Park Place Dealerships

November 18, 2016November 30, 2016

Park Place Lexus Recognized For Best Practices In Customer Focus By Baldrige Performance Excellence Program

Texas-based Park Place Lexus has been recognized for a best practice in customer focus by the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program, part of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award program.

“The path we started more than a decade ago to pursue the Baldrige Program has led to improved strategies and best management practices we have implemented to better serve our clients,” said Ken Schnitzer, chairman and founder of Park Place Dealerships. “We are honored to be recognized for our commitment to consistently deliver a positive customer experience.”

Park Place has two Lexus dealerships in North Texas that jointly received the recognition. Park Place Lexus Grapevine, located near Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, and Park Place Lexus Plano, just north of Dallas, employ more than 570 people. In 2005, the two dealerships received the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation’s highest Presidential honor for sustainable excellence through visionary leadership, organizational alignment, systemic improvement and innovation.

“Based on our continued improvement through a systematic approach to goal-setting, measures and reviews, we offer our clients the best automotive purchase and ownership experience,” remarked Jordan Case, President of Park Place Lexus. ”We continue to improve our processes of learning what we could do better and pushing ourselves to be the best in our industry.”

During a recent visit from Baldrige examiners, a site visit evaluation team spent several days interviewing 400 of Park Place’s nearly 600 Lexus members. Park Place Lexus was one of six organizations in the country to receive a best practices honor. The complete list includes:

City of Fort Collins, Fort Collins, Colorado—leadership
Kaiser Permanente San Diego, San Diego, California—leadership
Maury Regional Medical Center, Columbia, Tennessee—leadership
Duke University Hospital, Durham, North Carolina—leadership and strategy
Park Place Lexus of Texas, Plano, Texas—customers
Southern Management Corporation, Vienna, Virginia—workforce

The Baldrige Performance Excellence Program raises awareness about the importance of performance excellence in driving the U.S. and global economy; provides organizational assessment tools and criteria; and educates leaders in all type of organizations about the practices of national role models. Since the first Baldrige Award recipients were recognized in 1988, 109 awards have been presented to 102 organizations (including seven two-time award recipients). The Baldrige Award recognizes the nation’s top-level performers in six categories: manufacturing, service, small business, health care, education and nonprofit.

November 2, 2016

Park Place Porsche unveils new 2017 Porsche 911 Targa 4S Exclusive Design Edition

Park Place Porsche is the only Flagship Exclusive Dealership in Texas

Park Place Porsche recently hosted a party on the expansive lawn of the Camp House at Dallas Arboretum to unveil the new 2017 Porsche 911 Targa 4S Exclusive Design Edition. But like this eagerly anticipated new sports car, this exclusive event was not your average garden party. For starters, guest had a choice of a Patrón margarita served sweet, spicy, herbal or fruity. The Krish Coffee bar allowed similar customization for hot beverages. You could choose your pasta cooked exactly how you wanted it — with your hand-picked ingredients — prepared personally for you by III Forks Restaurant’s executive chef Chris Vogeli. And, as the sun set over White Rock Lake, the cover was pulled back to reveal the bold new Porsche 911 Targa 4S Exclusive Design Edition in Etna Blue with the Porsche logo and stripe glistening in white gold metallic along its sides.

“We wanted the party to reflect the customization options available for our clients,” said Patrick Huston, General Manager of Park Place Porsche. “As one of only a dozen Porsche Exclusive Flagship dealers in the country, and the only one in Texas, we can offer our clients an unprecedented level of personalization for their cars. Options go well beyond a choice of leather or paint colors. We can sit down with a client and select from dozens of different options to make any Porsche model uniquely their own. And we can show them how the options work together in real time on our computer. They can even compare pricing as they design the car of their dreams.”

The new Porsche 911 Targa 4 comes standard with a 350-horsepower, 3.4-liter flat-6 engine that starts at $102,595. The 400-hp, 3.8-liter flat-6 Targa 4S is $117,195. But, consider MSRPs as merely suggestions as you can configure your Targa any way you want it. For instance, a seven-speed manual gearbox is standard, but the optional PDK gearbox allows you to roll through gears even faster. You can even choose air vents that match your car’s upholstery. Or you might prefer chrome vents. Again, the options are only limited by your creativity. However you outfit your car, it can leap from 0-to-60 mph in about 4.2 seconds. Don’t worry. It’s wide stance and all-wheel drive grips the road even in tight curves.

Following assembly, all vehicles are hand-finished on the Porsche Exclusive production lines in Zuffenhausen, Germany. For 30 years, Porsche Exclusive has strived to deliver individuality straight from the factory and boasts a long-standing tradition in the creation of limited vehicle projects. With each vehicle, the customer receives a specially designed indoor car cover as well as a bound photo album in graphite-blue leather, which documents the development process of their car and features its specific vehicle identification number (VIN).

Park Place partnered with III Forks Restaurant, Patrón Tequila and Lakewood Brewing Co. on this fantastic event. Other sponsors included Verona Privé Maison, which provided sophisticated lounge groupings for guests’ comfort during the sunset reveal.

Located at 6113 Lemmon Avenue, near Dallas’ Love Field, Park Place Porsche was selected this year as a Porsche Premier Dealer for the 19th time. Over the years, Park Place Porsche has been recognized by Porsche Cars North America as the most consistently winning dealer in North America.

November 1, 2016November 2, 2016

The Park Place Mission Told Through Real-Life Experience

At Park Place Dealerships, our mission is “To create an extraordinary automotive purchase and ownership experience.”

It’s one thing to say it, but to see it in action is another. We are elated when our clients share their stories of how enjoyable their real-life experience has been at a Park Place Dealership, and a recent article in Business Reporter, by Keil Hubert, highlights exactly how we hope to stand out in your automotive purchasing experience. Thank you so much for the kind words, Keil, and welcome to the Park Place family.

Keil’s article dives head-first into how the automotive industry has developed over the years, and the subsequent feelings that many car-buyers have developed about the process. He goes on to tell about his experience with Park Place Porsche Dallas, and how that experience stood out among the crowd. We won’t spoil the ending for you, but we will share our favorite quote from Keil.

“This was what I’d been wanting from the car buying experience. Exactly this.”

To read Keil’s full story, please click here. http://business-reporter.co.uk/2016/10/31/american-view-ghost-protocols/

October 26, 2016

Chrysalis Ball Attendees Win A Year Of Lexus

Park Place Lexus Plano donated the use of a different Lexus each quarter for a year as an auction item at the 2016 Chrysalis Ball benefiting the Boys & Girls Clubs of Collin County. The event was held in the Grand Ballroom at Embassy Suites in Frisco on October 15. Richard & Cathy Riccardi were the high bidders and will get to drive a Lexus RX, ES, NX and GS for three months each for a year. The package also included four seats to a Dallas Stars game, a Frisco RoughRiders suite for 12 people for the 2017 season including food and beverages; and four tickets to a 2017 Texas Rangers game with seats behind the dugout and complimentary parking.

Cathy & Richard Riccardi will be driving a different Lexus every 3 months thanks to the Chrysalis Ball and Park Place Lexus Plano

“We’re thrilled to help these young people who will one day shape our future,” said Chris Brunner, general manager of Park Place Lexus Plano. “The Boys & Girls Clubs does an amazing job in mentoring and challenging kids. They have a 100-percent rate of high school graduation for kids in their program. You have to support an organization that produces results like that.”

Founded in 1969 with locations in Frisco, Plano and McKinney, the mission of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Collin County is to enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring and responsible citizens. More info at http://www.bgccc.org

October 10, 2016

Park Place Jaguar Plano honored with Marque of Distinction

Jaguar Land Rover Training Academy honored three Park Place Jaguar Plano employees with their highest award: the Marque of Distinction. This honor is granted annually to one Parts Manager, Parts Professional, Sales Manager, Sales Consultant, Sales Guide, Service Manager, Service Advisor and Technician from each Jaguar and Land Rover brand. Park Place Jaguar members Daniel Syvrud won Sales Manager of the Year 2015; Drew Wilson won Parts Member of the year; and Bob Lynn was the Service Guild winner.

“It is an amazing honor to have Daniel, Drew and Bob on our team,” said Mike Cuzzo, Park Place Jaguar Plano General Manager. “We can proudly say that we have the best of the best to provide our clients the highest level of service. We’ve won the Pride of Jaguar five years in a row and have received the Marque of Distinction the last 3 years, which means we are the number one dealership in the country again. We’ve had at least two of our managers win this award for the past 3 years in a row.”

Out of more than 160 Jaguar/Land Rover dealerships nationwide, Syvrud, Wilson and Lynn scored the highest among their peers in the 2015-16 Journey to Excellence program year. The top eight members from each category were chosen to travel to London, England, where the winners were each presented a trophy by Jaguar Land Rover North America President/CEO Joachim “Joe” Eberhardt.

October 5, 2016

Park Place Lexus Service Consultants Honored with Lexus Skills Showdown Award

Park Place Lexus Grapevine recently had two members (employees) qualify for the Lexus Southern Area’s 3rd annual Technician/Service Consultant Lexus Skills Showdown. This award recognizes the top elite service consultants from 65 different Lexus stores from Texas to North Carolina. Park Place Lexus Grapevine technician Byron McEwen and service consultant Eric Wright qualified and won top awards.

“We’re honored to have Byron and Eric on our team at Park Place Lexus Grapevine,” said Matt Woolsey, general manager of Park Place Lexus Grapevine. “Offering clients a fabulous experience is our first priority and we work tirelessly to hire and train the right people to serve our clients. We can proudly say that we truly have the Best of the Best in the Lexus Southern Area to provide service at the highest level to our clients.”

Lexus Master Technician Byron McEwen and Assistant Service Manager Eric Wright were graded as a team and also individually on their performance in the overall Lexus service process. Each individual and team were graded on greeting and writing up a client, the process of diagnosing and repairing a vehicle, and performing a delivery with the client after repairs were completed.

Out of 43 teams, McEwen and Wright took second place earning each of them $1,500 prize money. In the individual competition, Assistant Service Manager Eric Wright took first place in the ASM service writer up competition. Wright is rated as the #1 ASM out of nearly 600 in the Lexus Southern Area. Wright received an additional $1,000 for his efforts.

Located at 901 Highway 114 East, Park Place Lexus Grapevine is the only automobile dealership to ever win the prestigious Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. The award is the only formal recognition of performance excellence of both public and private U.S. organizations given by the President of the United States. The dealership has also been recognized as an elite of Lexus Dealer 16 years in a row, and received a #1 national ranking in customer satisfaction.

August 29, 2016November 30, 2016

Park Place Motorcars Arlington Sales Greeter Leaving Her Mark On Arlington

When you first walk into the lobby of Park Place Motorcars Arlington, you’re sure to be captivated by Gabree Torres. The 23-year-old sales greeter is vivacious and charming. But there’s more than meets the eye to this energetic young lady.

Torres is finishing her Masters of Social Work degree at the University of Arlington. And she’ll leave her mark on the campus before she graduates in December.

Earlier this year, she was selected to paint a horse sculpture for the UTA Spirit Horse project.

“I saw a flyer on a bulletin board and only had two days until the deadline to submit my design,” said Torres, “but I knew this opportunity was mine.”

Torres had previously painted seven large murals in a San Angelo hospital while attending San Angelo State for her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology.

“Gabree submitted a design that showed three students in academic regalia at commencement,” said Jennifer Fox, UTA Assistant Director of Student Governance. “The UTA Ambassadors, a group of 25 elected student leaders that serve as the official hosts and hostesses of the campus, really liked her design. The proposed location for this year’s Spirit Horse was near the College Park Center, the on-campus arena where commencement ceremonies are held. We did not advertise this when soliciting proposals, so the fact that Gabree’s design also fit well with our proposed location was a nice surprise. We did ask her to add an ‘athletics’ component to the horse since our volleyball and basketball games are also held in the College Park Center. She quickly revised her sketches, and the end result was beautiful.”

Torres’ Spirit Horse was recently unveiled at the Maverick Stampede, a UTA Welcome Week event. The final installation will be later this semester.

In addition to working at Park Place Motorcars and attending school, Torres is completing an internship at a local mental health treatment facility. She also does photography for Calvary Arlington, a local church that meets at the Arlington Music Hall.

“I hope to work with the Domestic Violence population once I graduate,” said Torres. Not surprising for a determined young lady who seems to make an impression everywhere she goes.
Park Place Motorcars Arlington is a 91,000-square-foot Mercedes-Benz dealership located at I-20 and Collins that opened December 2015.

August 16, 2016

Watch the Rare & Relatively Unknown Porsche 910 Racecar Tear Up the Track

When it comes to racing, few automakers share Porsche’s rich heritage. The brand’s early involvement dates all the way back to the 1950’s, with notable wins in the Carrera Panamericana and Targa Florio, classic races which later influenced the naming of some of Porsche’s most famous models.

Despite Porsche’s racing pedigree, it’s often thought that the automaker has scoffed at the idea of a mid-engine racecar. But as Road & Track recently pointed out, that’s simply not true. Behold the Porsche 910 (or Carrera 10), a factory-built racer with a mid-mounted engine.

porsche race car

The 910 served as the evolution of Porsche’s successful 906 racecars. Despite competing for a single year, Porsche entered the 910 into a number of competitions, including the European Hillclimb Championship, Targa Florio, 12 Hours of Sebring, and Le Mans.

While the six-cylinder 910 was a force to be reckoned with, strong competition from Ferrari and the legendary Ford GT40 made life difficult for the 910, But that didn’t stop it from putting in strong performances throughout the year, and eventually winning its home event at the 1000 km Nürburgring in 1967.

Because it competed for such a limited period, the 910 remains a rare and relatively unknown treasure in Porsche’s long list of fine racing specimens, which is why Park Place Dealerships encourages any and all Porsche fans to watch this video of the 910 looping around the Autodromo Riccardo Paletti in Italy – listen to that glorious engine!

When you’re done watching what this legend can do, be sure to live out your own racing fantasies by browsing our new and pre-owned models, or simply visit us at for a test drive.

August 16, 2016August 16, 2016

From the World’s Most Demanding Racetrack–The New Mercedes-AMG® GT R

The Nürburgring race track is easily the most famous in Germany, if not the world. Nicknamed “the Green Hell” in the late ’60s due to its difficulty, Nürburgring features plenty of punishing twists and turns, and any vehicle that can master it can take on anything. That’s why the 2018 Mercedes-AMG® GT R impresses us so much here at Park Place Dealerships. Never before has Mercedes-AMG® put this much motorsport power into a production vehicle, and it shows.

As Professor Thomas Weber, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG, says:

Our sports-car and performance brand AMG has its roots in motorsport and, ever since its formation, has repeatedly faced up to the competition on the racetrack. These genes are particularly prevalent in the new AMG GT R. Boasting a wealth of technological innovations, the new top-of-the-range model is proof of the close collaboration between our constructors of racing cars and road-going vehicles.

The new AMG® GT R spent much of its development time at the Green Hell, and every aspect of the vehicle reflects its motorsport origins. The heart of the beast is, of course, its transaxle, biturbo V8 engine, one that’s rated at an impressive 577 horsepower. Paired with its aerodynamic and lightweight construction, the new AMG® GT R practically flies. Keeping you in perfect control throughout the ride are an active rear-wheel steering, a nine-way adjustable traction control system, as well as an adjustable coil-over suspension (with additional electronic control).
2018-Mercedes-AMG-GT-R-Engine_no-Plate

The team at Park Place Dealerships is extremely excited about the AMG® GT R, and we’re not the only ones. Tobias Moers, CEO of Mercedes-AMG GmbH, calls it “the next level of driving performance,” saying:

This road-going sports car with motor-racing genes and innovative technical solutions offers an ultimate driving experience that allows people to feel our motorsport origins in every fiber. It combines the driving dynamics of our AMG GT3 racing car with the everyday practicality of the AMG GT. Those with gasoline in their veins will be thrilled by the radical longitudinal and lateral acceleration, the precise turn-in and the sensational grip. We have modified all performance-relevant components and linked them together intelligently for maximum driving dynamics.

“Maximum driving dynamics” sounds pretty great to us. If that sounds good to you too, contact us at Park Place Motorcars in Dallas, Fort Worth, Grapevine, or Arlington to learn more about the 2018 Mercedes-AMG® GT R, or any of our other new Mercedes-Benz models.

August 9, 2016November 30, 2016

2016 Bentley Continental GT V8 S Convertible

Bentley engineers have taken inspiration from past Continental icons to create a reborn motorcar that features modern technology and contemporary lines. The classic, self-confident front of the Bentley Continental GT introduces more pronounced fenders, a smaller grill and a more open look to intensify its assertive attitude. The 520-hp V8 engine is a performance dream, moving this 5,000-lb vehicle from 0-60mph in an astonishing 4.3 seconds and reaching a top track speed of 198mph. It out-performs many smaller and lighter sports cars with its speed capabilities. Another striking feature for the 2016 model is the chrome strip that runs along the bottom edge of the vehicle whereas in previous models it stopped at the back end of the vehicle, it now continuously flows around the vehicle. Virtually no other car on the planet has more customization options than the Continental. There are 17 exterior color choices, 17 interior choices and 8 different selections for the top.

The rear of the Continental flows from top to bottom beginning with the LED tail light and the more pronounced trunk spoiler which travels down to the full-width chrome strip that spans the wide rear bumper. Beneath the bumper, long twin oval exhaust tailpipes meld with the elongated groove. The updated interior still maintains Bentley’s signature look and the ride is quiet, confident and refined. High quality and comfortably soft leather surrounds everyone inside and adds to the elegance portion. It’s underscored by a choice of wood or carbon fiber. The dark orange analog dials illuminate the dashboard at night it is crystal clear. From the refined exterior to the sumptuous interior, everything about the Bentley Continental says class.

No other car epitomizes the spirit of life in a grand tour more eloquently than the Bentley Continental does. Come experience this exquisite masterpiece at Park Place Bentley Dallas or visit us online at parkplace.com. Click here to see the Continental GT Convertible inventory.