Joey Logano, the three-time NASCAR champion, shares insights into his new venture as a part-owner of Huntersville Ford in North Carolina. He discusses the challenges facing car dealerships in 2026, including branding and customer service, while reflecting on his transition from racing to business. Logano expresses his passion for growth and learning, hinting at potential expansion in the auto retail space. The conversation also touches on the importance of relationships in business and the competitive spirit driving his partnership with the Krause Automotive Group.
In the second and final part of Automotive News’ interview with three-time NACSAR champion Joey Logano, he talks more about his ownership stake in with Huntersville Ford and whether he plans to be in the auto retail business for the long haul.
"...the Maverick's a great truck to start with, you know, but I think maybe having a couple options in that range would probably be good..."
The Ford Maverick is a small truck that is easy to drive and affordable. It's designed for people who want a practical vehicle without spending too much money.
The Ford Maverick is a compact pickup truck that was reintroduced in 2021, designed to be affordable and efficient, appealing to a wide range of customers looking for a versatile vehicle.
"...if you compare it to other OEMs, Ford probably has the most diverse portfolio of vehicles, compared to others..."
OEM means Original Equipment Manufacturer. It's a term used for companies that make cars and car parts that are sold under their own name.
OEM stands for Original Equipment Manufacturer, which refers to companies that produce parts and vehicles that are sold under their own brand name. In the automotive context, it typically refers to car manufacturers.
"...we raise some Mustang. So we do that. They'll be definitely branding at the dealership..."
The Ford Mustang is a popular sports car that many people love for its speed and cool design. It's often seen in car races and is a symbol of American muscle cars.
The Ford Mustang is a classic American muscle car known for its performance and iconic design. It has a rich history in motorsports and is often associated with speed and power.
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Hey, it's Daily Drive executive producer Jake Neer. Thanks for joining me for this bonus episode
of the show. Earlier this week, automotive news forward reporter Michael Martinez spoke with Joey
Legano, the three-time NASCAR champion, about his partnership with and ownership stake in
Huntersville Ford, a dealership in North Carolina. They talked about why Legano is maybe preparing
for life after racing, what he sees as the biggest challenge facing dealers in 2026,
and whether he plans to build his own auto retail empire. If you missed the first part of that
conversation, you can go back and check out Wednesday's episode. Highly recommend you do that.
Here's the rest of our own Michael Martinez's conversation with Joey Legano of Huntersville
Ford. You're into a lot of different things and you're curious about, you know, stuff beyond
the racetrack. I'm wondering if you could speak to that a bit. Where does that come from and what
drives you to do something like get into this business now? Well, I know at some point, unfortunately,
my driving career will come to an end. And the weird thing for an athlete is that happens that
usually about the prime is an executive of some sort, right? It's usually about the same age,
right? Around 40-ish, you know, plus or minus a few years. It's usually when a young professional
becomes, you know, kind of the top of their game. And as an athlete, that's kind of when you start
seeing the decline, right? So it's kind of, it's funny how that works. But I don't plan on being
that age and saying, I'm done and I'm gonna just go do nothing the rest of my life. Like,
that's not who I am. I hate that. I love growth. I'm fascinated with growth and just looking for
the next thing, right? How do I keep growing the next thing? I love learning new stuff and
especially things that I'm passionate about. So this is a natural fit, right? From that way,
that perspective, I think I just enjoy that type of stuff. I feel like it can bring so much to the
table and it'd be a waste not to use it. From your perspective, again, recognizing that you're
still sort of immersing yourself in the business, what do you see as maybe the biggest challenge
moving forward? Maybe not for you personally, but maybe for dealers in general, automotive retail
in 2026 and beyond. Are there any particular challenges, you know, you and Stacey are gonna
need to overcome here? Well, there's a complex question. What level do you want to start at?
You know, I think if you look at a micro way of, okay, what with our personal dealership,
you know, what's this year look like? Well, there's a, you know, a bit of a rebrand that's
gonna happen, right? It's kind of how do I, how do, from a branding perspective, apply
myself, but also keeping with what Huntersville Ford is known to do,
right? How do we make that piece of it better, more of a micro way of, like, from the marketing
standpoint? But I think if you look at the big picture and you look at the economy in general,
right, where is it going, right? What's, what's, good guess. I don't know who's to know. It changes
daily these days. So, yeah, I think really what you got to rely on is just good product and good
customer care. And if you think if we can, you know, take care of the customer side of it,
that's, that's our job. I believe is making sure that the customers are happy that they are treated
fairly, that we do good work and to their cars, their vehicles are running the way they're supposed
to. That's what we can handle, right? And, and we got to rely on Ford to make good decisions
with vehicles that are coming down the line. So, I think, you know, those are the two things that,
that, you know, we can control. And that's what we need to worry about, where the economy's going
and all that. We, I don't have the magic buttons to adjust that one, right? You can't control it.
So, you only worry about the things you can control. And to me, we only can control as a
dealership is, you know, quality service to the customers. That's the number one thing.
I love asking different GMs and dealer principles this question, because I think it
gives insight into their personality a bit. If you could call up Jim Farley and, you know,
wave a magic wand and have him add one product to the Ford lineup that you guys could start selling
tomorrow, what would it be and why? Yeah, I'd say, you know, a diverse portfolio is important
when it comes to bad ass cars. I am trucks. I think Ford's got everyone covered, right? Like,
everybody knows that when it comes to trucks and fast cars, Ford's got it covered. When it comes to
SUVs, I think they're fantastic. An affordable vehicle, smaller, right? And there is a few,
right? I mean, the Maverick's a great truck to start with, you know, but I think maybe having
a couple options in that range would probably be good, you know, just to have a more of a diverse
portfolio of vehicles. But I still think if you compare it to other OEMs, Ford probably has the
most diverse portfolio of vehicles, compared to others. Coming up more from automotive news,
Ford reporter Michael Martinez's conversation with NASCAR champion Joey Logano.
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Well, I know this might be a hard one to answer, but just curious about your
future. Are you content with this partnership at one store? Do you eventually hope to build your own
auto retail empire with multiple stores, or how do you think about that?
One step at a time. Again, I'm fascinated with growth, and I could see myself really enjoying
this business. I could see myself wanting to grow, but I also understand that I want to
walk before I run, and this is a great way to dip my toes into the water a little bit,
learn as much as I can. I got great partners with the Krause Automotive Group.
I don't know what I want to call Stacey. I know he's the manager. I kind of call
him my coach at times. I don't really know what I'm supposed to call him,
but I got a great helper there, helping me along. Partner, okay, that's probably the best thing to
say. At the moment, I'm content with what's going on, but you never know. Down the road,
there may be other opportunities to do more. The goal would be to all grow together. That would
be the ultimate goal. If things are working well, if it's not broke, don't fix it, but we can just
keep growing, and that would be great. But at this moment, we got to tackle the first giant
in front of us and then see where we're at after that. That's really most of the questions I wanted
to ask. I'm wondering if there's anything else you want to say about the business, about the
Krauses, about Stacey, or anything else you want me to know. I think it's mainly been enjoyable
for me, and I've really taken that as something really exciting to see the other side of the car
world. I feel like I've seen it as a customer. I've seen it as a race car driver, but I've never
seen it from the retail side before. That's been pretty fun to get to learn. But even more
importantly, the relationships that I've built over the last year are some really good people.
I think that's been probably the things that you take with you at the end of the day that
mattered the most. The relationships you build and being able to help each other and to again
grow together, that's been something that's been pretty special. Whether it's, like you said,
working with my partner Stacey, you know, even getting to know Zach and Vernon better and working
from, you know, seeing how their business is, it's obviously pretty big. So learning how that
all side of it works and how they operate has been very interesting to me as well. So it's been
fun to kind of learn that. They do it top notch. They're very detailed, which is great, right?
Because I'm coming from that, right? When I drive for Team Penske. So as you can imagine,
Roger is like everything is a certain way. And the Krause Automotive Group is very,
very similar to everything is done a certain way. Everyone acts a certain way. Their expectations
are super, super high. That's why the partnership I feel like is going to work because we all agree
that we want to be the best, right? Is that we're not there to collect a paycheck and walk away.
We're there to be the best. That might be the competitive fire in me. But the goal is to win.
To be the best there is out there. Be the best dealerships we can be. So
that's with the same attitudes and perspectives on what we want. That's how I know this will
be a winning relationship. You mentioned earlier, but I was just thinking you really are sort of
taking that, you know, win on Sunday, sell on Monday phrase literally, right? Like that's the goal.
One step deeper. Yeah. And then I guess just a last one quickly. And I apologize. I don't know how
advertising contracts and things work of that nature, but with the racing season coming up,
are we going to see a hundreds of Ford cap or jacket? Are you able to throw something on
the track or around the track? I technically cannot do that on the track. Obviously,
there's Ford branding all over our race cars. We raise some Mustang. So we do that. They'll
be definitely branding at the dealership, especially obviously Joey Logano branding and
some stuff that way. But as far as on the car at the moment, there is no plans of that. But I think
everyone will know as such, you have to see your interview. That's going to be the big moment,
right? Everyone's going to know that we're a part of it. And there'd definitely be some
social backing and some other marketing collateral that will also tell the story.
Thanks for listening to this bonus episode of Daily Drive. Come back on Monday for a brand new full episode of the show.
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