EDMONTON, Feb. 20, 2014 /CNW/ - AutoCanada Inc. ("AutoCanada" or the "Company") (TSX:ACQ) announced today that it has been awarded the right to a Volkswagen open point dealership in Sherwood Park, Alberta, a community adjacent to Edmonton, Alberta.  The Company intends to construct an approximately 45,000 square foot facility in Sherwood Park, designed to Volkswagen Canada image standards, with construction anticipated to be completed in Q1 2016.  The open point has a planning potential of 800 new vehicles annually which the Company anticipates achieving in two-three years of operation.  The new facility is also expected to add 21 service bays.

In commenting on the award of the franchise, Pat Priestner, Chairman and CEO of AutoCanada stated, "We are thrilled to be awarded this opportunity in our home market, and wish to thank very much Volkswagen Canada for the trust and confidence that they have shown in us by this decision. Since acquiring our first Volkswagen dealership in Maple Ridge in 2008, we have had the good fortune to build a strong partnership with this prestigious and very important brand, and we very much look forward to building a flagship facility to serve the ever growing Volkswagen customer base, and which will complement wonderfully our existing Sherwood Park Chevrolet, Sherwood Park Hyundai and Petersen Buick GMC dealership operations."

About AutoCanada

AutoCanada is one of Canada's largest multi-location automobile dealership groups, currently operating 32 franchised dealerships in six provinces and has over 1,500 employees. AutoCanada currently sells Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, FIAT, Chevrolet, GMC, Buick, Infiniti, Nissan, Hyundai, Subaru, Mitsubishi, Audi, and Volkswagen branded vehicles. In 2012, our dealerships sold approximately 30,000 vehicles and processed approximately 309,000 service and collision repair orders in our 333 service bays during that time.

Additional information about AutoCanada Inc. is available at www.sedar.com and the Company's website at www.autocan.ca.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements contained in this press release are forward-looking statements and information (collectively "forward-looking statements"), within the meaning of the applicable Canadian securities legislation.  We hereby provide cautionary statements identifying important factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those projected in these forward-looking statements.  Any statements that express, or involve discussions as to, expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance are not historical facts and are forward-looking and may involve estimates and assumptions and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors some of which are beyond our control and difficult to predict.  Accordingly, these factors could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements.  Therefore, any such forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by reference to the factors discussed throughout this release and as contained in the Company's Annual Information Form dated March 26, 2013 which is accessible through the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com.

SOURCE AutoCanada Inc.