Asbury Automotive Group Names Thomas G. McCollum President and CEO of its Texas Platform

NEW YORK, June 4 -- Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. , one of the largest automobile retailers in the U.S., today announced that Thomas G. McCollum has been named President and CEO of McDavid Auto Group, based in Irving, Texas. Mr. McCollum, who had been Asbury's Vice President of Finance and Insurance ("F&I"), will replace McDavid's current President and CEO, Michael Kane, who has resigned to pursue other interests. The Company is searching for a replacement for Mr. McCollum in the corporate F&I position.

The McDavid Auto Group is one of the best-known brands in Texas, having been in its local market for 67 years. Today, the McDavid Group consists of 11 franchises throughout Dallas, Houston, and Austin including Honda, Acura, Lincoln/Mercury, Nissan, Pontiac, GMC, and Buick. Asbury acquired the dealer group in 1998.

"We would like to thank Michael Kane and wish him well in his future endeavors," said Asbury CEO Kenneth B. Gilman. "Looking ahead, we feel very fortunate to have Tom McCollum available to take over as CEO in Texas. He is a Texas native with an extensive background in virtually all aspects of automotive retailing, and in the Texas marketplace, in particular. Tom also has a proven track record at Asbury, as F&I has been the fastest-growing part of our business over his three year tenure with the Company."

Mr. McCollum, 48, whose automotive career spans more than 25 years, has been with Asbury since April 2001. Previously, he was an Executive Vice President with Aon's Resource Group (formerly Pat Ryan & Associates), where he consulted with many of the nation's leading automotive retailers and consistently demonstrated an ability to improve same-store results with innovative, customer-focused programs. Prior to Aon, Mr. McCollum worked for several dealerships in various capacities. Mr. McCollum is a graduate of Sam Houston University.

About Asbury Automotive Group

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc., headquartered in New York City, is one of the largest automobile retailers in the U.S., with 2003 revenues of $4.8 billion. Built through a combination of organic growth and a series of strategic acquisitions, Asbury now operates through nine geographically concentrated, individually branded "platforms." These platforms currently operate 102 retail auto stores, encompassing 142 franchises for the sale and servicing of 37 different brands of American, European and Asian automobiles. Asbury believes that its product mix contains a higher proportion of the more desirable luxury and mid-line import brands than most public automotive retailers. The Company offers customers an extensive range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicle sales and related financing and insurance, vehicle maintenance and repair services, replacement parts and service contracts.