Electric vehicle sales will be coming to Lynch Ford-Chevrolet in the future.
The dealership has applied to be a Model E Certified Elite program for Ford dealers, and improvements will be completed this summer to cater to the new sales market.
John Walz, president, said the dealership was offered the option of enrolling in the Model E certified program, the Model E Certified elite program or decline enrollment and not have the ability to sell or service electric Ford Vehicles.
“We decided to enroll in the Certified Elite program at the end of last year because that gives us the ability to stock and sell an unlimited amount of Model E vehicles, as opposed to the Certified program which limits us to 25 Model E vehicles a year,” Walz said.
Walz noted that electric vehicles are going to be a large part of the future of the automotive industry. Estimates are in the next eight to 10 years, most new vehicles manufactured will be electric.
“We want to be Eastern Iowa’s preeminent electric vehicle dealer,” Walz said.
The cost for Lynch will be in the $1 million ball park. That price tag will help add a new transformer to handle the increased electric usage, boring to run lines underground to the buildings on the Lynch dealership, as well as installation of public use charging stations, added electric panels and services inside the store, and chargers for vehicles that will be on the lot.
“We are required to have three level 3 DC fast chargers, six to eight level two chargers and multiple NEMA standard chargers throughout the dealership,” Walz said. “Training expenses for both our sales team and our service technicians will also be a major investment to meet requirements and be able to fulfill customers’ needs and expectations.”
Walz said there is a lengthy lead time to acquire all the equipment needed for the improvements to Lynch Ford-Chevrolet, but people might see construction happening late summer or early fall.
“We are excited to be a part of the future of electric vehicles and we are proud to be able to offer sales, service and charging options to our customers and the community who decide that they want to own an electric vehicle,” Walz said.
Electric vehicles coming to Lynch Ford-Chevrolet
February 9, 2023
About the Contributor
Nathan Countryman, Editor
Nathan Countryman is the Editor of the Mount Vernon-Lisbon Sun.