Customer service is a priority at Shutes Alignment & Frey Tire in ...

Beck Arnley
now available
636-441-6385
St. Peters, MO
www.mid-niteautosupply.com
check availability online
Hours:
Mon. - Fri. 7:30 am - 7 pm
Sat. 8 am - 5 pm
Serving Greater St. Louis
and West to Columbia
Precision
Remanufacturing
DO IT RIGHT WITH MOPAR®
You know what it takes to make your Chrysler, Jeep ®, Dodge and Ram
customers happy: Authentic parts and a fi rst rate repair. Mopar® comes
to the party with authentic remanufactured engines and transmissions.
You can take it from there. Do it right with Mopar.
Mopar remanufactured powertrain products are covered by one
of the best warranties in the industry: A 3-year/100,000-Mile
Reman Parts Powertrain Warranty.
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Tough Ram. The 2012 Dodge
Ram 1500 has been named one
of Consumers Digest’s “2012 Best
Buys” for its smooth-riding
suspension, as well as its available
V-6 and V-8 engines, acceleration,
lockable storage boxes (Ram Box
Cargo Management System),
ergonomics, fuel economy,
fit/finish, and utility. The Ram
won numerous 2011 awards,
including Manufacturer of the
Year from Off-Road Adventures and the
2011 All-Star Award from Automobile
Magazine.
The Ram 1500 has an exceptional
Electronic Stability Control (ESC) system
that allows all-season front-wheel-drive
(FWD) with the performance of rear-wheeldrive
(RWD). The ESC combines ABS and
traction control systems and determines
when to apply one or more brakes and
reduce engine torque in critical conditions.
The smooth ride quality and handling is
attributable in part to a multi-coil rear
suspension, Consumers Digest said. Both
front and rear have heavy-duty shock
absorbers and there is a front stabilizer bar.
Towing capacities on the Ram 1500
range from 6,250 pounds on the SLT with
the 4.7L V-8 engine to 8,900 pounds on two
Check out MoparRepairConnection.com for resources, promotions and technical information.
© 2012, Chrysler Group LLC. All rights reserved. Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Ram and Mopar are registered trademarks of Chrysler Group LLC. Printed in U.S.A.
Auto Notes compiled by Jerold B. Smith
ORDER HOT LINE:
(800) 325-9584 or
(636) 442-8168
M–F 7:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.
Sat. 7:30 a.m.–4:00 p.m.
The Dodge Ram 1500, shown here with the Ram
box option, is an award winner based on several
elements of its design and utility.
models equipped with the 5.7L Hemi V-8.
Payloads range from 1,344 to 1,484 pounds.
Global anniversaries. The founder of
Toyota Motor Corp., Sakichi Toyoda,
was born in Japan
145 years ago, in
1867. From a
company that started
out manufacturing
textile looms in 1926,
Toyoda’s son began
building cars in 1936
(the “d” in the brand
name became a “t”),
and for two years
beginning in 2008,
Toyota was the
largest automaker in
Sakichi Toyoda
was one of Japan’s
most prolific
inventors and laid
the foundation for
Toyota Motor
Corp.
the world. The company’s first car was the
Model AA.
Hyundai Motor America recently
celebrated its 25th anniversary in the U.S.
Its first car sold in the American market was
the Excel (frankly, not one of our favorites
ever tested). Since 1987, Hyundai has sold
more than 6,600,000 vehicles in the U.S.,
with more than 4,350,000 still on the road.
Sonata, Elantra, and Santa Fe models are
produced at plants in Alabama and Georgia.
From entry-level cars 25 years ago,
Hyundai today produces high-quality
coupes, sedans, crossovers, and very
competitive luxury models such as the
Equus and Genesis.
German automaker Opel marks its 150th
anniversary this year. A company that
started out building sewing machines and
The 2012 Mitsubishi Outlander sold well in
March and the new model was viewed at the
New York Auto Show as the first to be
manufactured at Mitsubishi’s plant in Illinois.
bicycles, Adam Opel AG was the first
German carmaker to use an automated
assembly line, in 1928. The firm designed
the Rocket Car, which at one point set the
world land-speed record. Opel has been a
wholly owned company of General Motors
since 1931 and today, along with its British
sister car, Vauxhall, is sold in more than 40
countries.
Vehicle sales booming. Despite high
fuel prices, almost every auto and truck
manufacturer had an exceptional first
quarter of 2012 in the U.S. Strong March
sales were driven by the demand for small
cars and crossovers. Honda was the only
U.S. brand that had a sales decrease,
showing a 5-percent drop, but the Civic was
the 10th-best-selling vehicle for the month
and the CR-V crossover had record sales.
Chrysler’s sales jumped 34 percent in
March with hot Fiat and Chrysler sedan
sales; Dodge Ram pickup sales were up 23
percent over 2011.
Ford posted its best March sales in five
years with brisk sales of Fusion, Focus, and
Edge models that all set March sales
records. Even the F-Series pickups were up
9 percent as the demand for commercial
vehicles improves.
General Motors’ March sales of cars
and light trucks rose 12 percent, with sales
of its 12 vehicles that get 30 MPG or better
fuel economy reaching an all-time high of
more than 100,000 units sold.
Kia had its best-ever March sales record
of 57,505 units sold and is up 31.8 percent
on YTD sales. Kia’s affiliate company,
Hyundai, also had a record March on sales
of 69,728, up 13 percent.
Audi posted its 15th consecutive
monthly sales record in March and its thirdbest
month ever in the U.S. German
automakers BMW and Mercedes-Benz
both posted positive sales in March, with
BMW sales up 17 percent for the first
quarter.
Mitsubishi Motors North America
reported sales of its Outlander Sport CUV
at 1,634 units in March, the best single
month since the model was introduced in
October 2010. At the New York Auto
Show in early April, media and
consumers viewed the first Outlander
Sport manufactured in Normal, Ill.
Nissan had its best-ever sales month
in March, up 12.5 percent on sales of
more than 136,300 vehicles. Subaru had
another record month and Toyota had its
best March since 2008 on sales of more
than 200,000 vehicles. And
Volkswagen was also a winner, with
increased sales of 35 percent, the
company’s best March sales since 1973. n
Page 10 May 2012 Parts & People www.partsandpeople.com