Diehl Automotive Group, with stores spread across western Pennsylvania and one in eastern Ohio, has acquired its first Ford and Hyundai dealerships.
Diehl Automotive, of Butler, Pa., on May 4 bought Preston Ford of Sharon and Preston Hyundai of Sharon, both in Sharon, Pa., from Preston Auto Group.
Terms were not disclosed, but the dealerships have been renamed Diehl Ford of Sharon and Diehl Hyundai.
“They’re two great brands and it helps diversify us as well,” Matt Diehl, the group’s vice president, told Automotive News. “It’s just a great opportunity to partner with more OEMs.”
The stores are located across the street from each other in Sharon, near the Ohio border and northeast of Youngstown, Ohio.
Diehl Automotive now has nine rooftops in western Pennsylvania and Ohio. The rest of its brand portfolio includes Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, Mitsubishi, Toyota, Volkswagen, Buick, Chevrolet and Cadillac.
The Ford and Hyundai dealerships are the group’s first acquisitions since 2018, when it bought a Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram store in Salem, Ohio, Diehl said.
“We’re comfortable with the size we are, but we’re definitely in the acquisition mode,” Diehl said, noting the group also bought two standalone collision centers in the past six months.
Diehl Automotive is led by CEO Corina Diehl, who is Matt’s mother. In November, she was recognized as one of the 2020 Automotive News 100 Leading Women in the North American Auto Industry.
Blair Sharpe of the Tim Lamb Group, a dealership buy-sell company in Columbus, Ohio, represented the seller in the transaction.