Rally to celebrate Kia grand opening

RALLY AUTO GROUP 866.906.9484

By: Jim Skeen

PALMDALE - A grand opening

ceremony will take place at 1:30

p.m. Thursday for Rally Kia, the

newest member of the Rally Auto

City officials, including Mayor Jim

Ledford, and representatives of

the Palmdale, Antelope Valley

Hispanic and Antelope Valley

Black chambers of commerce will

be on hand to celebrate with

Rally Auto Group President Larry

Mayle and his team. The dealership is at 438 Auto Vista Drive.

Rally Auto Group announced it acquired Antelope Valley Kia from Ricky

Clutter in January. The purchase price of the dealership was not disclosed.

The dealership was re-established on a six-acre site at 438 Auto Vista

Drive, a location twice as big as its previous home. The move was part of

a location re-alignment by the Rally Auto Group that included putting all

its General Motors brands together. The group also owns a Hyundai

dealership, which already has its own building.

The new dealership can hold between 400 and 500 cars on its lot. The

showroom accommodates six vehicles at a time.

Kia’s North American sales set a new company record in 2010 with

356,268 cars sold, an increase of 18.7% over 2009.

The company attributed its sales growth to the introduction of four new

vehicles: Sorento, Sportage, Optima and the five-door Forte. The

company said the new designs have “attracted new and more affluent

customers to its showrooms.”

Globally, Kia sold more than 2 million vehicles in 2010, an increase of

26.5% over 2009, the company reported.

Rally Kia is the newest member of the Rally Auto Group, joining Rally

Buick, GMC, Cadillac and Hyundai. Other auto dealers in the Palmdale

Auto Mall include Robertson’s Palmdale Honda, Antelope Valley Nissan and

Antelope Valley Volkswagen. The Palmdale Auto Mall boasts more than 25

brands and more than 3,000 cars to choose from. Palmdale Supercycle, at

38910 Carriage Way, offers a wide selection of motorcycles.