New owners settle in at Ford, Nissan dealership

Each generation has focused on the same thing, he noted. “The one thing instilled in all of us is that the community takes care of us, and we take care of the community,” he said.

Much of the care taken is literal — Underriner prides itself on its service, for both customers and vehicles. So much so they immediately introduced a policy new to the Gorge: Every new vehicle, and used vehicles no more than five years old, come with lifetime power train warranty. “If you keep your maintenance record, and something goes wrong, you will be covered,” he explained. “Taking care of the customer is our No.1 thing. We stand behind what we sell, we stand behind our product.”

The warranty is a company-wide policy: In addition to dealerships for Hyundai, Honda and Volvo in Billings, Montana, Underriner Automotive also owns a Honda dealership in Washington’s Walla Walla Valley.

Although the Underriner dealerships are spread out geographically, regional management has worked well for the company. “We really empower our staff at our stores, and trust them to take care of our customers,” he said. In the Gorge, the dealership has more than 30 employees and associates.

Although new car availability was down during the pandemic due to manufacturing issues, Underriner has plenty of cars in stock. “We’ll take as many vehicles as we can, new and used,” he said. “Used plays a big role,” he added. “We have outlets to find more and more used vehicles. We’ll sell anything that meets our safety standards,” he said.

The used vehicle market, critical during the pandemic, still plays a big role as car manufacturers continue to have “hiccups in manufacturing,” he added.

With full lots of vehicles, new and used, Underriner suggests the community is in good hands in regards to their automobile needs. “You come in as a guest, you drive off as family,” he said. “Our job is just to help everybody.”