Folsom Lake Ford, Folsom Lake Kia use RecovR to keep track of cars

Installation of the tracking units takes just minutes. They’re placed in all vehicles after they arrive at the dealerships, located about 25 miles northeast of Sacramento. The Peterson family owns the stores; the dealer principal is Chuck Peterson, Jon’s father.

Customers who want the technology pay an upfront fee for three years of location service, which is renewable through the dealership. If customers don’t want the technology, the device is removed, Jon Peterson said.

“The beauty of it is we don’t pay for the devices upfront,” he notes. “We only pay for them after we sell them.”

Dealerships set their own prices according to their markets, said Christopher Schouten, marketing director for Kudelski and RecovR.

“We see price ranges from $599 for lower-tier brands to $1,299 for some high-line and exotic dealers,” he explained. “And as long as dealers hit an agreed-upon penetration rate per month, they get the advanced lot-management functionality at no additional cost.”

Salespeople are trained to use the mobile app on their cellphones as part of the sales process. That exposes customers to the technology in a natural, organic way, plus they see the value of the vehicle-location service firsthand, Peterson said.

That familiarity, in turn, breaks the ice for F&I managers to sell the product, he said.

RecovR provides users with a secure system; no one except the vehicle owner can track a vehicle’s location with the app, unless the owner gives permission. They also can “lock” a car’s location, which results in a notification if it’s moved.