CIT Group Inc. Opens Branch in Southern Illinois, Expands Kenworth Dealer Network

CIT Group Inc. has opened a new location in southern Illinois in Troy, 19 miles east of St. Louis.

The new location, known as CIT Kenworth of Southern Illinois, joins the Kenworth dealer network of more than 325 locations in the United States and Canada. The full-service facility is located at 2120 Liebler Road on eight acres at the new Troy exit off U.S. Interstate 55. This interstate frontage location provides easy access to I-70/I-270. The opening of the new dealership is part of a two-phase project that began last year with the opening of a parts-only location 12 miles west of the new facility.

The 33,000-square-foot dealership features 16 service bays. The extensively stocked parts department includes a 10,000-square-foot warehouse and 1,750 square feet of display area. A comfortable drivers' lounge offers a place for drivers to relax or catch up on paperwork while waiting for their trucks to be serviced.

"Our new Troy dealership is strategically located to enable CIT to provide quality Kenworth products and services to customers in our St. Louis and southern Illinois market areas, as well as the busy trucking corridors of I-70 and I-55," said Bruce Thomas, corporate vice president and general manager for CIT Kenworth of Southern Illinois in Troy.

"Our employees' dedication to providing outstanding customer service is the main reason why we've been able to follow through on our company's plan to open this new facility in this important marketplace," said Erick Miner, president and dealer principal of CIT Group Inc., which operates eight other Kenworth dealerships in Bensenville, Champaign, Joliet, Morton, Normal, Peru, Rockford and Springfield.

The new location is part of Kenworth's constant commitment for superior dealer service as demonstrated by Kenworth receiving the "Highest in Customer Satisfaction with Heavy Duty Truck Dealer Service, Two Years in a Row", according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2011-2012 Heavy Duty Truck Customer Satisfaction StudiesSM.*

CIT Kenworth of Southern Illinois is open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday and 7 a.m. to noon on Saturday. The phone number is 618-931-4300 or toll-free 855-931-4300. Key personnel include Jason Stierwalt, parts manager; John Shride, service manager; Dan Mitchell, financing and insurance manager; and Dan Basham, PacLease manager.
 
Kenworth Truck Company is the manufacturer of The World's Best® heavy and medium duty trucks. Kenworth is an industry leader in providing fuel-saving technology solutions that help increase fuel efficiency and reduce emissions. The company's dedication to the green fleet includes aerodynamic trucks, compressed and liquefied natural gas trucks, and medium duty diesel-electric hybrids. Kenworth is the only truck manufacturer to receive the Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Air Excellence award in recognition of its environmentally friendly products. In addition, the fuel-efficient Kenworth T700 equipped with the low-emission PACCAR MX engine was named the 2011 Heavy Duty Commercial Truck of the Year by the American Truck Dealers. Kenworth's Internet home page is at www.kenworth.com. Kenworth. A PACCAR Company.
#

*Kenworth received the highest numerical score for heavy-duty truck dealer service in the proprietary J.D. Power and Associates 2011-2012 Heavy Duty Truck Customer Satisfaction StudiesSM. 2012 study based on 1,725 primary maintainers of 2011 model-year Class 8 heavy-duty trucks measuring six manufacturers. Proprietary study results are based on experiences and perceptions of those surveyed in February-May 2012. Your experiences may vary.  Visit jdpower.com