WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) – Walk into a new AutoNation dealership here and you’ll find more than just a pot of coffee on a hot plate, rigid chairs and some stale doughnuts.Customers at the gleaming new $40 million Lexus of Palm Beach can browse for cars or wait for an oil change while noshing on biscotti at an Italian-themed cafe, surfing the Web at a computer station with free Internet access, taking a load off in a massage chair and ogling a 500-gallon aquarium.Open for about two months, Lexus of Palm Beach is biggest in the family of dealerships owned by AutoNation Inc., the nation’s largest auto retailer. The Fort Lauderdale-based company is betting that customers looking for an upscale car like a Lexus will be drawn to luxuries usually found in expensive hotels or restaurants, such as marble floors, flat panel TVs in waiting areas, and valet parking.It’s also a clear attempt to lure customers amid a sales environment made difficult by the troubled housing market and tighter credit conditions.”The goal is to create a destination for luxury buyers,” AutoNation President and Chief Operating Officer Mike Maroone said at a “grand opening” Tuesday. “There’s a lot of stress in the economy. Fortunately, a number of the luxury buyers, I won’t say are immune from that, but are not as impacted the way our entry-level buyers would be.”The 180,000 square-foot facility – built on the site of a former mall that’s just down the street from an older Lexus dealership – holds 700 vehicles, including 25 in the showroom. The repair shop has 67 service bays and is air conditioned, and the technicians’ lounge has a flat screen TV – perks than benefit the workers behind the scenes.”That makes a big difference in the ability to draw talent,” said Cliff Brush, the dealership’s general manager.Sales have increased due to the new facility, Brush said. In November, the new store sold 335 vehicles, up from the 199 vehicles sold at the older dealership in November 2006, Brush said.Lexus, Toyota Motor Corp.’s luxury division, rewards dealers that make such large investments to help them offset some costs. By the end of 2008, about $1 billion will have been spent in remodeling or building luxury Lexus dealerships over a three-year period in the U.S., said Mark Templin, group vice president and general manager for Lexus.While the dealership is unique for South Florida, it’s not alone nationally in offering perks. Herb Chambers Lexus in the Boston area has wireless Internet and a children’s playroom, while Fletcher Jones Mercedes Benz in Newport Beach, Calif., provides an airport shuttle and free car wash, even for customers who aren’t having a vehicle serviced.AutoNation is building seven different luxury dealerships, though none are as large as the West Palm Beach location, Maroone said.Edward Yruma, a JP Morgan analyst, said many auto manufacturers have been seeking facility upgrades. He said AutoNation has not incurred much risk with such an expensive dealership, partly because the luxury car segment has not been as significantly affected as others, and also because the West Palm Beach area is wealthier than most.”The premier brands are looking for premier facilities,” Yruma said. “All of the auto retailers have showpiece stores where they have sunk a lot of capital into them.”Chris Denove, a vice president for J.D. Power and Associates, called the move a gamble because it’s not guaranteed that AutoNation will get enough business to justify the added expense of the amenities, possibly forcing it to pass some costs to customers.He noted that some people will drive longer distances to check out the dealership, while others may not care about the added amenities, preferring to get their loaner and leave rather than sit in a massage chair while their car is being fixed.”It’s easy to sit back and think that Lexus buyers will pay,” Denove said. “We find every day in our research that luxury buyers are the most aggressive, price-sensitive buyers on the market.”Also, while the amenities add to the experience, any car buyer can attest that the experience can be ruined if they don’t like their salesperson, regardless of the brand or retailer.”Based on our research, although the facility can impact customer satisfaction, the interpersonal dealings between the customer and the staff trump everything,” Denove said.Maroone agreed, saying the goal of salespeople is to make customers feel at home.”It’s all interconnected,” Maroone said. “Certainly it’s based on personal relationships. The facility facilitates that kind of attitude and culture.”Despite some risk, Denove said AutoNation has a good chance to make the dealership work.”AutoNation has a good track record and Lexus is a great brand to do it with because it has very loyal customers,” Denove said. “If I were a betting man, I would gamble that it would pay off at the end, but it’s a close call.” News source: AP. Google