Switching DMS - Dealer Solutions

[kubeld]

We are real close to switching our DMS from ADP to Dealer Solutions. I was hoping to get some feedback from this forum on this company (If anyone has looked at them closely). Their product is quite exciting but it's hard to make a switch of this magnitude to a company that has only been in the marketplace for 2 years. I'd appreciate any feedback.

[Chuck Hartle]

Everything I see points to Dealer Solutions having the first "real" NT Server environment for automotive dealerships. After spending some time around their booth at NADA in San Francisco, I did become a little disturbed by the amount of activity (a lot) and the lack of support to follow up. I hung around the booth for 20 minutes and didn't have anyone come up to me and talk with me.
Rumor has it that Galpin Ford (the largest Ford dealer in the world in Los Angeles and also a part owner in Dealer Solutions) has several full-time Dealer Solutions IS people on hand as they migrated in the fall of last year.
Personally, I think they need just a little more time to perfect what they have. In what I saw you can surely save yourself some monthly fees by switching to Dealer Solutions but you will be replacing that with an IS department or person to control the NT environment, especially for the larger dealerships.
After migrating to the ADP 9200 and assisting in several upgrades to the 9300 computer systems for ADP, I personally wouldn't change.
While both Dealer Solutions and ADP are the only two who offer an open architecture at this point for the systems, ADP's programs are still a cut above. Dealer Solutions seamless integration between departments is slick, but I still give the edge to ADP. A 9300 system just installed at a client's sight with the 500 Mghz board was as fast as you will ever need your system to be. I selected a 35,000 name file in less than 3 seconds and to select 30,000 part numbers was a second.
You have to ask yourself one question; Is it worth it to migrate a entire dealer group or dealership from a system they have been used to for years? In the environments I have been involved with, the money saved in one system doesn't solve the problems that were there with the other system.
In conclusion, I feel that ADP, ERA, UCS, and Dealer Solutions all have something that can benefit the dealership, but is it worth it to make a complete change to another system from a employee population standpoint? I have seen too often recently where IS people make the computer decisions for an entire dealer body while not having a clue what true impact it will have on the dealership body. Many dealers are hiring IS people who are good with NT and a PC environment but don't have any experience or expertise in how a dealership is run. The smart dealers will consult with the IS people for the performance issues but the upper level management should still get intimatly involved in the purchase process to avoid a disaster.
Bottom line, my 2 cents for what it is worth and knowing little about your environment... Stay with ADP...

Chuck Hartle'

[kubeld]

Thanks Chuck. I appreciate the feedback.
The main point that stands out in your reply - Are we willing to change the entire dealer body (We have about 100 users) in order to have the NT enviroment.
I went to Galpin Ford to see Dealer Solutions in action and was impressed in some areas (Sales, F&I) but looks like the software lacks alittle in Backend products. I know there were some real headaches as Galpin converted but I hope that this was a lesson for Dealer Solutions and they only get better.
As I've shoppepd the competition (ADP, Dealer Solutions,R&R), I have found that they all can do pretty much the same thing in one way or another. The problem I have is that the big guys will nickel and dime you to death for expansion or new software. Everything you want has a huge price tag.
We're just getting tired of the high prices for ADP and R&R while everything else in the computer industry keeps falling.
Dealer Solutions has very competitive prices along with complete freedom of choice. That can be very enticing.

Thanks again for your reply.

[Mike Davis]

I have a question on thi sissue that many may be able to answer. Reynolds is phasing out the TV965 and will no longer provide hardware support on them beginning in August of this year. The choice that they are giving us is to either migrate to Links terminals or PC's. We are thinking that when the lease expires on our current system that we may want to go onto a PC based system and want to at replace our terminals (as they die) with PC's that are compatible with the current NT server systems that are out there. Does anyone know what the requirements are for the PC Networks being sold currently (speed, ram, etc)?

Thanks


------------------
Mike

[Chuck Hartle]

Hi Mike,

This one I can help answer for you. We migrated to the ADP 9200 over a year ago and with that migration we converted almost all of our dumb terminals to PC's.
The new ERA system, from my knowledge of it, is just like the 9200 system, in that it has the capibility to telnet. This means you can buy low end PC's with NICs (Network Interface Cards) and connect your PCs to your mainframe. We now have over 40 PCs as terminals in our dealership. Only the mechanics have dumb terminals, and parts advisors have the Bell & Howell terminals. They work wonderfully and besides having the capability to work with software such as Excel and Word, we can create multi-sessions for everyone who has the PC. It has revolutionized the way we do business and increased our productivity to a degree that I can't begin to explain.
As you begin to examine and negotiate for your new system, make sure to get plenty of telnet sessions (ports) to support PC based terminals. I took the number of employees less mechanics and multiplied by 3 to cover enough memory and ports to allow growth and flexibility. All too often the mistake is made to get just what you need and then you pay a higher price and get "nickled and dimed" to death by R&R and ADP as you expand your growth. Look down the road the next 10 years and try to envision any growth. My experience with the speed and capabilities of the new mainframes are you will not be buying a new box every five years, you will only upgrade the processor and the size of the box.
Chuck Hartle'

[jotwell]

Any advice for a medium size GM dealer (25 computer users)looking to change computer vendors? We currently have the "Advantage" ADP system. This is the old AutoTell system out of King of Prussia PA. We are very tired of ADP's extra charges for everything while some basic parts of the program do not work. We have a NT 4.0 network set up and are running the ADP programs through a Reflection2 emulation screen. I am looking for a server based software product that I can load on my existing server. Thanks for your help.

[This message has been edited by jotwell (edited 04-17-99).]

[kubeld]

Jotwell,

Take a close look at Dealer Solutions - they have a software package called Carman. It's Windows NT based. If you already have a network setup in the dealership a transition to this product might be rather smooth for your dealership. Especially if your users are used to the PC enviroment. The one glaring problem I see with Dealer Solutions is there lack of experience in the industry (They've only been selling the product for 2 Years) It's worth a look.

I've done some extensive investigation on their system - E-mail me if you have any questions.

[Kevin Kavanagh]

Having both sold and assisted dealers with the purchase and use of computer systems let me add a couple of thoughts. Generally speaking we would recommend a dealership stay with their current vendor unless there is a compelling reason to switch. A compelling reason should NOT be I want PC's. Chuck is correct in many area's. Swithcing to any new vendor has to include a cost of change. This number is determined by how many people are effected and your current utilization. In addition many of the PC based systems are fairly new, such as Dealer Solutions(DS). While DS is a viable platform and solution it is first generation software. What this means and is typical of many of the PC vendors is that the software may be limiting to what you do today. Be very careful to check not only what a new system can do, but also what it can't do. In the areas of manufacturer communications and information (vehcile, warranty, parts,svc. op-codes, etc)you may actually move backwards and need additional personnel. I am NOT saying that ADP, R&R and UCS are your only choices! What you need to do is objectively, if possible, look at your business, processes, utilization and future direction to determine which tools (computers) will best help you get there.

Be careful what you wish for as you may get it! Managing a local PC network (LAN) for a single dealership is much simpler than a Wide Area Netwotk (WAN) for multiple buildings or locations. You will have to have readily accessible PC network support for a NT environment. In addition you may need access to system trainers, operations literate software and process people to help you achieve the greatest results from technology.

Getting nickeled and dimed by the vendors creates an opportunity. Changing your entire environment creates a new set of challenges that can significantly impact your business. Feel free to contact me if you'd like to discuss this further.

[This message has been edited by Kevin Kavanagh (edited 04-23-99).]

[This message has been edited by Kevin Kavanagh (edited 04-28-99).]