

"Does it affect the small repair shops? Absolutely, but not because dealers are the bad guys, but because dealers as representatives of the manufacturers are responsible for taking care of these things," he added.

Sen. Robert Hedlund, R-Weymouth, who once owned an independent truck repair shop, said he "can understand both positions," though he is leaning in favor of the bill.

"The deciding factor is to go with a bill and a position that will be most pro-consumer," he said.