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WHITBY FREE PRESS, DURHAM MOVES, APRIL 6,1988, PAGE Ai Puhalski enthused about new dealership location Ever since «David Puhalski joined Kingchurch Nissan in 1982 as vice president, the business has steadily grown. Puhalski is now president and the dealership has had to relocate and expand to keep up with demand. "Our old facility on Hwy. 2 and Church St. was 5,000 sq. ft.. This new location is 20,000 sq. ft.," says Puhalski of his new Bayly St. location in Ajax. "The old location had no body shop, no room for service and there was never enough parking. When I took over in 1983 it was hard to expand physically. We have doubled in staff and our sales have quadrupled. The old location wasn't geared for a customer service-first philoso- phy," says Puhalski. He notes that a major factor in choosing his new location was the new Westney Rd. interchange at the 401. The new GO station at Westney Rd. was also an enticement. "That (GO station) is ideal to be near. Customers are commuters," says Puhalski, who also notes the potential for growth in the area. "It is healthy to be in a high-growth area and we are also DAVE PUHALSKI stands in front of his new Nissan Kingchurch dealership. The sales department is now in a trailer but near a highly populated area," he says, noting the subdivisions tb the north and south of Bayly St. expects to be in the new showroom sometime this week. Free Press photo Construction on the new salespeople are expected to move Kingchurch dealership began in into the showroom this week. January of this year and the The service, administration, parts and body shop facilities are already located in the new building. Before Puhalski moved his dealershsip, he says Nissan had to approve of the location. Nissan did a market survey of the area, making sure it met their requirements. Once they gave their approval, Puhalski was allowed to go ahead with the building's design. But again Nissan had to give the final approval. In this case, Nissan, having seen the final drawings, suggested that Puhalski add a drive-through for the service area. Puhalski went one better and had the drive-through designed to accommodate both the service and sales area. For the service area, Puhalski has purchased an Allen computer which he says will even tell a mechanic if a fan belt is loose. "The Allen just came on the market this year. It thinks for itself, it doesn't compare specifi- ciations," says service manager Fred Meinecke, who joined King- church only recently. He explained that some com- SeepageA4 Wilson aims to improve in motorcycle racing After an impressive debut last year, Peter Wilson of Oshawa is aiming for even better results when the new season begins in May for the amateur division of national motorcycle racing. Wilson, 21, on a RZ350 Yamaha, finished fourth overall in the 400 cc. class in his first race, the Rothmans super-bike finale last September in Shannonville. Not bad for a rookie in a field of 36 riders. He also had a seventh-place finish in another race in October at the same track ("I was running fifth but my tires were finished.") to wind up 19th overall in eastern Canada for the season. So this year, with plans to be in i of the 15 races for the season (nine in Shannonville, Canada's largest track, and two at the Sanair track in Quebec), and plenty of family and sponsor support behind him, Wilson hopes to challenge for the overall points championship. "I'm not going to say Ill clean up...but I hope I'm going to do better," says Wilson, an employee of Onex Packaging in Whitby. The top riders in the amateur circuit move on to the Canadian pro ranks - and to cash prizes. Wilson's ultimate goal is to be on the Grand Prix circuit, where the top riders in the world compete. 'There are no Canadians on the Grand Prix circuit now," says Wilson with a grin, adding that competitors at that level, inclu- ding world champion Wayne Gardner of Australia, are "far ahead" in ability. Wilson's own initial success isn't too surprising - he describes his father Glen, service manager for a car dealership in Toronto, as a fine motorycyclist who first taught Peter to ride at 9, on an 80 cc. Yamaha motocross bike. The Wilsons came to Canada from England in 1975, living first in Scarborough, then Pshawa. Peter Wilson's job enabled him to finally begin racing.. "I'd been going for years to watch, but I always wanted to get into it." Wilson expects competition to be even tougher in the 400 class this season with the new 400 Yamahas. -Last season 400 Hondas took the top three positions. He's "freshened up" his 350 Yamaha for 1988, and says he gains his advantage in cornering, and when conditions are wet and slippery. A good start is also an important factor. Racing is expensive, he ex- plains, since there is the cost of tires, spare parts, entry fees ($110 or $120 a race) - on top of the cost of a new bike with added parts. It's another reason why the pro circuit, with prize money and added sponsorship, looks attrac- tive. Wilson is appreciative, however, of the teamn behind him for the '88 season. The Wilson Racing team includes his father as mechanic tuner, mother Lin Gardinor as team manager and friend Glenn Closs. Sponsors are U-Haul, Amsoil, Leisure World, Canadian Tire, Ab's Yamaha and Tanning Plus. "I have a pretty big support, team," says Wilson. He advises anyone starting out on motorcycles to first get a small one. "You can learn a lot from the smaller bikes," he notes. Wilson went from his 80 to a Honda 250, then to an RZ350, later to an RZ500 and back to the RZ350 for racing. "I went down from the 500 because 500 would have put me in the 600 class in racing (there is also a 750 class). I wasn't ready for it. It was just too heavy." Wilson says he sees too many first-time riders buy too big bikes they are unable to properly handle." In Europe, he notes, a motor- cycle rider has to have a bike of less than 350 cc. for two years before purchasing a more power- fui model. In Japan, he adds, a See pageA4 TABLE OF CONTENTS Preparing for cycling season See page A2 1987 car insurance claims rise See page A8 PETER WILSON