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New Mercedes-Benz Dealer Coming To The Woodlands


JLWM8609

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I'm a member of the Mercedes-Benz Club, and one of the members told me that a new MB dealer is supposed to be coming to the Woodlands, possibly by the end of this year. If I remember correctly, some dealership group out of Louisiana is supposed to be the one who'll run the dealer, and it would be located either across the freeway from the BMW dealer or the VW dealer. Has anyone else heard of this?

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I'm a member of the Mercedes-Benz Club, and one of the members told me that a new MB dealer is supposed to be coming to the Woodlands, possibly by the end of this year. If I remember correctly, some dealership group out of Louisiana is supposed to be the one who'll run the dealer, and it would be located either across the freeway from the BMW dealer or the VW dealer. Has anyone else heard of this?

 

That is amazing considering it will bring the total in the area to six by my count: Star on Old Katy Road, M-B Houston Greenway on the Southwest Freeway, M-B Sugarland, Alex Rodriguez in League City, M-B Houston North on I-45 at FM 1960 and now in the Woodlands. It seems the last two are pretty close together. There must be quite a bit of anticipated sales volume in Montgomery County for Mercedes-Benz North America to grant this franchise.

 

Star is the only dealership that sells other than the Mercedes-Benz brand; Volvo, Lotus, and Aston-Martin though Alex Rodriguez does retail their Sprinter commercial vehicles (vans).

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That is amazing considering it will bring the total in the area to six by my count: Star on Old Katy Road, M-B Houston Greenway on the Southwest Freeway, M-B Sugarland, Alex Rodriguez in League City, M-B Houston North on I-45 at FM 1960 and now in the Woodlands. It seems the last two are pretty close together. There must be quite a bit of anticipated sales volume in Montgomery County for Mercedes-Benz North America to grant this franchise.

 

Star is the only dealership that sells other than the Mercedes-Benz brand; Volvo, Lotus, and Aston-Martin though Alex Rodriguez does retail their Sprinter commercial vehicles (vans).

 

A. Rod got bought by Group 1 Automotive a few months ago. It was owned by A. Rod and Jerry Glauser. Group 1 came in and cleaned house management wise. They're now Mercedes-Benz of Clear Lake. Of the 6 MB dealers in Houston, 3 will be independently owned (Star, Woodlands, Sugar Land), while the others are owned by Auto Nation (Greenway, North) and Group 1 (Clear Lake).

 

I remember when there were only 3 MB dealers in Houston. Intercontinental Motors, Star Motor Cars, and Norman Scott. You probably remember when the recently departed Helmut Holder's MB dealer was still in operation.

 

Intercontinental became Charlie Thomas Intercontinental, and became MB North in 2000 after Kenneth Schnitzer Jr. sold it to Auto Nation. Norman Scott became Park Place, moved to Greenway Plaza, and became MB Greenway in 2000 after Kenneth Schnitzer Jr sold it to Auto Nation, too.

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I remember when there were only 3 MB dealers in Houston. Intercontinental Motors, Star Motor Cars, and Norman Scott. You probably remember when the recently departed Helmut Holder's MB dealer was still in operation.

 

I just ran across Mr. Holder's obituary in the Chronicle yesterday (just now catching up on the past couple of Sunday papers). I didn't know him personally, but I certainly knew of him. A tremendous loss to the community. What dealership did he used to run? 

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I just ran across Mr. Holder's obituary in the Chronicle yesterday (just now catching up on the past couple of Sunday papers). I didn't know him personally, but I certainly knew of him. A tremendous loss to the community. What dealership did he used to run? 

 

It was called Helmut Holder Mercedes-Benz. It opened in September 1964 at the corner of 59 and Fountain View. Sometime along the line, he opened up an independent shop. At his memorial service, there were laminated copies of the Houston Chronicle from the day the dealership opened. I think it was the first MB dealership in Houston. The buildings still stand today. The showroom is still there as a used car dealership, and what I think was once the service area is now the Firehouse Saloon.

 

Helmut was a rare jewel among mechanics. He worked on my "youngtimer" MBs and it's going to be hard, if not impossible to find a mechanic as thorough and with the know-how that he had. One of the Mercedes Club members told me a story of how he took his 1966 230SL to him. Helmut looked at the floorpan and asked the owner if the car had been to a certain European country, I think it was Switzerland. The owner said yes and asked him how he knew. Apparently, the floorpans had been fixed in a manner that was unique to the bodyman in Switzerland, and Helmut recognized the work.

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It was called Helmut Holder Mercedes-Benz. It opened in September 1964 at the corner of 59 and Fountain View. Sometime along the line, he opened up an independent shop. At his memorial service, there were laminated copies of the Houston Chronicle from the day the dealership opened. I think it was the first MB dealership in Houston. The buildings still stand today. The showroom is still there as a used car dealership, and what I think was once the service area is now the Firehouse Saloon.

 

 

IIRC Mercedes-Benz automobiles were sold through Studebaker dealers in the late 1950's. By 1964 Studebaker was all but dead. Many of the first Mercedes-Benz dealerships afterwards were of the same type as Mr. Holder's; independent repair shops that had experience with the brand. I also recall reading about a similar dealership in Ohio started about the same time.

 

Everyone who knew him probably has a great story about Helmut Holder. I'll keep it brief and just say he talked me through a minor repair on my 1967 Mercedes-Benz sedan over the phone! "Reach down the side of the engine block just below the manifold. Do you feel a nut there?"

"Yes."

"OK, get your 10 millimeter socket and place it on the nut . . ."

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That is amazing considering it will bring the total in the area to six by my count...M-B Houston North on I-45 at FM 1960 and now in the Woodlands. It seems the last two are pretty close together. There must be quite a bit of anticipated sales volume in Montgomery County for Mercedes-Benz North America to grant this franchise.

 

BMW has dealerships on 45 at 1960 and just south of 242, both of which are Autonation stores.  Neither seems to be hurting for business.

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There must be quite a bit of anticipated sales volume in Montgomery County for Mercedes-Benz North America to grant this franchise.

 

I think that might be the Exxon Mobil effect. More people with the salary to afford new MBs will be moving into the area. I think the E-class may soon become the Toyota Camry of north Harris and south Montgomery Co.

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