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The day after the Super Bowl is for talking about the big game at work, recanting the crucial plays, and maybe best of all discussing everyone’s favorite Super Bowl Commercials.  This year there were some pretty powerful spots; including two from Nissan, one controversial ad from Nationwide Insurance, a PSA by coalition No More, and several others.  Serious was the name of the game, and we were right in line with our three spots on NBC – WRDE. Our spots were based around thanking our valued customers of the Delmarva area and beyond.  Our message even got picked up by those at Edmunds.com, who wrote an article about us and what we were trying to accomplish.  Our commercials spots also got great reception with people liking, sharing, and commenting on them via Facebook during and after the game.  Some of the top comments included things like, “THAT is a GREAT commercial – thank you!” and “What an awesome local commercial from Preston Frogz!”  We were even able to use pictures and video of local people in the ads.  Whether it was military or EMS personnel or members of the community at our various events, we got to connect our message back to them.  You can view all three of our spots below or on our Preston Frogz YouTube page. Thanks for supporting us Delmarva!

It’s that time of year again for the big game – Super Bowl XLIX.  As you know this game will be played between the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks on Sunday February 1, 2015.  We know there will certainly be a ton of viewers glued to their televisions on Sunday night.  Last year 167 Million people watched the big game, making it the most watched television broadcast in U.S. history, overtaking the Super Bowl from two years prior by approximately 200,000 viewers.  Bottom line, this year’s game is projected to set a new record and advertisers have certainly taken notice. Historically, people watch the broadcast for the Super Bowl Commercials as much as the actual game sometimes.  The commercials have been getting funnier and more creative each and every year.  This year Preston Automotive Group will have three Super Bowl Commercials featured on NBC – WRDE.  We were inspired this year by the service men and women in our communities.  From Firefighters to Police Officers, EMS to Military Personnel, we wanted to form our message around you; thanking you for everything you do for us.  We created Preston Cares in order to convey this message to you. Preston Cares is our way of saying thank you to our local community.  It is because of you that we are still in business.  “Our customers give so much to us that we are happy to give back to the community,” says Dave Wilson, Preston Automotive Group President, “We were excited to produce these special Super Bowl Commercials to thank all of you on Delmarva and beyond.”  Not only do we love our customers, we love our local communities and try to be involved as much as possible.  Preston Cares supports the local communities that each of our dealerships live in.  From Little League Baseball teams to Supporting the Fight Against Breast Cancer, we truly believe that together we can do more. So, when you see our Super Bowl Commercials this year be sure to remember that you, our valued customers, are of key importance to Preston Automotive Group’s success.  Thank you again!

The entire Eastern Shore of Maryland and Delaware is bracing itself for brutal temperature drops tonight.  We’re here to give you some tips and things to think about with the sub-zero temperatures looming. First of all you’re going to want to avoid unnecessary exposure to the freezing cold.  Be aware of both the actual temperature and the wind chill factor when preparing to go outside.  Remember that most of your body heat is lost through your head so wear a hat – and preferably one that covers your ears.  Covering your hands with gloves is also recommended; however, mittens are better.  Also, dressing in layers will insulate you better if you’ll be outside for an extended period of time. Now, to homeowners, these sub-zero temperatures could create havoc if you are not prepared.  Freezing pipes are one of the most troublesome things for homeowners when the temperatures drop.  To protect your home’s pipes from freezing and bursting you can do several things.  For one, let the cold water drip from your faucets that are served by exposed pipes or pipes in exterior walls.  By letting the water run even at a trickle, it helps prevent freezing because the water that is flowing must – if only slightly – be above freezing.  And you’ll want to be sure you know how to shut off water valves in the event of a burst pipe. Another thing to remember is to close your crawlspace vents.  This will ensure a minimal amount of the cold, outside air to get into your home.  And usually pipes run through crawl spaces so by keeping them shut off to the frigid air, you take another precaution to help prevent freezing pipes. Outside the house, be sure to disconnect water hoses and make sure those faucets are not dripping.  You could even seal up the area around the nozzle with a cap to prevent cold air from traveling inside the house through the pipe. As for pets or livestock, you should obviously keep them indoors.  Pets such as cats and dogs should be kept in the house.  Whereas livestock such as chickens, cattle, and horses should just be kept under some sort of shelter whether it be a coupe for the chickens or stables for the horse and cattle. All of these tips should be taken into consideration tonight and throughout the winter.  However, tonight into tomorrow you should take extreme caution because a Wind Chill Advisory is in effect from 9 PM to 9 AM for almost every zip-code on the Eastern Shore.  The real temperature for Preston is expected to be 9°, and with the wind chill it will feel like -6° overnight on January 7, 2015.  Be safe and take the necessary precautions tonight.

The Preston Automotive Group had a huge month of December in 2014 with many of our dealers having their best month of the year.  Preston Hyundai had the best December in their history.  Preston Mazda made December the best month of their calendar year.  And of course Preston and Denton Ford reached our highest ever ranking at #5 in the Country for December Sales and #72 in the Nation for Year to Date Sales.  With all those cars going out the door, you know we have a ton of trade-ins that came onto our lot.  Over 400 vehicles in fact!  Such a large Pre-Owned inventory means that we need some kind of sale to get rid of it all.  So, the Preston Automotive Group would like to announce the Surplus Sell-Off Sale! So, we took a look at a list from CarGuru.  They ranked the most searched-for used vehicles of the entire year of 2014.  We cross referenced that with our larger than life inventory and here’s what we came up with! The car they ranked number one was the Jeep Wrangler.  A more than capable and proven off-road vehicle, the Jeep Wrangler was the most popular pre-owned vehicle of 2014.  We have nearly 20 of these Wranglers at our various Preston Automotive Group locations throughout the Eastern Shore.  We have all different model years and trim levels too. Next on the list was the Ford F-150.  Out of all our locations, we have over 50 Pre-Owned F-150’s at excellent prices!  From the basic XL models to the Harley Davidson Customized Edition, we have many different pre-owned F-150’s.  During our Surplus Sell-Off we are going to get rid of these best-selling, American trucks at unbelievable prices, so don’t miss it! Third on CarGuru’s list was the Chevrolet Silverado.  We don’t have quite as many of these, but the 11 that we do have are top notch.  Most of these Silverado’s are at the Preston Autoplex, although we still have some at Boulevard Georgetown and Millsboro Automart.  Click the link to check them out! Another Chevy vehicle comes in as the fourth most popular used car in 2014: Chevy Camaro.  These cars just scream FAST!  We have two great looking Camaro’s at the Preston Autoplex located in Hurlock, Maryland, at the intersection of routes 318 and 331. Next up is the Toyota Camry as we do not have any Dodge Chargers at the moment.  The Camry is one of the safest, most-reliable sedans in the world and we have five of them spread out between our various locations; including an amazing Internet Special that is discounted more than $7,000 from MSRP located at our Boulevard Georgetown location! Next on the list is the Ford Mustang – a speedster we sell a TON of!  We have Mustangs as new as model year 2013 and we even have a GT500.  They are American Classics and you could get a pre-owned ‘Stang at FIVE of our locations: Georgetown, Lewes, Millsboro, Pittsville and Preston.  And all of our locations are participating in the Surplus Sell-Off Sales event during the month of January and beyond The Honda is a brand known for long-lasting vehicles and fuel efficiency, so next up on our list is the Honda Accord.  At the moment we have nine used Honda Accords at our various Preston locations.  They are great economy cars, which is why they made our list of most popular used cars of 2014! The last car to make the list is the always reliable Nissan Altima.  We have a Surplus of Altima’s at many of our Preston Automotive Group locations.  From Georgetown, Delaware, to Preston, Maryland, we have the Pre-Owned Nissan Altima for you! So, check out any of the links above or go straight to our website to view every single car we have at www.prestonmotor.com.

Veterans served our country with selfless fortitude.  Whether it was in the First World War, Second World War, Korean War, Vietnam War, or any other war in our history, the Veterans of our Armed Services have been the ones keeping us safe; so today we salute them. Did you know that Veterans Day was first called Armistice Day back in 1919?  Armistice of course means an agreement made by opposing sides in a war to stop fighting; in other words, a truce.  The first celebration of Armistice Day, November 11, 1919, marked the one year anniversary of the end of WWI, and was put in place to applaud those who risked their lives in that war.  However, it wasn’t made a federal holiday until 1938.  And in 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower amended the holiday to include all veterans. Did you know that Veterans Day wasn’t always on the 11 th of November?  It started out as the 11 th, as previously stated, and is currently the 11 th but wasn’t always like that.  For a period of ten years, from 1968-78, Veterans Day was changed to the 4 th Monday in October.  The petty reason for that was to give Federal Officers a three day weekend.  Today, all Federal Offices and most schools are off in observance of Veterans Day. Did you know that Veterans Day in the US is shared with many other country’s celebrations.  There were 19 countries that fought with the Allies in WWI and most – if not all – have celebrations on November 11 th to honor their Veterans.  For instance, this year, the UK is celebrating 100 years since the start of WWI with a big ceremony and moment of silence in London. Finally, did you know that many places give out Military Discounts to Active Duty Members and Veterans on Veterans Day?  This year restaurants such as Denny’s, Olive Garden, and others are giving out free or discounted meals to Veterans with Military ID’s.  Specifically here at the Preston Autoplex we have a $500 Military Discount that we run every day on every car on the lot.  It is just our small way of saying thank you to the men and women that serve, and have served, our great country.  Happy Veterans Day!

Tired of uneven roads, potholes, road work, icy roads, or even shoveling snow?  Love clean/sustainable energy, job creation across the country, and new technology?  Well then you should know about Solar Roadways.  This idea made its way out to the internet world earlier this year with a video entitled Solar FREAKIN’ Roadways.  Since then, this video has gotten more than 18 million views and has educated even more than that. You NEED to watch this entire video to get a grasp on all that can be done with Solar Roadways.  There are tons of little things you don’t think about that will go along with this new roadway technology, and all those things are explained in the video. This is already a big project but it is going to be something huge by the time it is done.  So far, engineering couple Scott and Julie Brusaw have gotten funding from the Federal Highway Administration for $750,000.  They have also raised over 2 million dollars from regular people like you and me on a crowdfunding website called Indiegogo.com.  This “thing” is actually happening, and hopefully people, municipalities, and towns will be willing to try it.  If they try implementing it in smaller places like parking lots, driveways, and bike paths first, then law makers and other influential people will see how well it works and hopefully get behind it in order for it to grow.  As a matter of fact, this is not the only attempt at a solar panel roadway. Just last week in Amsterdam, Holland, they converted a 70 yard stretch of bike path into solar panels named SolaRoad.  They did not use the hexagonal design that The Brusaws came up with, but the idea is very similar.  It is said that up to 2,000 commuters will walk and bike on the path every day.  Back here in America, The Brusaws have already built a prototype parking lot on their property in Sagle, Idaho, and have many projects set up to start for businesses all around their hometown in the near future. It is things like the bike path in Amsterdam and the parking lots The Brusaws are building with the FHA grant that will get this energy revolution moving along.  There are tons of advantages to this type of system.  The biggest one was pointed out toward the end of the video above; Solar Roadways, if implemented on all major highways in the US, would generate 3X’s the amount of energy we currently use.  It would also create an amazing number of jobs for engineering, construction, and maintenance of these systems for now and throughout the future.  It will help prevent accidents with its pressure system; warning you of something stationary on the road ahead.  There are countless benefits and of course some obstacles but nothing that is insurmountable. People are getting excited about this revolutionary idea.  It could be upon us sooner than we think too.  Scott Brusaw says, “With this team in place, we hope to finalize the product for market by the end of this year.”  That doesn’t mean all the roads will be replaced immediately, but it is coming.  Soon enough we will all be driving on these new Solar Roadways.

There’s more to CPO’s than what initially comes to mind.  The misconceptions that a Certified Pre-Owned car is the same as a used car could not be further from the truth.  In this article, you will learn the many advantages to purchasing a Certified Pre-Owned vehicle. The main reason can be simply stated – the warranties.  Each Mazda Certified Pre-Owned vehicle comes with a confidence-inspiring 12-month/12,000-Mile Limited Warranty.  That comes with absolutely no deductible on covered repairs, which begins when the factory warranty ends.  If the vehicle is out of warranty, then the Limited Warranty begins on the CPO purchase date.  This gives owners peace of mind knowing that if something goes wrong you will be covered within the first year of owning your Certified Pre-Owned vehicle. Another warranty you get with all Mazda Certified Pre-Owned vehicles is the outstanding 7-year/100,000-Mile Limited Powertrain Warranty.  This covers a variety of things all stemming from the parts that “make your car go.”  The engine, transmission, and drivetrain (the components that get the engines power to the wheels) are all parts that are encompassed by the Powertrain Warranty.  It doesn’t cover things that are expected to be replaced regularly, though.  Parts such as the clutch, brake pads, or certain belts will not be covered because they are considered regular maintenance. A third advantage to a Certified Pre-Owned vehicle from Preston Mazda is 24-Hour Emergency Roadside Assistance.  Certified Pre-Owned buyers – even qualified family members – are covered 24/7 with the complimentary Emergency Roadside Assistance Program for the duration of the Powertrain Warranty.  Clearly, the aim of CPO’s is to give owners peace of mind without paying for new car prices. Mazda also requires a 150-Point Detailed Inspection.  Each Certified Pre-Owned vehicle goes through a mandatory inspection.  This is performed by a factory-trained, Mazda technician right here on site at the Preston Mazda Service Building. Buyers also get added confidence with an Autocheck Vehicle History Report and 3-Year Buyback program.  In order to make sure you know exactly what you are getting into, each Mazda Certified Pre-Owned vehicle comes with a full Autocheck.  This is basically the same thing as a Carfax – it reports previous owners, accidents, repairs, and more.  It also comes with 3-Year Buyback Protection from Experian. We’re still not done!  There are other advantages, such as the Available Extended Coverage.  There are various available term and mileage intervals to extend the coverage of your CPO vehicle.  Finally, owners have Transfer Benefits with a Certified Pre-Owned Mazda.  When the time comes to sell your Certified Mazda, it will look even more attractive to potential buyers because the Limited Vehicle and Limited Powertrain Warranties are transferable to future owners – at no cost! Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles bring about a great sense of relief and confidence even though you are technically buying a used car.  CPO’s, as you can tell, are miles above any regular used car. Interesting Fact: Not all dealerships have Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles! It’s easy to find a regular used car on any dealership lot because they are constantly getting traded in.  However, finding dealers that offer Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles is less common.  But here at Preston Mazda in Hurlock, Maryland, we have a great selection of Mazda CPO’s, which you can check out on our website!  Not only do we have Mazda, but we also have Ford, Hyundai, and Nissan Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles.  Our selection is incredible so be sure to check it out!

It’s November and the cold weather is setting in on Delmarva and around the country.  Cold weather can bring about some things that make life more difficult.  Knowing this, I’ve put together a list of life hacks.  I’m sure most of you have seen the various life hacks that show up on your Facebook news feed every now and then.  These life hacks are all about how the cold weather affects you and your vehicle. Put some hand sanitizer on your car key if the lock is frozen. If you still must use a key instead of a fob to unlock your car, then this is a good one for you.  Any amount of moisture that gets trapped in your car lock will freeze on a cold night.  So, squeezing some hand sanitizer directly into the lock will melt the ice because of the alcohol content of the sanitizer.  You could also apply it to your key and insert it into the lock.  Either way the alcohol will break down the ice and unfreeze it. Park your car facing east to defrost the windshield. Overnight your car is sure to accumulate some frost or ice on the windshield when the weather gets close to or below freezing temperature.  Parking it facing the east will enable the morning sun to clear some of the ice off before you actually come out to do it yourself before you leave for work.  Depending on how bright the sun and how long your car sits in the sun, you may not have to even scrape any ice off at all.  Now, that would make for a good start to the day! Carry a little bit of kitty litter in your car all winter long. If you get stuck in the snow this little life hack will come in handy this winter.  Say you’re tires are spinning in the snow; you’re stuck.  Sprinkle a bit of kitty litter in front of each tire in order help you gain traction.  The next life hack is a little extension of this idea.  Also it may not be a bad idea to keep a small shovel in your car during the winter months to help dig you out of some tight spots when kitty litter just won’t do the job. As a last resort use the car’s floor mats to help you get traction. If you don’t have kitty litter, salt, or a shovel, you can take your car mats off the floor and lay them on the ground in front of the drive tires to gain traction.  This may damage your mats, so this should be used as a final resort. Stick your windshield wipers up off the glass to prevent ice from sticking to them. Anytime you are not using your car, pull the wiper blades up so they stick out perpendicular to the windshield.  This way they will not become frozen to the windshield if it were to snow.  This is great to do overnight or even when you’re parked all day at work.  Ice can damage your blades over time and could even scratch your windshield if you were to try to use the wipers with ice stuck to them. Ice-proof your car by misting a 3:1 mixture of distilled vinegar and water before a storm. This will prohibit ice from forming on any surface that you spray.  You will still have to clean the snow off, but at least there will be no ice underneath!  And if you forget to do this before the storm, you could spray the mixture directly onto your icy windows to melt the ice. Finally, don’t leave electronics in your car. The cold air will drain the battery without even using them.  If you usually keep your iPod in your car for music while driving; don’t.  The battery will almost surely be drained the next time you get in.  Especially don’t leave more expensive electronics in there like your laptop, tablet, or phone.  This may do more than drain the battery; it may actually have more lasting effects. Hopefully these cold weather life hacks will get you through the winter this year!

We are excited to announce the 2015 Lincoln Navigator is here at Preston Lincoln! There has been much anticipation over this vehicle and has some new improvements that people are raving about. On the surface, you can see the actual changes to the exterior.  The front end got the sleek, split wing grille that all Lincoln models now have.  It also got a full width taillight, which looks especially appealing.  Both exterior improvements make this luxury SUV even more alluring; and that’s even before you know what’s inside or under the hood. The interior of the 2015 Lincoln Navigator has many standard features.  One of the most exciting is the touchscreen infotainment system, which comes standard on both Navigator styles.  Similar to Ford’s “MyFord Touch,” Lincoln has “MyLincoln Touch.”  It is a very easy to use system that controls everything from music to seat temperature.  The roomy interior is also nice and can fit up to 8 passengers! Perhaps the most important improvement to the overall SUV is the engine.  Lincoln put a 3.5-liter V6 Turbo in this luxury SUV.  That replaces the outdated, gas-hog V8 from the previous model years.  This new, smaller engine will actually provide more power with a higher fuel efficiency.  This is exciting news for large families who need the space that this large SUV provides but would like to save money on gas still.  You could even fit your eight passengers in there while towing up to 9,000 pounds!  That is unrivaled in today’s Luxury SUV market. This is a fantastic vehicle, and we just received three on the lot yesterday! And guess what? One already sold! So, call us at (410) 673-7171 to schedule an appointment to see this majestic beast. If you miss the train on these two, have no fear because we will certainly be getting more in stock.  We also may have some at our Georgetown Lincoln location.  However, in order to know when all of that happens, you’ll need to follow us on Facebook, Google+, and Twitter for constant updates!

Several new laws went into effect in Maryland on October 1, 2014.  A couple of those laws will directly impact drivers in Maryland. The first one is referred to as Jake’s Law and it strengthens the penalties for distracted driving.  Anyone who texts or reads messages while driving and causes an accident that kills or seriously injures another will face up to a year in jail plus a $5,000 fine.  That will be in addition to any other violations you may get charged with such as involuntary man slaughter or reckless driving. This law was named after Jake Owen who was killed in a crash in 2011 by a driver who was talking on his cell phone and rear ended the parents’ car, killing the 5 year old boy who was in the back seat.  Its aim is to be an extension of the handheld device law that prohibits talking on your cell phone while driving. No matter how many laws are put into place, there will still be people that think they need to send that last message or make that quick phone call while driving.  Check out this powerful public service announcement regarding texting and driving. The other law concerning drivers in Maryland is an addendum to the Move-Over Law that is already in place.  You already know that you must move over or slow down for emergency vehicles on the side of the road.  That includes police cars, ambulances, fire trucks, etc.  And now you will have to move over for tow trucks as well.  This new law in will require all vehicles to move over into the next lane, or simply slow down if there is no lane to move into.  It's normally a common courtesy, but failure to comply will result in a minimum $100 fine or 1 point on your license. The common denominator between these two new laws is safety.  This is another step toward making our roadways safer here in Maryland and maybe even other states will follow our lead.  In the event you do get in an accident, trust Preston Automotive Towing to come get your vehicle and one of our three auto body shops to make the repairs at the best price around!

Vehicle recalls are something that happen more often than you might think, but owners may not always know their recalled vehicle needs to be repaired.  Just to be clear, I’m not referring to any major recalls like the Toyota sticking gas pedal incident or the Firestone tires on Ford SUV’s because of course those are recalls that everyone hears about on national news.  I’m talking about those smaller recalls that just about every car brand has at one time or another for things such as faulty airbags or switches for example.  So, it is just as important to know about the little recalls as it is to know about the larger ones because they are both threats to your safety.  And now there is any easy way to keep up on those threats with safercar.gov. Safercar.gov is a government website run by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration ( NHTSA).  This site exists solely to inform consumers on everything to do with vehicle safety.  From recalls, to investigations, even to common complaints – safercar.gov is the catch-all site to ensure you and your family are safe in your vehicle. There are a couple ways to see if your car is on a recall list.  You could search as specifically as the VIN number or as general as the vehicle year, make, and model.  Regardless of how dependable your make of car usually is, everyone should take a look at this site anyway.  It’s fast, simple and you have nothing to lose except about thirty seconds of your time.  However, if you do end up finding something about your car involving a recalled item, then I’ll bet you’ll be glad you checked.  And even more than that, taking a couple seconds to check for your car could save your life or many others. If you got your car, truck, or SUV from Preston Automotive Group and it turns out to have a recall, no matter how small or large, you can be sure that one of our three auto body shops – in Preston, Snow Hill, or Cambridge – will be able to help get you in-and-out and safely back on the road.

The National Insurance Crime Bureau announced its Hot Wheels report last week, the bureau’s annual release of the ten most stolen vehicles in the United States. The list features a perfect split between import and domestic automakers, with Honda’s Accord and Civic cars topping the list. Full-size pickups made up a considerable chunk of the list, taking the Nos. 3, 4 and 6 spots. Two other Japanese automakers also made the list with two from Toyota and one from Nissan. The following lists include figures with total thefts based on data submitted by law enforcement to the National Crime Information Center. NICB’s 2013 Hot Wheels Top-Ten Most Stolen Cars in the U.S. Honda Accord (53,995) Honda Civic (45,001) Chevrolet Pickup, Full Size (27,809) Ford Pickup, Full Size (26,494) Toyota Camry (14,420) Dodge Pickup, Full Size (11,347) Dodge Caravan (10,911) Jeep Cherokee/Grand Cherokee (9,272) Toyota Corolla (9,010) Nissan Altima (8,892) The report also included the top 10 model-year 2013 vehicles stolen in the same year. NICB’s 2013 Hot Wheels Top-Ten Most Stolen MY 2013s in 2013 in the U.S. Nissan Altima (810) Ford Fusion (793) Ford Pickup, Full Size (775) Toyota Corolla (669) Chevrolet Impala (654) Hyundai Elantra (541) Dodge Charger (536) Chevrolet Malibu (529) Chevrolet Cruze (499) Ford Focus (483)