ALLDATA and Chief Automotive Technologies has duly announced their partnership in the form of the ALLDATA Collision™

Tagged as the Chief V.I.P. or Vehicle Information Portal, this ground-breaking product permits collision shops to obtain a fast and convenient access to the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) data needed to create efficient repairs and estimates on today’s vehicles.

Randy Gard, Chief Automotive Technologies President, highlights the value of such a product: “It’s virtually impossible to correctly repair today’s vehicles without knowing exactly what systems, materials, specifications and procedures are included. Our integration with ALLDATA enables Chief to provide this information not only to shop estimators, production managers and parts order personnel, but also to the measuring system sitting next to the vehicle being repaired.”

“Having this invaluable OEM data both in the front of the shop and at the technician’s ‘point-of-use’ is huge. The result will be a tremendous improvement on shop and technician efficiency as they both will now know exactly how that vehicle needs to be repaired and, with Chief Design-Based Repair Systems, will have the necessary tools to do so.”

Jeff Lagges, ALLDATA President, remarks on the mutual benefits of the two companies’ alliance: “ALLDATA is very excited about our product integration with Chief Automotive Technologies. Along with our association with one of the premier brands and companies in the collision industry, we’ve had the opportunity to work closely with their team and experience first-hand their commitment to excellence. ALLDATA’s mission for over 20 years has been to improve our customers’ ability to perform their jobs and maximize their business opportunities. Chief is committed to the same vision, and together we feel that we have a powerful solution to get this done.”

Indeed, this ALLDATA-Chief integration provides a welcome opportunity for collision shops to efficiently streamline and speed up their estimation and repair procedures. More than this, the said product also enables subscribers to access ALLDATA’s extensive and far-reaching mechanical problem-solving and repair database.

Below are brief profiles of Autozone, Autozone’s ALLDATA, and Chief Automotive Technologies, as provided in the release statement.

About AutoZone
As of August 25, 2007, AutoZone sells replacement parts and Aftermarket Performance Parts for cars and light trucks, as well as selling chemicals and accessories. Business is undertaken through 4,056 AutoZone stores in the United States, Puerto Rico and Mexico. AutoZone also sells the ALLDATA brand automotive diagnostic and repair software. On the web, AutoZone sells diagnostic and repair information and auto and light truck parts through www.autozone.com.

About AutoZone’s ALLDATA
ALLDATA is the leading provider of automotive repair information and solutions to the Professional Automotive Service Industry. Professional automotive repair shops across North America depend on ALLDATA for their automotive repair information needs, and purchase AutoZone parts from more than 2,000 AutoZone Commercial program locations.

The ALLDATA(r) subscription, available online and on DVD, provides comprehensive, factory-correct repair information. Also available are: ServiceCenter(sm) ELITE strategic shop management system; ProCarCareZone(sm) web-based shop marketing tools to bring in new and repeat business; ALLDATA CollisionConnect(sm), the only comprehensive source of OEM collision information, delivering factory-correct, unedited and regularly updated information for structural repairs and more; and the AZ Parts(sm) Catalog and AZ PartsConnect(sm) programs for aftermarket parts estimating and electronic ordering. ALLDATA(r) DIY provides consumers with repair articles, factory technical service bulletins, and illustrations for a specific vehicle, along with a link to ALLDATA-approved repair shops. Visit www.alldata.com for more information.

About Chief Automotive Technologies, Inc.
Chief Automotive Technologies, Inc. is the world’s largest manufacturer of high quality collision repair products and services, including frame pulling equipment, vehicle anchoring systems, computerized measuring systems, vehicle frame specifications and comprehensive training on structural analysis repair and collision theory.

Headquartered in Grand Island, Nebraska, USA, Chief also operates a number of facilities throughout the world, and is a key provider of collision repair equipment in more than 48 countries globally.

U.S. Auto Parts Network, the leading online provider of Aftermarket Performance Parts and accessories, has announced two appointments for the company’s Board of Directors. New Directors are Josh Berman and Jeffrey Schwartz, with the former being the Co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of MySpace.com, while the latter stands as the former Chief Executive Officer of Autobytel.

Josh Berman is the co-founder and COO of the top online lifestyle portal, MySpace. Under Berman’s business savvy and insightful management, the said online site has achieved tremendous growth since its launch in the year 2004. Indeed, even if the portal has only began its operation in 2004, it is already home to approximately 115 million current active subscribers worldwide, with a modest average of 300,000 new subscribers signing up daily. Besides said venture, Berman also co-founded and previously managed two other thriving internet companies, namely ResponseBase and Xdrive Technologies. He served as the former Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of Responsebase, while he was Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice President for Xdrive. Also part of Berman’s impressive credentials was his stint as management consultant for PricewaterhouseCoopers, as well as the International Marketing Manager and Senior Financial Analyst for Twentieth Century Fox.

When asked for comment on his new endeavor, Berman has this to say: “As a leader in the online auto parts market, I believe U.S. Auto Parts has the technology, people, and resources to continue to drive growth in the industry as well as its market share. I look forward to working with the management team and the Board as we seek to achieve the Company’s strategic initiatives and capitalize on these opportunities.”

On the other hand, the other new appointee, Jeffrey Schwartz, also offers quite a successful and colorful professional background. Currently, Schwartz is serving as the CEO and Chairman of Vertical Passion Media, a successful marketing and media company centered on content and classified listings in the automotive category. Prior to that, he was with Autobytel from 2001 to 2006, evolving in numerous executive positions such as President, CEO, Director, and Vice Chairman. During Schwartz’ exemplary leadership, Autobytel has developed itself as a leading automotive marketing services company, even acquiring a staggering ten-fold increase in market capitalization. Before Autobytel, Schwartz also performed as CEO and Chairman for an automotive dealership group called AutoCentro, as CEO and President of Autoweb, and as Vice President of Corporate Affairs at The Walt Disney Company. Furthermore, among Schwartz’ various notable accomplishments is his prior position of director in the Internet Advertising Bureau, wherein he was duly awarded as the ‘Outstanding Public Company Executive’ by the American Electronics Association.

Schwartz, like Berman, is very pleased to be joining the team of U.S. Auto Parts: “I am excited to be joining the U.S. Auto Parts’ team at this exciting stage of the Company’s development. I believe U.S. Auto Parts is well-positioned to build upon its market leading position within the high-growth aftermarket auto parts and accessories category. I look forward to utilizing my background and experience to continue the achievements the existing management team and Board of Directors have made to date.”

For U.S. Auto Parts, the honor of having Berman and Schwartz is very apparent. Robert Majteles, Chairman of the Board, has this to say: “We are very fortunate to welcome Josh and Jeff to the Board of Directors. We are pleased with the level of talent we are attracting to our Board and believe it is indicative of the Company’s compelling business platform and significant future growth opportunities. Together with the recent addition of Barry Phelps, we believe we have completed the process of building a strong, public company Board of Directors and we look forward to serving our shareholders well.”

Shane Evangelist, newly appointed CEO, has also extended his warm welcome to the two new directors: “We believe Josh and Jeff bring to the Board several years of experience and proven track records with leading online marketing and automotive companies, making them valuable resources to the company. We look forward to having the expertise and guidance of these two senior executives benefiting U.S. Auto Parts as we prepare the Company for its next stage of growth.”

Team IMC is not only composed of employees from the The InterAmerican Motor Corporation (IMC), these particular IMC employees also share the same passion in the sport of cycling. That is why in the upcoming 2007 AAPEX trade show, the team IMC would be doing the customary cycling together towards the trade show destination, this time from Los Angeles to Las Vegas. This act, besides the common cause of showing camaraderie, is also meant to raise funds and awareness for certain issues that would greatly affect the automotive aftermarket industry. This year’s concern is all about the challenge and possible benefit that Telematics could provide to the aftermarket world.

For those not in the know, Telematics is the technological process wherein vehicles wirelessly communicate with their respective dealerships, which in turn allows said dealers to run remote diagnostic tests over the cars. In this way, the dealer gets to be well informed of the status of the vehicles, and could then earnestly alert the vehicle owners with regards to the substantial issues of their cars. The snowball effect for such a proactive service is that the dealer is then given the first opportunity to repair and remedy said issues, thereby refraining the need for an independent mechanic. Indeed, this not only bodes well for the improved dealership business, it is also a benefit for the car owner as car problems can be detected at the early stages, and thus prevent more serious complications.

Thomas Beer, IMC President and Chief Executive Officer, has this to say: “The original goal was to ride from Los Angeles to Las Vegas to attend the AAPEX show. But after some thinking we thought that our ride could have a positive impact on our industry. The enhanced goal, other than surviving the ride, is to raise funds to study and then develop strategies on how we as an industry will turn Telematics from a threat into an opportunity.”

The raised money from said event will be forwarded to an aftermarket industry association as funding for a study and consequent white paper on Telematics.

The Tour d’ AAPEX cycling cause is set to set off on the 25th of October in Los Angeles and end four days after in Las Vegas on the 28th of October. The ride is said to cover 366 miles. In relation to this, the group has announced that for people interested in learning more about the Tour d’ AAPEX and would like to contribute funds to be used for the Telematics study, the contact person to look for is David Pollack at (818)-678-1233. Another way to gather more information is to log onto the website, http://www.imcparts.net/misc/teamIMC.shtml

Provided below is an excerpt of IMC’s company profile, as provided in the press release:

About IMC: Founded in 1962, Interamerican Motor Corporation is a distributor and importer of European and Asian OEM, Aftermarket Performance Parts and other Aftermarket auto parts, as well as Domestic coverage for top moving models. Headquartered in Canoga Park, California, IMC operates branches nationwide. For more information go to http://www.imcparts.com/ . IMC is a member of the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association (AAIA).

Market research has shown that majority of Hyundai owners are content with the core features of their Hyundai vehicles. The brand’s existing consumers are the type to focus more on the function, rather than on the customization process that is the trend nowadays for most car brands.

As it is, this kind of setup sells relatively well, with Hyundai sales increasing to 10.8 percent this year.

Nevertheless, Hyundai Canada’s Vice President of Sales and Marketing John Vernile still organized for Hyundai to be involved in the customizing business. A self-confessed car aficionado himself, Vernile wants to broaden and strengthen Hyundai’s market base by connecting with young enthusiasts.

“We want to create some excitement with the brand, something that gets the blood pumping.”

And with that opening salvo, Hyundai Canada worked its way on providing aftermarket selections for its valued clientele. To date, Hyundai has recently launched its auto parts campaign, wherein Hyundai consumers can now go to their respective Hyundai dealers and choose from a wide array of goodies and accessories. Not only are these aftermarket products guaranteed to have been sourced from major suppliers, said parts are also enhanced with available dealer installation and a Hyundai-backed warranty.

Qualitor, Inc., a leading producer and distributor of aftermarket parts for the automotive and medium to heavy-truck vehicles, has chosen Charles Tornabene to be the new chief for Pylon Manufacturing.

Pylon Manufacturing Corporation, an ISO 9001-certified division of the Qualitor family of automotive companies, is a successful automotive aftermarket supplier that focuses its specialty on the engineering and marketing of wiper blades and tire care products. Relatively, Pylon had to undergo some considerable regrouping upon the departure of then President David Peace as the latter moves into Wells Manufacturing to become its new Chief Executive Officer. And so, after careful deliberation, the Qualitor group finally finds the right man for the job in the form of Tornabene.

In reference to his impressive professional background, Charles A. Tornabene comes into Pylon from an exceptional stint as President of Simoniz USA, Inc. He can be considered as the brains behind the triumphant reintroduction of Simoniz automotive appearance products to the industry. Prior to Simoniz, Tornabene also enjoyed 19 years with Turtle Wax, Inc., the final eleven years serving as its President and Chief Operations Officer. Other notable history of experience includes Sales and Marketing positions with Texise Chemicals (now called Dow Chemical) and the Campbell Soup Company.

As comment to this new addition, Qualitor CEO Dick Snell is pleased to announce: “We are excited to have an executive of Chuck’s experience and market knowledge join Pylon. Chuck is a natural leader with an unmatched depth of experience in very similar categories. I am confident that he will accelerate the already high-growth of Michelin Wiper Blades and automotive appearance products.”

Quantum Fuel Systems Technologies Worldwide has duly announced that its Tecstar Automotive division has successfully forged an alliance with Force Protection, Inc. The contract agreement revolves on Tecstar Automotive providing engineering design and production assistance for Force Protection’s Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Cheetah vehicle fleet. This is in line with Force Protection’s recent acquisition of a 430,000 square foot facility in North Carolina to serve as its expansion arena for the organization’s existing and future products, including the infamous Cheetah model.

Tecstar Automotive’s specific tasks in this affiliation include manufacturing and engineering support to develop the new Force Protection plant layout, procurement of the necessary equipments and tools, workforce hiring and training, organization of the assembly line set-up, and management of the enhanced production for the Cheetah vehicle line.

Quantum President and CEO, Alan Niedzwiecki, acknowledges this partnership: “We are pleased to continue supporting Force Protection, Inc. in producing its advanced ballistic- and blast-protected vehicles, which have protected and saved the lives of our armed forces and security personnel overseas.”

“We look forward to applying our fast-to-market, limited volume production expertise to assist in ramping up the production and deployment of these critically-needed vehicles.”

A Quantum Backgrounder:
Quantum is a fully integrated alternative energy corporation. It has practiced such specialty in the industry through powertrain engineering, system integration, and the manufacturing of packaged fuel systems and accessories for various vehicles. Specifically, Quantum enjoys thorough expertise for both OEM and aftermarket parts in reference to the following: fuel cells, alternative fuels, hydrogen refueling, hybrids, mid-cycle product enhancements, enhanced body stylings, superior performing engines, and drivetrains. Moreover, Quantum is into the designing and producing hybrid and fuel cell vehicles. And with the assistance of its partner company, Advanced Lithium Power, Quantum also has a specialty in manufacturing advanced lithium-ion batteries.

To date, with its supreme technological proficiency, Quantum has acquired product affiliations with the likes of General Motors, AM General and Sumitomo.

Quantum’s extensive customer base includes General Motors, Ford, DaimlerChrysler, Toyota, Opel, Hyundai, Suzuki, SunLine, Yamaha, AeroVironment, and the U.S. Army.

Car customization is turning out to be one huge business in the automotive industry. According to the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA), 2006 gave witness to a collective 7,000 retailers of aftermarket parts and accessories in garnering the total sales worth $36.7 Billion.

SEMA Vice President Peter MacGillivray further noted: “The interest in aftermarket avenues has been growing at the rate of 7 percent a year for the past ten years. For a lot of people, their car is a reflection of their passion. It’s their life.”

Mike Yagger, owner of Mid America Motorworks and author of “The Corvette Bible” book, affirms that a number of people can surprisingly spend about $100,000 to $150,000 to accentuate, enhance, or redesign a car.

Yager and MacGillivray points to the baby boomers for establishing this customized car fascination. Both concur that as most people from this said generation has more or less established themselves financially, they are now able to afford the cars they have always wanted, and they’re very much willing to shell out on the cost.

In a special segment of this year’s customary Town Hall meeting, the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association (AAIA) will be integrating the concept of the popular YouTube program. AAIA, in its own program, has planned to put up videotaped questions from aftermarket professionals from all over the country.

As Kathleen Schmatz, AAIA President and CEO, remarks: “This year we wanted to add some interactive fun to Town Hall and further engage aftermarket professionals in the program, so we decided to borrow the popular ‘YouTube’ concept and invite videotaped questions from aftermarket folks, and for our special guest Bob Schieffer to answer on stage.”

Featured guest Bob Schieffer is the anchor of “Face of the Nation” and CBS News Chief Washington Correspondent. Other stars of the show would be moderator Kathleen Schmatz and another guest Dick Morgan, AAIA Chair as well as President and CEO of Aftermarket Auto Parts Alliance, Inc.

Hosted by AAIA and sponsored by NASCAR, the 2007 Town Hall meeting will be held on the 31^st of October, 7 am, in the Palazzo Ballroom in the Venetian Hotel.

This early, AAIA is asking for the cooperation from the general public in this YouTube-inspired segment. Video questions recorded from digital cameras, camcorders, cell phones and Web cams should be submitted in the WMV, AVI, MOV or MPG file formats and hopefully no longer than 45 seconds. Videos under 10MB file size can be emailed to townhallvideos@aftermarket.org. Videos over 10MB should be incorporated in a CD and mailed to: AAIA Town Hall, 7101 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 1300, Bethesda, MD 20814.

Sub-standard aftermarket parts are never good for vehicles. Usually, these materials would cost less , but those so-called money saved could mean the life of the driver and passengers. So car owners should never patronize those bogus auto parts in the hopes of enhancing automobile performance in a cheaper price.

Counterfeit parts can be deadly. About $12 billion fake aftermarket parts, which are vastly manufactured outside the United States, come from the commercial truck industry according to the Motor and Equipment Manufacturer’s Association (MEMA). Aside from the fact that fake aftermarket parts can likely trigger road accidents and take away lives, thousands if not millions of money is being taken away from legitimate manufacturers.

Aftermarket parts manufacturers like Arvin Meritor, Bendix, Haldex, amongst others, have utilized their resources in order to fight off selling of these fake parts.

“Arvin Meritor’s commercial vehicle aftermarket business commits considerable dollars and time to fight parts counterfeiters, mostly in full concert with MEMA- HDMA’s pro-active stance to stem or stop counterfeit parts,” said an Arvin Meritor spokesperson.

This alarming problem has really raised concerns from legitimate manufacturers, thus educating the fleets and parts suppliers has become necessary. Aside from educating fleets and suppliers, the customers also need to know what are the hazards of these counterfeited aftermarket parts.

“We intend to continue our fight against knock – off parts,” Bendrix brand manager Andy Cifranic said. “Our products were created to efficiently stop 80,000 lb. vehicles. We don’t take that responsibility lightly, nor highway safety in general, lightly.”

Customer satisfaction is one of the important factors that has to be considered in about every business. An aftermarket parts company, Motor Coach Industries (MCI) knows this, thus it decided to avail Smart Software Inc.’s SmartForecasts Enterprise.

MCI’s inventory management in its aftermarket service parts operation is expected to improve with the SmartForecasts Enterprise. With more than 2,000 employees, the company will utilize the SmartForecasts’ patented intermittent demand forecasting and planning capabilities. With this helpful software, forecasting and inventory for MCI’s 12 North American facilities will be made easier. Not only that, SmartForecasts will also be able to systematize vendor managed inventory business, increasing parts availability and providing better customer service.

In the United States and Canada, aftermarket company MCI has headquartered wherein the company’s products are designed, manufactured, and sold. MCI’ products include motor coaches, bus replacement parts, amongst others. Aside from the products, this aftermarket parts company also offers repair services to its customers.

It was really hard and manual work for the company when it comes to forecasting before it decided to make use of SmartForecasts’ services. Imagine that MCI used to forecast everything manually at each of its service centers. A lot of time and effort were used for this, so availing of the said software was the only way to go. Forecasting and planning procedures and began an evaluation of demand planning, forecasting and inventory optimization software systems. Furthermore, the Massachusetts-based MCI chose SmartForecasts because it is capable of giving accurate results right off the bat.

“An important part of our evaluation compared stocking level estimates provided by the different vendors. SmartForecasts’ stocking level estimates were the most accurate and resulted in not only lower projected inventory costs but also a higher projected service level,” said Stan Dzierzega, inventory planning manager and project leader at MCI. “In addition to improving our service levels and reducing costs, we expect SmartForecasts will help us to reduce our demand planning workload. Manual planning takes too much time, and with SmartForecasts, we look forward to shortening the process, forecasting more items, and getting better forecast results and inventory recommendations.”