Runde Ford Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Manchester has added a new face to its sales team: Tanner Goodwin! Tanner, who is originally from Maquoketa, lives in Dyersville, IA. He enjoys spending time with his three sons, Zander, Sealey, and Oliver, and his girlfriend, Ryan. He also has a 4-year-old corgi named Buddy. “I try to spend as much of my spare time as I can with my family,” Tanner says. “On my days off I’ll try to get the motorcycle out. I also enjoy cooking.” While he has never sold vehicles for a living, he has dabbled in buying, selling, and trading. “I always wanted to work at a dealership, I was at a point in my life that I could take the opportunity so I [...]

As part of National Teen Driver Safety Week, Ford is focusing on helping the newest drivers on the road learn safe driving skills. The automotive brand has invested $60 million in the cause with its Ford Driving Skills for Life program, which teaches newly licensed and teen drivers the necessary skills for safe driving beyond what they learn in standard driver education programs. Hands-on training clinics (along with web-based curriculum) focus on four key areas that are critical factors in more than 60% of vehicle crashes: Hazard recognition Vehicle handling Speed management Space management Sign up here to be notified when a free hands-on training event is near you. Vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for teenagers in the United States, which is [...]

Automakers like GM, Ford, and FCA have joined in to help fight the Coronavirus by partnering with other corporations to address shortages of face masks, ventilators, and other medical equipment. GM and Ventec Life Systems, in cooperation with StopTheSpread.org, are collaborating to increase Ventec’s production of respiratory care products, according to this press release. “We are working closely with Ventec to rapidly scale up production of their critically important respiratory products to support our country’s fight against the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Mary Barra, GM Chairman and CEO in the press release. “We will continue to explore ways to help in this time of crisis.” Using GM’s logistics, purchasing and manufacturing power will aid Ventec to build more of the respiratory products that are needed across the country during the pandemic. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) is manufacturing and donating more than 1 million protective face masks per month. The masks are to be donated to police, [...]

The all-new 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 is set to go on sale this fall! With a supercharged 5.2-liter V8 engine producing more than 700 horsepower, the vehicle is capable of 0-60 mph in just over 3 seconds. “A takedown artist, the new 2020 Shelby GT500 will surprise supercar owners with its Ford Performance racing tech, supercharged engine, and visceral swagger,” said Jim Farley, Ford President of Global Markets, in a press release. The first Shelby GT500 was recently auctioned off for $1.1 million to benefit the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Craig Jackson, chairman/CEO of Barrett-Jackson, was the winning bidder. The vehicle is the most powerful street-legal Ford ever with sub-11 minute quarter-mile scores. It has the best cornering and largest brakes of any domestic sports coupe. “With its supercar-level powertrain, the all-new Shelby GT500 takes the sixth-generation Mustang to a performance [...]

We were very fortunate to welcome back a familiar Runde customer today.  Victoria Thiede-Knipper and David Knipper purchased a Chrysler Town & Country van from Runde Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep about 3 years ago and they’ve been very satisfied with the van since that time.  So when they recently found themselves in need of a new truck, they contacted Runde’s in Manchester again.  Runde Auto Group takes pride in its repeat business as it’s quite common for a satisfied Runde customer to return to purchase a 2nd, 3rd, or 4th vehicle from Runde’s.  The Knipper familey was put in touch with Sean Dailey in the Ford Sales Department and Sean was able provide them with a quick and easy transaction as he helped them find their new F-150 crew cab truck.   In Victoria’s [...]

Needless to say that this new design for the new Ford Fusion has been very well received at the Chicago Auto Show this week and people’s comments have been very favorable toward it.  The video below was shot by Runde Auto Group  — The noise in the background of the vid was coming from the new Shelby Mustang presentation across the room and we’ll post the video of that soon.  People were definitely all a-buzz about the Shelby, but this new Fusion is definitely gorgeous. The new Ford Fusion design is only about 1 inch longer and 1/2 inch wider than the previous Fusion, but it looks a lot longer than its predecessor mainly due to an extended wheelbase that’s almost 5 inches longer than the 2012 version.  A new inline 4-cylinder 1.6 Liter EcoBoost engine will be available on the all-new Fusion.  And this optional turbo engine will produce 179 horsepower and 172 lb-ft [...]

Mankind has learned how to fly… this car is driving itself! Don’t throw out the “yep, crazy” card, yet, as Ford technology has transformed the most frustrating and feared part of Driver’s Ed into an every day driving a breeze. Parallel parking is forced to dethrone itself from the “champion of driving challenges” when facing the new Fords that come with Active Park Assist. Ford Park Assist is a hands free technology that uses an ultrasonic-based sensing system and electric power-assisted steering (EPAS) to position the vehicle for parallel parking, calculating the perfect steering angle and quickly steering the vehicle into a parking spot at the touch of a button. Here’s how you’ll be using it: You will activate [...]

There’s a new taxi in town … and it looks a lot like a Ford Transit Connect.  Taxi cabs are a huge part of big city life. Those of us from the Tri-States have probably been, at some point or another, to downtown Chicago (or another big city – if not you should really get out more…). Walking down the sidewalk and glancing at the traffic on big city streets, you probably think “glad I’m not driving in that mess of cars.” Chances are that you have experienced crazy taxi drivers — I know I have.  Several taxi drivers that I’ve witnessed don’t much care for the laws of the road as they almost hit pedestrians.  Since when does a red light mean go anyway?  Just as 30 is the new 20, red must be the new yellow in Metropolis. If you’re thinking about going back to Chicago in the near future, you’d better be [...]

The 2010 Ford Raptor was build for the true off-road enthusiast.  Check out this video that shows the dynamic capabilities of the truck.  Jamal Hameedi, chief engineer of the Ford SVT comments on the truck’s ability to jump (the truck was actually built to jump) and he also touches on the trucks Hill Descent Mode.   Runde Auto Group’s customer, Brian Hauber, took this footage of his new 2010 Ford Raptor going down a hill in the Hill Descent Mode. I think it’s safe to say that he loves his new Raptor so far.     If you’d like to check out a new Ford truck in person, please give our sales staff at our Ford store a call at 888-927-2630. If you’d like to check out our entire inventory, go to www.RundeAutoGroup.com — Or call us at 866-735-5200.

For those of you who think that social media is just a fad that will disappear in the years to come, well … uhhh … you might have another thing coming.  In the car business you often get a mixture of old school thought vs. new school.   Yesterday, this really seemed really apparent when we asked one of our senior salesmen to help provide us with a customer of his that we could interview for the blog.  His response was: “No.  Actually, I can’t wait ’til that thing (the blog) goes away.”  In the past couple years, social media has become what it is and at Runde’s we have tried to embrace it for the positive.  We run a good business and word of mouth has always been one of the cheapest and best forms of advertising.  So we figure, we’ll interview customers and ask them what they thought of their experience at Runde’s.  It’s [...]

Ford Syncing is definitely a new thing.  With all of the technology that has been heaped on our generation over the past few years, sometimes it’s hard to keep up with all of the awesome new “stuff”.  He’s that guy. The one that nearly avoids getting into an accident because he’s on his cell phone. In honesty, YOU are probably that guy or girl sometimes yourself — I know I am occasionally. Safety is very important while driving.  I’m quite confident that using a cell phone and texting while driving won’t exactly put a smile on your parents’ faces. It’s a good thing that now you can do those distracting activities you find yourself doing, time and time again, without putting your, or any other, life at danger thanks to Ford Syncing. Released in over twelve of the 2008 Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles, the Ford Sync lets those who opt for the system to wirelessly [...]

Recently Ford had quality studies performed by the 3rd party RDA Group that confirmed what we’ve always known … that Ford builds top-notch vehicles.  According to the results, Ford is even with Toyota in initial quality tests and they passed up Honda by a significant leap. The results show that in the first quarter of 2009, problems-per-vehicle dropped by 5% to compete head-to-head with Toyota and beating Honda. The latest GQRS survey measured 2009 model year vehicle initial quality in the number of “things gone wrong,” and customer satisfaction within the first three months of ownership. The following is a list of vehicles that were used in the tests and what was tested for each vehicle. • Ford Mustang- initial quality/customer satisfaction for sports cars • Ford Taurus [...]

Michael Steiner from Potosi Wisconsin is one of the nicest college students I have ever had the privilege of getting to know. Recently, Michael sat down with me for a quick interview so that any wide web surfers like you could get to know him a little. Alright Michael, so why don’t you start by telling us what brought you to Runde’s today? I bought a Ford Focus. What led you to that car? Mine kind of went out on me. The price was right and the miles are right for the Focus.  It’s a good car. What are you going to use the car for? Pretty much going back and forth from school to work. Why did you look to Runde’s instead of other dealerships? A couple days ago I drove through all the lots in Dubuque and Lancaster, WI.   Turned out that Runde’s had a couple of cars that caught my [...]

Today I sat down with Carmen Grawe, from Manchester, Iowa who recently bought a used truck from us. She was in the Dubuque area visiting her sister and she was kind enough to stop by the Runde Chevrolet dealership and take some time to tell us about her family, her life, her experience at Runde’s and anything else she wanted to share.   Hey Carmen, thanks for taking some time out today for the interview! So I hear you bought a vehicle from Runde’s recently, what did you end up buying? We bought a very nice used truck – it’s a blue granite Chevy Silverado 1500 from the Manchester store. Oh, so you bought the vehicle from our Ford store, did they have the Chevy vehicle shipped up to [...]

It goes without saying that families want to be assured their loved ones will be protected in the event of a vehicle collision.  Well, Ford Motor Company has developed an insert to measure abdominal injuries on a crash-test dummy that represents a 6-year-old. Made out of silicone, the test dummy is made to study the effects of seat belts in auto accidents. “The major focus [of crash tests] has always been on head and chest injuries,”Ford safety engineer Steve Rouhana said. “We really didn’t have the technology before to accurately measure abdominal response.” Current tests use seat-belts that may be too large for children that have grown out of a child-safety seats (usually around the age of 8). The new silicone dummy can measure the penetration of the seat belts going into the child’s abdomen. Ford studies the results and looks to improve seat-belt designs. In addition, Ford is offering the technology to other manufacturers [...]

What is Ford MyKey?  Well the following article will try to answer that question as clearly and concisely as possible.  As our society continues to grow, it seems like safety is a number one concern. From safety on the Internet to safety in your vehicle, there are safety upgrades integrated in almost all facets of life. Ford takes no exception to this rule as seen by the announcement of optional safety features available on the upcoming 2010 Ford Focus. Options like the teen-monitoring Ford MyKey system (see video below for more info) and Ford’s automated parking system will be available as options  in the Escape, as well as the Escape Hybrid that go on sale this summer. Ford is aiming to spread these features across the board of their available models. While other vehicles, such [...]

As we move forward into the future, things change. You get a Mohawk .. your dad unveils that he is superman … or you come home to the pleasant surprise of your dog having an all-you-can-eat buffet of anything and everything in the house. Changes can be big or small, and lately, in the automotive industry there have been several changes. Beyond the scope of any economic woes, one big development in the automotive industry in the last couple of years has been the concept and implementation of electronic and hybrid vehicles.        A quick lesson about Hybrid and Electric vehicles: Electric cars – 100% emission free – secure their power from batteries, the sun or hydrogen fuel cells. Being able to pull power from other sources; they are definitely more efficient on gas. Hybrid cars – Combine the cleaner energy of the electric motor with the long-range power of the gasoline engine. Not as efficient [...]

American auto makers have been thrown under the bus quite frequently over the last few months by members of the media and by members of Congress.  However, Runde Auto Group urges you to seek out factual information about the American auto makers before casting judgment.  Please take a few minutes to look over this brief quiz to see how much you’re actually aware of! QUESTIONS: 1. What country builds vehicles that occupy two of the top three spots for long-term reliability? Germany Japan Korea United States 2.  As of August ’07, which manufacturer had the most recalls in the U.S. that year? Chrysler Ford GM Nissan Toyota Volkswagen 3.  What brand in this group has the highest initial quality?                 Acura  Chevrolet  BMW Mazda 4.  Which of the following mid-size sedans has the highest initial quality? Accord (Honda) Altima (Nissan) Camry (Toyota) Malibu (Chevrolet) 5.  Which of the following pickups has the highest initial quality? [...]

Every wonder what are the safety leaders or the safest vehicles on the market?  The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) ran their annual tests on the 2009 model year vehicles. For the first time in history, they have been able to pick at least one vehicle in every class. The tests are based on 11 categories, including front side, reach crash test rations, and whether or not the vehicles have standard or optional electronic stability control. Here are Runde’s Safety Leaders!! Large Cars  Ford Taurus — Optional AWD, 28 MPG, and standard stability control Midsize Cars  Ford Fusion — Optional AWD, 29 MPG, optional stability control Large SUVs  Buick Enclave & Chevrolet Traverse — 7 or 8 passenger, FWD-24 MPG, AWD-22 MPG, 3.6-Liter V6, 6-speed automatic transmission with overdrive Midsize SUVs Ford Flex & Taurus X — 7 passengers, 3.5-Liter V6, FWD-24 MPG, AWD-22 MPG, 6 speed automatic transmission with overdrive Ford Edge — [...]

Ford is planning the world debut of the all-new 2010 Ford Fusion for November, at the Los Angeles International Auto Show in November. There will be five models of the Fusion, making it customizable to any consumer’s needs.A 2.5L 4-cylinder is available in the base model. The 172 horsepower engine is expected to have more power than the Toyota Camry, and outdo the Camry and the Honda Accord in fuel economy.The midlevel Fusion is powered by a 3.0L V-6. This engine is capable of 240 horsepower (250 hp with E85). Ford is also working on a fuel shut-off system for deceleration.The Ford Fusion Sport runs on a 3.5L Duratec V-6 (also found in the new Ford Flex) that also adds 240 horsepower. The all-new Fusion Hybrid is just around the corner. It can run [...]

The results of the U.S. Global Quality Research System (GQRS) study revealed that Ford is now the best in the industry for customer satisfaction in the 2008 model year. The survey was conducted by RDA Group in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, and is composed of survey statistics from owners of all major makes and models after owning them for at least 3 months.  Ford lowered their “things gone wrong” (TGW) rating by 7.7% (reduced by 108 TGW) compared to last year, and are statistically even with Honda and Toyota.  From 2004 to 2008, Ford has improved their vehicle quality by a total of 33%.  Customer satisfaction reached 77%, which is the highest in history.   The Ford Focus has caught up to the Toyota Corolla, leading the compact cars category.    Overall, 18 of 24 Ford domestic brand vehicles improved in their TGW count, and they are striving to continue the trend. They have improved [...]

Our Manchester location, Runde Ford has received it’s first Ford Flex crossover! Our Flex SEL is a Front-Wheel-Drive 3.5L V6 automatic. It has leather trimmed bucket seats, power driver seat, and keyless entry. It also has Sirius Radio and Microsoft’s Sync Multimedia Handsfree Bluetooth software installed, which allows the driver to say an artist’s name or song title and it will play it from an MP3 player automatically. The Ford Flex also provides the capacity to talk on a blue tooth cell phone without even touching it. It will dial using voice commands, and will automatically connect to a current phone call as soon as the vehicle is started. It can also connect to up to 12 phones, so if your spouse has the vehicle that day, it will recognize his/her phone as well. Check out the Flex Video Walk-Around!   Please contact the Runde Ford sales staff at [...]

Employee pricing is back at Runde Ford in Manchester.  Ford currently is offering its truck customers the chance to purchase or lease an ’08 model year pickup for the same price that Ford employees pay. This is a move from Ford that we haven’t seen in a couple years and it’s a great opportunity for truck buyers to save a bundle and get into a brand new Ford truck.  From now just through June 30, Ford’s Employee Pricing Program is available on 2008 model F-Series pickups, including the F-150, F-250 and F-350. (Ford stated that the current employee pricing program doesn’t include the Harley Davidson series or any chassis cab models).   I know that Ford gives it’s factory employees one heck of a perk when they buy new vehicles, so to open this up to the public again definitely is big, big news! The F-Series has been America’s best-selling truck for 31 years. So [...]