Lithia Motors Announces Expansion of Credit Facilities With Ford Credit

22 November 1999
Lithia Motors Announces Expansion of Credit Facilities With Ford Credit
    MEDFORD, Ore., Nov. 22 -- Lithia Motors, Inc.
announced that its existing credit facility with Ford Credit has been expanded
to $450 million and the term extended for three years, continuing until
November 2002. The facility includes $250 million for new and program vehicle
flooring, $85 million for used vehicle flooring, and $115 million for
acquisitions. In addition to the Ford Credit facility, Chrysler Financial,
Toyota Motor Credit and GMAC are providing the wholesale flooring financing
for their respective vehicles.
    Brian R. Neill, Senior Vice President and CFO of Lithia Motors, stated,
"It has been one full year since Lithia entered into a strategic partnership
with Ford Credit and we are excited about developing the relationship further.
Under the new facility, Lithia has approximately $143 million in available
acquisition capital from Ford Credit, which includes $28 million in unfloored
used vehicles. Using historical transaction prices, these funds could be used
to acquire between $1.1 and $2.2 billion of revenue, assuming that the
transactions are funded with either cash or a combination of cash and stock.
This would represent a substantial increase in Lithia's current $1.3 billion
revenue run-rate and earnings per share without the need for further capital
market events."
    Lithia Motors, Inc. now operates 94 franchises in California, Oregon,
Washington, Nevada and Colorado and sells 24 brands of new vehicles at
39 stores and over the Internet through "Lithia.com-America's Car & Truck
Store." Lithia also sells used vehicles; arranges finance, warranty, and
credit insurance contracts; and provides vehicle parts, maintenance, and
repair services at all of its locations. Lithia retailed 31,353 new and used
vehicles in 1998.
    At $150 billion in receivables, Ford Credit is the world's largest company
dedicated to automotive financing, serving over nine million customers and
over 11 thousand dealers in 38 countries.
    This press release includes forward-looking statements, which management
believes are a benefit to shareholders. These statements are necessarily
subject to risk and uncertainty and actual results could differ materially due
to certain risk factors, including without limitation economic conditions,
acquisition risk factors and others set forth from time to time in the
company's filings with the SEC. Specific risks included in this press release
include the pricing and completion of future acquisitions, earnings per share,
revenue run rate and the continued availability of credit lines.
    For additional information on Lithia Motors, contact:  Jeff DeBoer, Vice
President of Finance/Investor Relations 541-776-6868 or log-on to
http://www.lithia.com. (E-mail:  invest@lithia.com.)