Car Dealers

The city has reached final agreement to relocate three car dealers from West Huntington Drive to a new auto row on Central Avenue north of the Foothill Freeway between Mountain and Shamrock avenues. Sierra Lincoln Mercury, Savage Mazda and Price Chevrolet will join Savage Hyundai and Sierra Honda-Pontiac at the new location.

Although it looks as if New Orleans will keep this season's Super Bowl, the NFL and car dealers were still working Tuesday to complete an agreement to switch dates. "It's not done," said David Hyatt, spokesman for the National Automobile Dealers Assn., whose annual convention is scheduled for the week of Feb. 3, when the NFL wants to play the Super Bowl.

New car dealers and independent automobile brokers, fierce combatants in the Legislature for nearly three years, abruptly called a truce Tuesday and agreed on a compromise bill that they touted as good for the consumer. The heavily amended proposal then whipped out of the Senate Transportation Committee on a 10-0 vote, as lobbyists for both sides voiced cautious optimism that the self-described "turf battle" over the California car market was at an end.

Car dealers are hoping the city will soon allow them to advertise by using balloons and banners without first having to apply for a zoning variance. Their hopes are based on action taken in Huntington Beach, which adopted a special ordinance last year allowing auto dealers to fly flags, banners and balloons without first receiving permission from the Planning Commission.

Officials from the National Automobile Dealers Assn. are again considering moving the date of their annual convention to allow the NFL to keep this season's Super Bowl in New Orleans. NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue met for an hour Monday with the group's president, Phil Brady, at NADA headquarters in McLean, Va. They agreed to continue their talks today. "It's premature to be pessimistic or optimistic about the outcome," NADA spokesman David Hyatt said.

The Simi Valley City Council has appointed two of its members to meet with the city's seven remaining auto dealers to try to help them survive the recession. Although the council acknowledged there may be little it can do, it selected Councilmen Bill Davis and Mike Piper on Monday night to meet with the dealers, who recently approached the city for assistance.

Faced with losing more of its car dealerships to auto malls in neighboring cities, Fullerton officials might offer incentives to keep dealers in town. City officials are drafting a plan that would create redevelopment areas around some of its existing auto dealerships, City Manager William C. Winter said. The plan will be ready for City Council consideration in about two months.

The automobile advertisements are aggressive. The slogans are simple: "Buy a car and get cash back." The image is effective: a shower of money. Now, city officials are considering using the same ploy--a cash rebate--to keep the city's 16 auto dealers from deserting Pasadena's Colorado Boulevard. The city, which receives $3 million in annual sales-tax revenues from its car dealers, faces stiff competition.

As long as car owners are required to obtain Smog Check certificates, car dealers should at least be required to obtain spellcheck certificates. Daniel Dobrin of Pomona, who formerly had a post office box on E. Mission Boulevard, received a note from Toyota that gave his address as "Emission" Boulevard. (see accompanying). * NO PLACE FOR JOGGERS: No, there's no Emission Boulevard in L.A. County. In Venice and Santa Monica, however, there is an Ozone Avenue.

Have wrench, will travel. Eager to inspire more customer loyalty in an increasingly competitive marketplace, Toyota Motor Sales USA and General Motors have recently begun testing a service that could save some consumers a trip to the mechanic. Late last year, Toyota of Glendale became one of only three Toyota dealerships in the nation to participate in a pilot program in which some light auto repairs, especially warranty and recall work, can be done at the customer's home or office.