MEET KORTINA CHANDLER, SERVICE MANAGER, PARK PLACE ACURA

Kortina started at Park Place in 2007 working in Organizational Excellence and has since moved from Service Coordinator to Assistant Service Manager and now Service Manager at Park Place Acura.

“Technology has come a long way in speeding up our check-in process, more history on our clients’ vehicles, etc., which allows us to spend more time with our clients. I’ve attended management training and learned so much to share with my team. It’s all about giving our clients a better service experience.”

Originally from Oklahoma City, Kortina moved to Dallas in 1997 for a “bigger city and better life.” She’s married with a 30-year-old daughter and three grandchildren. After work, she loves going home, spending time with her husband and watching her “shows.”

Don’t be surprised if you catch her crying while watching the news, commercials, or movies. “I’m super sensitive and cry very easily,” she confided.

Her advice to other Park Place Members: “Make sure you are the Park Place Experience. We take great care of our clients who trust us with their vehicle. No matter whose client it is, it’s all of our client!”

Bottom line: “I’m very passionate about work and providing a great guest experience. I also want to save the whole world!”

Park Place Dealerships was founded in 1987 and has been engaged in the community through its support of the arts, medical research, children’s advocacy, and education. Park Place employs more than 1,400 members and operates nine full-service dealerships representing luxury brands including Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Volvo, Jaguar, Land Rover, Acura, and Sprinter Vans. Park Place BodyWerks Collision Centers in Fort Worth, Dallas, and Plano and the Park Place Auto Auction, round out the company’s offerings. Park Place was acquired in 2020 by Asbury Automotive Group, Inc., a Fortune 500 company headquartered in Duluth, GA. For more information, visit parkplace.com.

Porsche Dallas Techs Are Solid Gold

Park Place Porsche Dallas Technicians Tony Araguz and Jade Dugurechaff recently earned the prestigious Certified Porsche Technician – Gold  (CPT Gold) designation! They join six other Gold techs at Porsche Dallas and approximately 575 Gold techs in the U.S., with less than 2,000 worldwide.

‘We are extremely proud of Tony and Jade for their commitment to this lengthy process and accomplishing their goal,” said Patrick Huston, Porsche Dallas General Manager. “Our clients will be the beneficiary of their hard work and we will continue to support each team member in their journey to hone their skills and truly be an expert in the industry.”

A Porsche Gold Technician must have a minimum of one year experience before they are eligible to take the Gold test. The candidate must work their way up from Bronze to Silver, then Gold level. It takes an average of six years to obtain all the required training courses. Testing is broken up into two parts: they must first pass a written assessment in order to be eligible to take the hands-on portion, which includes diagnosing and documenting repairs on a bugged car.

The Gold test was conducted at Porsche Training HQ in Atlanta. It is a pass or fail test. The same test is conducted worldwide. After achieving the Gold standard, the technician has to maintain certification quarterly and attend at least 40 hours of hands-on training at the Porsche facility in Atlanta every year.

“I had never so much as changed a car’s oil before becoming a tech at a Honda dealership when I was 23 years old,” said Tony Araguz. “I spent 10 years at Honda and have been a tech at Porsche Dallas since 2017. I was absolutely in awe when I started at Park Place! It’s a great shop and everyone was so helpful. It’s really a team effort!” 

Porsche Dallas is located at 6107 Lemmon Avenue, near Love Field. 

Park Place Dealerships employs more than 1,400 members and operates nine full-service dealerships representing luxury brands including Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Volvo, Acura, and Land Rover. Park Place BodyWerks Collision Centers in Fort Worth and Dallas, and the Park Place Auto Auction, round out the company’s offerings. Park Place was acquired in 2020 by Asbury Automotive Group, Inc., a Fortune 500 company headquartered in Duluth, GA.

Lexus Grapevine Members Spring into Action

Last summer, Micah Owens was working for another automotive company when he saw his client pull out from their service drive onto the Highway 114 service road. Suddenly, the client’s trunk flew open and papers started flying out and scattered across the road.

“Someone on the drive forgot to close her trunk. She had thousands of important documents sitting loosely in the trunk. I jumped into action to help my client. No one from my dealership came out to help. But I noticed people coming from Lexus Grapevine on foot and in golf carts, picking up pieces of paper to help. It was true compassion.”

“I knew in that moment I wanted to be a part of the team that never leaves anyone behind and is always willing to help. It reminded me of what I loved about being in the U.S. Navy: compassion, fortitude, and always helping your teammates out. That is the Park Place standard of care…for clients and each other.”

In November 2023, Micah joined Land Rover DFW as a loan car coordinator. “My first impression of Park Place was that they do things right. They don’t make things robotic. They make it personal.”

Micah says the biggest challenge since joining Park Place is learning new systems and how to streamline the process in the loan car department.  “It’s also the biggest opportunity to make things seamless for the benefit of our clients.”

“I can confidently say I have found a place where I want to be for a long time and work my way up. I’m very excited for the opportunities Park Place and Asbury have offered me. I’m excited to learn and grow with all the tools they provide. I truly have a wonderful, amazing, talented support team!”

Founded in 1987, Park Place Dealerships has been engaged in the community through its support of the arts, medical research, children’s advocacy, and education. Park Place employs more than 1,400 members and operates nine full-service dealerships representing luxury brands including Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Volvo, Land Rover, Acura, and Sprinter Vans. Park Place BodyWerks Collision Centers in Fort Worth, Dallas, and Plano and the Park Place Auto Auction, round out the company’s offerings. Park Place was acquired in 2020 by Asbury Automotive Group, Inc., a Fortune 500 company headquartered in Duluth, GA. For more information, visit parkplace.com.

Paul Quinn College Receives $20,000 HBCU Change Donation

Park Place Dealerships recently visited Paul Quinn College in Dallas to present a $20,000 check from the “Round Up Change for HBCU Change” program.

“I’d like for every student that graduates from Paul Quinn College to believe they are capable of more now than when they started,” said Paul Quinn President Michael Sorrell. “I’d like for them to believe in the inevitability of their own success.”

From May 2021 – August 2023, Asbury Automotive Group (ABG) dealerships across the U.S. raised more than $800,000 for the HBCU Change program through guests’ donations and the company’s matching donations.

“Through our interactions every day, we’ve had the opportunity to educate our North Texas community about what HBCU does and how it can impact them,” said Tony Carimi. “We both strive to make an impact in our own backyard…to provide not just a higher level of service, but a higher level of connection.”

This was the third presentation to a HBCU in the past 12 months. Asbury Automotive executives David Hult, Wendy Reynold-Dobbs and Sid Barron presented a $100,000 check to Clark Atlanta University in October 2022. Malcolm Gage and Plaza Motors St. Louis presented $20,000 checks to both Lincoln University and Harris Stowe State University last month. HBCU Change has a goal of raising $1 billion for Historic Black Colleges & Universities over the next 5 years working with partners like Asbury.

Founded in 1987, Park Place Dealerships has been engaged in the community through its support of the arts, medical research, children’s advocacy, and education. Park Place employs more than 1,400 members and operates nine full-service dealerships representing luxury brands including Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Volvo, Land Rover, Acura, and Sprinter Vans. Park Place BodyWerks Collision Centers in Fort Worth, Dallas, and Plano and the Park Place Auto Auction, round out the company’s offerings. Park Place was acquired in 2020 by Asbury Automotive Group, Inc., a Fortune 500 company headquartered in Duluth, GA. For more information, visit parkplace.com.

Land Rover DFW Tech Goes the Extra Mile to Help Couple in Distress

Paul Vandenberg, Team Lead/Technician at Land Rover DFW, was in his Park Place uniform a few weeks ago when he stopped at a grocery store on his way home from work. He noticed an elderly couple sitting in their car. When he came out of the store, they were still there, and he noticed they had a flat tire. Paul tapped on the window and asked if they needed help.

What Vandenberg didn’t know was the Graffs had called Roadside Assistance and had been waiting three hours for help.

“It took me five minutes to pull the flat off,” said Vandenberg. “Their spare was also low, so I ran it up to a station and aired it up. They offered me money, but I said, ‘I can’t take any money from you, sir.’ They couldn’t change the tire themselves. It didn’t cost me anything to help.”

Since Vandenberg was in uniform, Mr. Graff called the dealership the next day and talked to Land Rover Service Director Jordan Welch. “We preach and preach that we must represent Park Place at work and outside of work,” said Welch. “Mr. Graff took the time to tell me all about their experience. To Paul it was easy. A simple tire change. To Mr. Graff, it meant the world. He was crying as he shared his story with me. You never know what your actions mean to others!”

It’s worth noting the Graffs are not Park Place clients. They simply needed help. And Vandenberg didn’t hesitate to help.

“I know I represent the company any time I’m in uniform,” concluded Vandenberg.

About Park Place Dealerships

Park Place Dealerships was founded in 1987 and has been engaged in the community through its support of the arts, medical research, children’s advocacy, and education. Park Place employs more than 1,400 members and operates nine full-service dealerships representing luxury brands including Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Volvo, Land Rover, Acura, and Sprinter Vans. Park Place BodyWerks Collision Centers in Fort Worth, Dallas, and Plano and the Park Place Auto Auction, round out the company’s offerings. Park Place was acquired in 2020 by Asbury Automotive Group, Inc., a Fortune 500 company headquartered in Duluth, GA. For more information, visit parkplace.com.

Park Place Extends Pick-Up and Delivery Services to all Locations

‘Pick-up and Delivery’ will temporarily be offered at all Park Place Dealership locations for clients who continue to have service and detail needs. 

Park Place Dealerships recognizes that COVID-19 is affecting our clients’ day-to-day lives and we are here to continue to assist by offering pick-up and delivery for all your service needs. We want to make this difficult time as seamless as possible for you and your vehicle, while also ensuring you and our members assisting feel safe.

Click Here to Schedule Service

Park Place is taking extreme safety measures when it comes to sanitation for the health of our clients and members. You can expect the following precautions to be taken with every pick-up and delivery appointment for your vehicle and your loaner vehicle:

    • Member must wear latex gloves
    • Member will spray a liberal amount of dis-infecting cleaner into a micro-fiber rag
    • They will wipe the driver’s door handle thoroughly and then open driver’s door and wipe down interior door handle, switches, and armrest
    • Additional disinfecting cleaner will be sprayed into a micro-fiber rag and wipe down the steering wheel, center console climate control, console screens, switches, center console lid, and gear-shift selector
    • Our member will exit the vehicle and spray additional disinfecting cleaner into a micro-fiber rag and wipe down the driver’s side rear door exterior handle, interior handle, switches, and armrest.
    • FOR SUVS: Members will also wipe down the rear tailgate exterior release handle
    • They will wipe down passenger’s side rear door exterior handle, interior handle, switches, and armrest
    • and finally, they will wipe down the passenger’s side front door exterior handle, interior handle, switches, and armrest.

Once the sanitization process is complete, the member will mark the driver’s front window with a checkmark, and keys will be sanitized prior to handing them over to our clients.

Check out this service delivery from our team at Motorcars Dallas to see what these new pre-cautions look like:

Disclaimer for clients scheduling an appointment:  

Prior to a service appointment being scheduled, our service coordinators will ask the client the following questions to ensure the safety and health of everyone involved:

  1. Have you recently traveled outside of the United States or to a hot-zone state?
  2. Have you recently been around anyone with COVID-19 or COVID-19 symptoms?
  3.  Are you currently experiencing any flu-like symptoms?

Park Place’s top priority is to take care of our clients during this difficult time with top-notch service and increased health precautions. Contact us today to reserve your pick-up and delivery appointment:

  • Book Online: https://www.parkplace.com/schedule-service.htm
  • Call: 855-361-6745

Pick-up and delivery is by appointment only. Must have a valid U.S. driver’s license, insurance and credit card. Geographic restrictions may apply. See your dealer for full details. 

BodyWerks Fort Worth Shop Manager – Born to be Wild

Member Spotlight: Greg Cinicolo, Body Shop Manager at BodyWerks Fort Worth

Westchester County in New York is well-known for its quaint villages and picturesque towns as well as open spaces and a network of beautiful parks. But Hells Angels? Yep. And at just five years old, Greg held the flashlight while his dad repaired the members’ Harleys from his garage in small-town White Plains.

 

“They’d babysit me,” he laughs. “Dad restored motorcycles and cars as a hobby and I’d pass him wrenches and other tools. The bikers took a shine to me and I remember having a blast. In fact, one of dad’s buddies is Chuck Zito, the actor from the HBO prison drama “Oz,” who was president of the New York Hells Angels chapter!”

Clearly, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree – Greg’s always been into cars and motorcycles. His family moved to Texas in 1984 and at 16, he went to work at a Chevrolet dealership and never looked back. “I even read books about body shops and repairs. For fun! I’m totally boring.”

Greg Began at Park Place in 2011

Greg began his Park Place career in 2011, serving as an estimator at Grapevine BodyWerks for six and a half years. He’s been in his current role, shop manager for BodyWerks Fort Worth, for almost three years and oversees 22 members as they go about their daily operations, which include everything from major to minor structural repair, paintless dent repair (PDR), paint and bodywork … and in several cases, even animal rescue.

“We’re not surprised by damage from floods and hailstorms,” he says. “But animals are another story. A client came into the Lexus service department with a hawk trapped in the vehicle’s grill. But they saved the hawk! Another time, raccoons made themselves at home in a vehicle. They were still in there by the time we got the vehicle, so that was a job for sure.”

It’s a Science…and an Art

One of the more challenging aspects of vehicle repair is also one of the industry’s oldest and most vexatious – paint-matching.

“It’s a science as well as an art,” he says. “Modern paints are all water-based acrylic polyurethane enamels and very durable, but UV rays are terribly destructive to any kind of paint and actually change the color. Vehicles with clear coat, basically a pigment-free paint, suffer much less UV damage than those without it and make matching much more precise.”

Fortunately for owners, Greg says that the BodyWerks members have all the necessary technical certifications and industry experience to make things right. They also have another essential ingredient – artistry.

“They’re really artists,” he says proudly. “They view these vehicles as their canvas. And day in and day out, they prove their gifts. It’s an honor to work with them.” 

Protect your Paint!

His advice to owners – take care of that clear coat. “Savvy owners know to wash the surface thoroughly, then polish the paint, then wax the polish. That protects the clear coat, which protects the paint. If you don’t have the time, we’ll do it for you. It’s a great investment to keep your vehicle pristine.”

Family First

It’s clear Greg is not only passionate about his profession, but he’s well-equipped to run this full operation. But while it might be hard to imaging, restoring vehicles to their “before wreck” condition isn’t his only focus. In fact, his priority is now his family.

“These days, my hobbies have less to do with repairing motorcycles and more to do with family,” he adds. “We have three girls ages 10, 8 and 3, so we basically live in our backyard. But none of them are holding flashlights and wrenches for me – yet!”


For more information on how to join the Park Place BodyWerks team or to book a free estimate visit us at www.ParkPlaceBodyWerks.com

 

 

Game Day at the Park Place Auto Auction

An up-close-and-personal look at Park Place’s Auto Auction for area authorized dealers.


It’s 4 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon at Park Place Auto Auction in Plano, and the non-stop auctioneer chatter over the booming loudspeakers is silent now. The twin driveways are devoid of vehicles, while administrators inside the facility quietly wrap up the mounds of paperwork required to transfer ownership of nearly 200 vehicles.

But a mere two hours prior, the place was a buzzing beehive. Sedans, coupes, convertibles, SUVs, crossovers, pickups, minivans, sportscars and other vehicles of every make and manufacture creep slowly yet continuously along parallel driveways while about 200 potential buyers – independent and franchise dealers alike – raise a hand or give a nod and a wink to convey their bids. The din from fast-talking, sharp-eyed auctioneers is loud and urgent. Enormous wall-mounted monitors display a dizzying blur of vehicles and ever-rising numbers for all to see.

“The whole process is actually well under control,” says Kenny Parmentier, Operations Manager of Park Place Auto Auction. “But to outsiders, it tends to look like complete mayhem,” he adds with a chuckle.

Where Did It All Start?

The idea for getting into the auction business came from Park Place President Jordan Case, who wanted to create a clean, comfortable and well-kept environment where authorized dealers could find an extensive selection of both high-performance luxury cars and top-quality vehicles of all kinds, and engage in an efficient, hassle-free purchasing experience. In short, he wanted the auction business to function with the commitment to excellence that makes Park Place, well, Park Place.

More often than not, he’s on hand to savor the experience, which kicks off every Wednesday at 2 p.m. sharp. From that point, a vehicle is sold every 38 seconds. In the next 90 minutes, about 195 out of about 200 vehicles will have changed hands. And then it’s all over. Until next week, when it all starts again.

Where Do the Cars Come From?

Most of the vehicles come from Park Place pre-owned lots where they’ve been for 65 days, the result of trade-ins on something newer and shinier. Or they’re front-line vehicles that are getting long in the tooth as a new model year looms. The auction gives them all a chance to find new homes – and Park Place more room for more desirable pre-owned vehicles that will hopefully turn faster.

Celebrating its two-year anniversary in February, the Park Place Auto Auction business is run in partnership with America’s Auto Auction, a full-service company catering to dealers in 23 locations across 15 states. They handle all the day-to-day activity – checking vehicles in, taking pictures, and handling collections, payments, and titles.

Parmentier works for them, as does his five-member team.

“We’re running at a 95 percent success rate,” he says. “Once a vehicle is sold, the buyer has 48 hours to complete the sale and move the vehicle off the lot. It’s a fast-paced business and really quite exciting. It’s game day!”

In 2019, the business sold 8,647 vehicles or about 720 a month. Those that don’t sell one week – called “reruns” – go through the line again a week later for another shot at success, and are usually snapped up by eagle-eyed bargain hunters.

That certainly wasn’t the case when a 2019 Rolls-Royce and a 2018 McLaren came down the line.

“We don’t get those rarities all that often,” Parmentier grins, “but when we do, they’re show-stoppers!”

 

 

 

 

Your Rights. Your Choice: Choosing Your Collision and Hail Repair Shop

When it comes to choosing your place for hail or collision repair,  some carefully worded phrasing and confusing verbiage from an insurance could imply that you do not have the right to choose your repair facility.  In an effort to empower our clients through what can sometimes be a frustrating situation (especially in the event of a collision),  Park Place BodyWerks will not only provide 100% guaranteed repairs with OEM certified parts and technicians, but our team of experts will guide you through the process and facilitate communication with the insurance company.

TRUE OR FALSE? The repair shop you want is not on the insurance network shop list, so an insurance company can’t guarantee the repairs?”

FALSE. By law, insurance companies cannot tell customers where to go for repairs. The Texas Department of Insurance Bill of Rights lists regulations for auto insurance claims.
 
Here are 7 things we recommend you consider before choosing your repair facility for your collision and hail repairs:
 

1. You choose where you want your vehicle towed and repaired. It’s the law.

2. You only need one estimate to determine the amount of damage.
3. Review your car insurance policy especially regarding car rentals.
4. Verify the insurance company pays for all covered repairs.
5. Take care in choosing the right repair shop because your safety depends on it.
6. Insurance companies have deadlines they must follow regarding the claims process
7. Ask questions until you get all of them answered. This is a step toward picking the right body shop.
 

Choosing a certified collision repair center is your choice. So learn more on how Park Place BodyWerks is here to not only provide top-quality repairs, but also assist you throughout the process with your insurance.