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CAWA Names New Board of Directors Member
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California Senate Advances SEMA-Sponsored ZEV Conversion Bill
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CA Governor Signs Budget Agreement with $1,050 in 'Inflation Relief'
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Tesla Reportedly Does Not Have Enough Space in Fremont Factory to Fulfill Musk’s Return-to-Office Mandate
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Lucid Motors Opens First Retail Location in Pacific Northwest in Seattle
Western News
Local news stories affecting the auto body industry in California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Hawaii, Alaska and Wyoming
Tucson Auto Repair Sponsors Food, Clothes Drive
A food and clothing drive by a Tucson auto body company is set to end June 29. Caliber Collision also is matching $1 for every item donated. Non-perishable food and clothing is being accepted at all of the firm’s four Tucson-area locations.
The drive, coordinated with the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona is similar to drives at most of the company’s 107 auto body repair centers in Arizona, Nevada, California, and Texas.
Suggested donations include non-perishable food in cans or plastic bottles, clothing and other necessities. No donation can be in glass, open containers, homemade or expired.
Caliber locations accepting donations are located at: 721 E. 12th St., 635 E. Vuelta Caminata Del Rio in Oro Valley, 2050 W. Price St. and 8120 E. Research Center.
CAA San Diego Gets a Robert Rick Refresher Course
An auto body shop is like a day care center. People want their children well taken care of, and they want their cars well taken care of.
To view a pdf file of this article with photos, click HERE.
Getting back to the basics was the focus of the San Diego Chapter of the California Autobody Association meeting on May 22 at Tom Ham’s Lighthouse Restaurant on Harbor Island in San Diego.
Presenter Robert Rick, VP of Sales and Consulting Services for Gates Business Solutions in Wisconsin and DuPont Performance Coatings Executive Facilitator for DPS Educational Series, addressed approximately 50 attendees with the topic, “How to Improve Some of Your Best Business Practices.”
“Think of a customer’s car as their baby,” Rick said. “Their cars are important to them and their second most expensive purchase.” He likens auto body shops to day care centers because “our cars are loved ones too.”
Information Shops Can Use Presented at East Bay CAA Meeting
If we’re only as good as the information we possess, people like Richard Forness are an invaluable asset to any collision repairer anywhere. As a highly-respected industry expert, national account manager for Audatex (a Solera company), Forness is a popular speaker who talks to body shops throughout the country about the current state of the industry and where it’s headed. On May 22, this 25-year veteran who ran a series of highly successful body shops in the Greater Minnesota-St. Paul area, shared his views and offered useful statistics with the 60-plus East Bay CAA members in attendance.
To view a pdf file of this article with photos, click HERE.
Farmers Insurance Involved in Two Fraud Prosecutions, Two Shop Owners Arrested and Sentenced for Fraud
The Amador County District Attorneys Office, in conjunction with the Calaveras County District Attorneys Office, obtained a “no contest” plea to a single count of insurance fraud from a body shop owner in Valley Springs, CA, as a result of their investigation.
Larry Robbins, owner of Franks Frame and Body Shop, was sentenced to 36 months felony probation, 60 hours of community service, ordered to surrender his Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR) license and pay approximately $28,000 in restitution.
Chapter Meeting Features CA Labor Enforcement Task Force
The CAA’s Glendale-Foothill Chapter held a special meeting at the Brookside Country Club, 1133 Rosemont Ave, Pasadena, CA, on June 13 to hear details about the new California Labor Enforcement Task Force (LETF). The presenters at the meeting included Mark Janatpour, Senior Deputy Labor Commissioner, Freeman Baldwin, Bureau of Automotive Repair representative, Aston Ling, Cal/OSHA Senior Safety Engineer, Nicole Zouein, Board of Equalization Compliance and Outreach Lead, and Tracey York, California Employment Development Department Joint Enforcement Agent.
Bill Restricting Access to Parts and Repair Information Advances in CA Legislature
Despite strong lobbying and grassroots opposition from CAWA and other aftermarket organizations, SB 750 passes key committee. According to CAWA, consumers and the automotive aftermarket suffered at the hands of big car companies seeking a monopoly that will keep consumers and their repair professionals from having the information they need to repair their vehicles as SB 750 authored by Senator Hernandez and sponsored by BMW passed the Assembly Transportation Committee by a vote of 8 to 5. If ultimately passed and signed into law, SB 750 will exempt automakers from providing electronic key code information to locksmiths, requiring motorists to contact the automaker to get a replacement key for their vehicle. CAWA and aftermarket industry advocates have been battling this legislation for nearly a year and have argued their concerns about motorists being inconvenienced and often stranded in dangerous situations because they were not able to obtain a replacement key from a locksmith due to automakers refusal to provide this information. In addition, CAWA argued that this bill is anti-consumer and anti-competitive, and while this resonated with many legislators, it was not enough to convince them to vote against the measure.
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CAA SD Holds 18th Annual Golf Tourney
The CAA San Diego Chapter held its 18th Annual Golf Tournament Saturday, June 2nd at Twin Oaks Golf Course in San Marcos. The event was a great success with over 100 players participating in perfect weather.
Noted Hop Sanchez (Finishmaster Inc.) and CAA San Diego Treasurer, “It was another great day with a group of fun-loving auto body industry people. Special thanks to Dee and her group from Enterprise for all their help in making this event a success.”
And the winners were:
Low Gross 1st Place: Team Toyota Carlsbad – Marty Edmonds, Rudy Romero, Michael Heller
Low Gross 2nd Place: Team I-CAR – Wayne Krause, Mark D’Angelo, Gene Lopez, Ryan Swanson
Low Gross 3rd Place: Team Milo Johnson AB / Henson & Son – Ross Johnson, Jeff Johnson, Kirk Henson, Cory Clarke
Net / Peoria 1st Place: Team I CAR – Wayne Krause, Mark D’Angelo, Gene Lopez, Ryan Swanson
Men’s Closest to the Pin: Larry Haley (Team Enterprise)
Women’s Closest to the Pin: Karen Vinkemulder (Team Drew Ford)
Men’s Longest Drive: Wayne Krause (Team I-CAR)
Women’s Longest Drive: Barbara Davies (Team Autobody News)
Consumer Watchdog Seeks to Stall Google’s Driverless Cars on California Roads
Google’s driverless cars should not be allowed on U.S. highways unless adequate privacy protections for users of the new technology are implemented, Consumer Watchdog said May 31. The nonpartisan, nonprofit group urged the California Assembly to defeat a bill, S.B. 1298, that would allow Google’s driverless cars on California’s roads unless the legislation is amended to provide adequate privacy protection for users of the technology. The bill is now under consideration by the Assembly after the California Senate passed it unanimously.
Lakeside NAPA Hosts Car Show, Customer Day
Lakeside NAPA in Tahoe hosted a car show and customer appreciation day on May 31. More than 20 classic vehicles were showcased. Locals, including Charlie Struve from Struve Automotive with his 1956 Ford T-Bird; Rick Taylor of South Y Fireplace with his 1937 Packard; Ryan Feliciano of South Side Auto Body with his 1964 Chevy Chevelle; and Bob Lopez, a local retired fireman with his 1934 Ford Pick-up and 1940 Ford Woody, all made the show a success.
“Locals serving locals” was an appropriate motto for the event. Lakeside gives any classic car enthusiast the opportunity to bring out a cruising ride for the community to admire.
“Everyone had to come together to make this happen,” said Bob Pederson, owner of Lakeside NAPA Auto Parts.
A group of corporate NAPA Auto Parts members came out to judge the Best of Show contest for all the vehicles there. This year, Gert Lehman of South Tahoe Refuse took the prize with his 1939 Chevy sedan, a shiny, two-tone, silver and burgundy car.
Mike Rose Auto Body Opens Ninth Location in Fairfield, CA
Mike Rose Auto Body based in Concord, CA, announced the opening of its ninth collision repair facility in Fairfield, CA, on June 18.
Mike Rose Auto Body’s acquisition of the new 16,000-square-foot shop, previously known as Watson’s Auto Body of Fairfield, is its second expansion effort in 2012. The company opened a facility in Lafayette, CA, in January.
“I wanted to sell the business to an organization that believed in the same principles that we at Watsons have built our reputation on, being very community-minded and putting the customer first. Mike’s Auto Body was the company of choice because they clearly embrace the same principles,” said Scott Watson, former owner of the shop.
“We’ve been looking for the right location to expand and Scott Watson has established himself over the last 30 years as a high integrity, community-based quality operator, and that fits our model perfectly. We are in a growth mode right now and diligently looking for quality repair facility’s to join the Mike’s Auto Body team,” said Brennan Rose, vice president of Mike Rose Auto Body.