McLEAN, Va. -

If franchise dealers want some face-to-face contact with top automaker executives, the National Automobile Dealers Association emphasized they have potentially more than two dozen opportunities at its annual Convention & Expo in San Francisco next month.

In all, the association indicated 24 dealer franchise meetings are scheduled in just two days at the NADA event. And NADA said seven automakers — Chrysler, Ford, General Motors, Kia Motors America, Mitsubishi Motors North America, Subaru of America and Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A. — will be exhibiting on the expo floor.

“It’s a must for dealers to attend the franchise meetings to set goals and objectives for the year,” implored Ed Tonkin, the 2010 NADA chairman.

“The franchise meetings provide dealers with access to top automaker executives in a forum they can find no place else,” Tonkin continued.

“In our collective race back to prosperity, the NADA convention provides a tremendous opportunity for dealers and automakers to meet and discuss ways to rebuild the industry,” he added.

NADA’s 94th annual convention runs Feb. 5 to 7 at the Moscone Center in San Francisco.

In addition to the dealer franchise meetings, NADA noted J.D. Power and Associates will present its annual International Automotive Roundtable on Feb. 4. The topic is “Surviving to Thriving: What it Takes to Win (Big) at Retail.” Sergio Marchionne, chief executive officer of Chrysler, is the scheduled keynote speaker.

The association went on to highlight that Tonkin, who serves as vice president and general counsel of Ron Tonkin Dealerships in Portland, Ore., will join the J.D. Power roundtable panel. That group also is set to include Mark Reuss, president of GM North America; Ernst Lieb, president and CEO of Mercedes-Benz USA; and Bob Carter, Toyota Division’s U.S. group vice president and general manager. Mike Jackson, CEO and chairman of AutoNation, is set to moderate the panel.

On Feb. 5, Tonkin will deliver NADA’s chairman address at the general session followed by keynote industry speaker Jim Lentz, Toyota’s U.S. president and chief operating officer. Stephen Wade, incoming 2011 NADA chairman, will speak at the general session on Feb. 7.

Meanwhile on the expo floor, NADA said GM will showcase new programs and tools for dealers. The association added GM is also planning to display two Chevrolet Volts, one as the 2011 Motor Trend Car of the Year and the other will showcase its charging stations.

“The NADA convention provides an opportunity for us to hear directly from dealers about the issues that matter most to them,” stated Jim Bunnell, GM’s general manager of U.S. sales operations.

“We are able to talk to a large number of dealers, answer their questions and share news about our business plans and performance,” Bunnell stressed.

Bunnell went on to add that GM executives from Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac will share their 2011 business, product and marketing plans with the dealers at the meetings.

NADA also shared what Ford is preparing for the event.

The association indicated Ford plans to exhibit its key products, tools, equipment and services for dealers from several of its business units. The Ford exhibit also is set to include interactive elements tied to the Super Bowl, which is on Feb. 6, and the company’s support of World Rally racing.

Ken Czubay, Ford vice president of U.S. marketing, sales and service, also stressed the NADA convention “allows our leadership team to spend time with dealers and discuss the state of the business.

“We’ll continue to share information and engage in dialog with our dealer partners about the progress we’re making on our transformation plan and the opportunities and challenges in 2011 and beyond,” Czubay continued.

“Continuing to focus on dealer profitability through growing our sales and market share and enhancing the customer experience is a top priority for us,” Czubay asserted. “On the Lincoln side, we will continue to work with dealers to execute our transformation and growth of the Lincoln brand.”

For more information about the event, visit www.NADAconventionandexpo.org.