Chicago-Based vAuto Taps AutoCom Associates for Public Relations

BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich., Feb. 4, 2008 -- Chicago-based vAuto, a leading high-tech provider of used-car business- and inventory-management systems for the nation's more than 60,000 franchised and independent dealerships, has selected AutoCom Associates as its public relations agency of record.

Headquartered in the Chicago suburb of Oakbrook Terrace, vAuto also has research-and-development facilities in Austin, Texas. The company's breakthrough technology enables dealers and vehicle manufacturers for the first time ever to have accurate, up-to-the-minute supply-and-demand information on used cars and light trucks in their market areas.

Used-car management systems developed by vAuto currently are in use at five of the nation's six highest-volume franchised dealerships by brand, including Ford, Honda, Nissan, Lincoln-Mercury and Toyota. Virtually every imported and domestic vehicle brand is represented within vAuto's customer list, including Acura, Audi, BMW, Hyundai, Infinity, Kia, Lexus, Mercedes and Porsche, as well as all Chrysler and General Motors brands.

Based in suburban Detroit, AutoCom Associates provides public relations services and counseling to businesses working in the automotive industry and related fields. The firm is a member of the International Public Relations Network (IPRN) with more than 40 affiliate agencies in 33 countries.

AutoCom's team of professional communicators has extensive working experience with Ford, General Motors and Chrysler, as well as a number of European, Japanese and Korean automakers and their suppliers. The agency also supports companies supplying the automotive aftermarket and commercial truck manufacturers, as well as franchised and independent automotive dealerships.

In addition to vAuto, AutoCom clients include: Autoweb, Behr America, BHTC (Behr-Hella Thermocontrol), Coherix, Compared Insurance, Inc., Eberspaecher North America, Gage Products Company, Gibbs Technologies, GKN Driveline, Grammer Automotive, HBPO North America Inc. (Hella Behr Plastic Omnium), Hella KGaA Hueck & Company, Intermap, InterRegs, Lear Corporation, MANN+HUMMEL, Novelis, Safford & Baker, Thetford Corporation and TI Automotive.

AutoCom also provides public relations services and media support to a number of non-profit organizations, including the Birmingham-Bloomfield Symphony Orchestra, Birmingham Youth Assistance, Focus: HOPE, Forgotten Harvest of Michigan and the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Michigan. In addition, the agency represents economic development entities such as the Stuttgart (Germany) Regional Economic Development Corporation and the Wallonia (Belgium) Office for Foreign Investors. Additional information is available at www.usautocom.com.

More information on vAuto can be found on the Internet at www.vauto.com.