2 of Largest Car Dealer Chains Are in O.C.

Orange County is home to two of the nation’s biggest high-volume new car dealership chains, according to Automotive News. The weekly industry journal ranked dealer groups by the number of new cars and trucks they sold in 1996.

Tuttle-Click Automotive Group, headquartered in Irvine, was 29th largest with 14,509 new vehicles sold through 15 dealerships in California and Arizona. The company also sold 10,416 used cars and trucks and 1,468 “fleet” vehicles--typically new cars and trucks sold or leased to businesses at discounts from the retail price. In all, Automotive News reported, privately owned Tuttle-Click had sales of $574.9 million.

Webb Automotive Group, also headquartered in Irvine, placed 35th on the Automotive News list of the 100 top volume chains. The company, with eight dealerships in Orange and Los Angeles counties, did $493.3 million in sales last year (including revenue from finance, parts and service) and sold 12,621 new vehicles. Webb’s dealerships also moved 7,376 used cars and trucks.