This hasn’t been the best of years for CDK Global, but it got some good news Monday.

Sonic Automotive, one of the nation’s largest dealership groups with more than 100 locations in 24 states, has extended its agreement with CDK to provide its dealerships with the CDK Dealer Management System and Dealership Xperience Modern Retail Suite, the automotive retail software company announced in a news release.

“The automotive retail industry is constantly evolving, and we are committed to providing our teammates and guests with cutting-edge tools that make the vehicle search, purchase and service processes as seamless as possible,” Sonic chairman and CEO David Smith said in a news release.

“Extending our partnership with CDK gives us access to forward-thinking innovation and scalable solutions to support that commitment and drive our business forward.”

CDK said the partnership allows Sonic to “leverage CDK artificial intelligence features to better engage with consumers,” touting its predictive modeling to forecast customers’ tendency to buy based on specific purchase cycles, machine learning to help anticipate potential vehicle service opportunities, and the new CDK AI Virtual Assistant designed to give consumers “hyper-personalized, human-like engagement” with sales and service departments.

“CDK is uniquely positioned at the center of the automotive ecosystem,” president and CEO Brian MacDonald said, “and our relationship with Sonic Automotive is a testament to the great work our team has done to help their dealerships thrive and grow with confidence as we invest to constantly evolve our solutions for our rapidly changing industry.”

In June, CDK, which is used by the majority of U.S. franchise dealerships, was the victim of a ransomware attack that shut down its dealership software for two weeks, disrupting operations for thousands of dealerships and costing the retail industry more than $1 billion, according to the Anderson Economic Group.

Many of the major U.S. dealer groups, including AutoNation, Asbury Automotive Group, Group 1, and Lithia & Driveway, cited the CDK outage as a major cause of weak financial results in their second quarter earnings calls.

During Sonic’s Q2 earnings call in August, Smith said the outage cost the company $22.2 million in net income and 3,000 sales for the quarter, which ended June 30, and said its dealerships “continued to experience operational disruptions” throughout July.

Chapman launches Ford Pro Elite Commercial Service Center

Chapman Automotive Group announced it has opened the nation’s largest Ford Pro Elite Commercial Service Center in Scottsdale, Ariz.

The 115,000-square-foot facility caters to the parts, service and sales needs of commercial fleet operators. It offers extended hours six days a week, 48 oversized service bays, after-hours drop-off services, motorhome hookups to provide overnight power for customers who need extended service, and seven mobile service vans for off-site maintenance and repairs.

Chapman Automotive said its new facility can service all makes and models, including Class 1-7 commercial vehicles and electric vehicles.

The company said Chapman Ford Pro is a “one-stop shop,” with vehicles for sale, as well as charging, software, financing and service. It’s designed to improve productivity, increase uptime and potentially lower the cost of ownership for businesses of all sizes.

Elite Commercial Service Centers are part of a new network of dedicated large-bay service hubs at Ford dealerships nationwide. Ford Pro said it plans to open more than 100 of the centers by 2027.

“We’ve heard from Phoenix businesses that they needed more options to help keep their vehicles up and running, and we’re responding by meeting their needs,” Chapman Ford general manager Steve Countryman said. “Our Ford Pro Elite Commercial Service Center has longer hours, better training and equipment, bigger service bays, mobile service options and can service nearly any vehicle – all to help our customers keep serving their customers.”

In a news release, Chapman cited a 2023 whitepaper from commercial vehicle data provider Noregon that found more than half of commercial fleets reported two or more unscheduled maintenance events per month, with vehicles out of service for about two days on average.

“Ford Pro knows vehicle downtime means lost revenue,” Ford Pro Service Elite GM Anne Mazzacano said. “Together with Chapman Automotive Group, we’re working to keep vehicles on the road by combining exceptional service with advanced software to improve uptime and potentially lower costs.

“Our goals are 100% uptime and for a customer’s vehicles to be down for the shortest time possible. And Elite Commercial Service Centers will help deliver on those goals for commercial customers in Phoenix and beyond.”

Ford Pro said it was the first to market with vehicle services fully dedicated to commercial and government customers, with more than 650 specialized Commercial Vehicle Centers in the U.S. The Elite Commercial Service Center program an extension of that network, launched in January 2023.