Dealer History

Start at the beginning...

In 1951 Bob Grimm became partner with the Schumacher Family, and Schumacher & Grimm was established in Goodfield, IL. During 1959, the Schumacher Family left Goodfield, and Mr. Grimm incorporated Bob Grimm Chevrolet.

An opportunity in Morton, ILS

1961 marked another year of change for Bob Grimm Chevrolet when Mr. Grimm purchased the existing operations of Roecker Chevrolet in Morton. The Goodfield dealership was closed and the business was moved to the recently purchased facility in Morton.

Let's build a brand new building!

The Corvette was in its glory days and the Camaro debuted in 1967 when Mr. Grimm broke ground for a new building on South Main St. in Morton. This new state of the art facility was constructed to include a large service area and a body shop.

We need more room for trucks!

Shortly after the release of the new style Chevrolet pickup trucks in 1987 the Bob Grimm Truck Center construction was completed and included pre-owned vehicle repair and detailing facilities. The Truck Center opened just in time as trucks and sport utility vehicles began to gain market share.

It's time to sell to the next generation.

At age 60, Mr. Grimm sold the business to Jeff Grimm & Bill Hart. Jeff managed the new and pre-owned vehicle sales and financing. Bill managed the parts and service departments along with the body shop. Each continues to be committed to the high level of integrity and customer service that was modeled by Mr. Grimm since 1951.

How about adding Buick and GMC?

In 1996, Jeff and Bill increased their market share in Morton through their purchase of Village Buick - GMC on Jackson Street. This new facility created opportunity for growth and expanded the diversity of the new vehicles offered by the Bob Grimm Automotive Group.

In July of 2003 Jeff bought Bill's shares of the Buick GMC store and Bill bought Jeff's shares of the Chevy store. Even though the ownership is separate, both stores continue to work together to serve you.

Growth, Name Change

Thanks to all of our great customers and employees Bob Grimm Buick GMC has experienced tremendous growth since 1996. With this growth it became evident that having 2 dealerships in the same town with the same name caused quite a bit of confusion.

As of May 16th, 2007 we changed our name to Lighthouse Automotive. Here are the reasons that we changed our name:

Mission

• Reflects the image of who we want to be and how we want to treat others.

Opportunity

• Growth potential: We want people to know we are a full service dealership and one that sells all types of GM pre-owned vehicles. (Not just Buick and GMC)

Differentiate

• From other dealerships: We want to stand apart from the "normal" car dealership. To help eliminate the confusion with 2 stores sharing the same name in the same town.

In June 2013, we finished an extensive building expansion and remodel.

What: 3-Phase Building Plan

1. Close Bauman street and expand parking.
2. Add new service facility.
3. Remodel old building with new GM requirements.

Why:

1. Ran out of room.
2. To meet GM franchise requirements.
3. GM is paying for a significant portion of this project.

Family oriented!

At Lighthouse Buick GMC we have been taught Christian family values. Jeff and Ruth Grimm, along with all of our employees, want to apply those lessons to our daily business. Thanks for looking up lighthousegm.com!! We hope you will visit our stores in person, drop us an e-mail request, or send us a comment through our web site. Be sure to check out our quality pre-owned vehicles and internet only specials, which are updated on a regular basis.