Fort Myers Toyota named January 2010 Automotive Youth Educational Systems (AYES) Dealership of the Month

Online, March 3, 2010 (Newswire.com) - MEDIA CONTACT:
Pamela Templeton or Maria Cid
(239) 938-2800
[email protected]

FORT MYERS, Florida--February, 24, 2010-- Fort Myers Used and New Car Auto Dealership, Wilfred Templeton, and Service Director Gary Meyer of Fort Myers Toyota, "The Family Store," have been named January 2010 Automotive Youth Educational Systems (AYES) Dealership of the Month.

Mr.Gary Myers has worked for Fort Myers Toyota for 16 years and in that time the service department has expanded from just six technicians to 94 technicians and increased the number of service bays to 105. Fort Myers Toyota Service department is ranked number one in customer-paid repairs in the Southeast Toyota 5 State region and is a consistent leader in customer satisfaction (CSI) scores for large dealerships.

The AYES program that partners with participating automotive manufacturers, dealerships and select automotive programs is designed to encourage young people to start careers in retail automotive service and prepare them for entry-level career positions or advanced studies in automotive technology. Active program affiliations exist nationwide in nearly all states and they have over 600 instructors.

Lee County High Tech Center Central became affiliated with AYES in 2001 and has employed about 20 AYES interns since then; three of which are still working at Fort Myers Toyota. Says Meyer, "I do much less hiring off the street, since I don?t know their training or background. I get pretty much all our entry-level techs through the program. With the AYES students, though, I know the quality of training they receive [at Lee County High Tech Center Central] with Marc."

Says Pamela Templeton, Vice President of Fort Myers Toyota, "The interns we employ from AYES have such a great opportunity here because they receive a high-quality education. Some of them even go on to work full-time here. We're really proud to have them with us." She refers to Zach McClure, an expert-level technician, and Gerardo Marines and Jayson Obando--two mid-level technicians who are working on their Toyota certifications.

Meyers also remarks that Fort Myers Toyota is heavily involved with AYES because they want to see these students succeed and become great technicians. He believes all dealerships should take advantage of AYES for the quality of technicians they produce.

About Ft. Myers Toyota:
Fort Myers Used and New Car Auto Dealership, Fort Myers Toyota is located at 2555 Colonial Blvd, on the big corner of Colonial and Fowler in Fort Myers Florida just west of I-75 exit 136. Ft. Myers Toyota can be found online at www.FmToyota.com, or you can call toll free at 1-888-802-9401.

Ft. Myers Toyota, "The Family Store", has been serving Southwest Florida, Naples, Fort Myers, Port Charlotte, Estero, Bonita Springs, Venice, Sarasota, and Cape Coral since 1988.