The Auto Gallery revs up for summer showroom opening

San Fernando Valley Business Journal, March 19, 2007 by Chris Coates

The only Porsche dealer in the San Fernando Valley is expanding its Woodland Hills showroom in time for a summer opening.

Construction started about four months ago on the first-phase addition to The Auto Gallery at 21301 Ventura Blvd., near Canoga Avenue.

Harry Gray, dealer-owner and co-president, said the project should be ready in June or July and will measure 2,800 square feet.

The two-story, glass-lined showroom will face Ventura Boulevard and Comercio Way, next to the dealership's existing showrooms and body shops.

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Gray said the renovation has been in the works for years but was mired in a lengthy city approval process.

"We have been scheduling a renovation and expansion according to Porsche corporate identity and standards for five years," he said. "Zoning took four years."

The addition is part of an 8,800-square-foot expansion of the facility, which includes a new Audi showroom. That portion is still awaiting approval from the city.

"We're continuing going through permits," said Gray, whose company also operates a Maserati and Ferrari dealership in Calabasas.

The Porsche expansion comes as the American car market rides through a particularly treacherous period in sales, especially for luxury car sellers.

Porsche--which sells the 911 Targa 4S for $99,320 out the door--has seen its sales take a significant dive. In February, the German carmaker sold 2,071 vehicles in North America, 26 percent lower than the year-ago period.

However, Porsche vehicles are holding their own in California, where the 911 was the third most-popular sports car sold in 2006, said Brian Moss, a spokesman for the California Motor Car Dealers Association. Overall, 2,816 911 s were sold in the state during the year, representing a 10.8 percent market share, he said.

Gray took over the Auto Gallery in 2001. It is the only Porsche vendor in the San Fernando Valley and one of handful in L.A. County. The Porsche dealer closest to them is Rusnak/Westlake in Thousand Oaks.

BY CHRIS COATES

Staff Reporter