than 15 years, we know A-1
has a strong team dedicated
to quality repairs and excel-
lent customer service,” said
Jeff Wildman, BASF manager OEM &
Industry Relations. “We recognize the
outstanding work of A-1 and support
their commitment to excellence.”
“To be recognized by Toyota, com-
pared to hundreds of other shops, con-
firms that our employees go above and
beyond for our customers,” said Anna
Lynn Wheeler, vice president and gen-
eral manager at A-1Toyota. “I attribute
our success to our Body Shop Manager,
Michelle Tortora and her Assistant Body
Shop Manager, Ralph Doyon.”
George Irving Jr, Toyota’s National
manager, Wholesale Parts & Collision,
presented the award to Tony Galardi,
President and Wheeler at A-1Toyota.
BASF presented the shop with a custom
plaque and a Chip Foose autographed
print, to recognize its achievement and
support of Glasurit.
PPG Completes First
COLORFUL COMMUNITIES
Project in Brazil at
Children’s Cancer Institute
PPG has completed the first
COLORFUL COMMUNITIES project
in Brazil, which helped to add color
to the new Children’s Cancer Institute
(ICI) site in Porto Alegre. The Colorful
Communities program provides PPG
volunteers and products along with financial contributions to bring color and
vitality to communities where the company operates around the world. The
program increases PPG’s commitment
to invest in communities by adding $10
million to support efforts made during
a 10-year period.
The project brought together about
20 volunteers, including PPG employ-
ees of the nearby Renner Paints facility
in Gravataí, who spent a day helping to
paint the new ICI site. PPG donated about
234 liters of DUCRYL paints for the proj-
ect, which volunteers used to paint four
floors of the Integrated Support Center
– the new headquarters of the institute.
The center unifies and extends services to
clients in fields such as dentistry, psychol-
ogy and nutrition.
“Our goal is to bring joy to spaces that
children of the institute visit daily,” said
Fabiano Balieiro, PPG general manager,
Renner Paints, who volunteered with
the project team. “We believe in the abil-
ity of color to make environments more
welcoming and stimulating for patients,
family members, volunteers, partners and
employees interacting in the new space.”
Marcio Grossman, PPG business di-
rector, Latin America South, and also a
project volunteer, said, “As a responsible
corporate citizen, PPG is happy to share
our products and people through this
project. It is exciting to see the impact
of our community support both in the
people who will use the space and in our
employee volunteers.”
Founded in 1991, the Children’s
Cancer Institute of Rio Grande do Sul
Iconic Car from American Graffiti Gets a Facelift with Axalta Paint
Axalta Coating brings the classic 58’ Impala from the movie
American Graffiti back to its original glamour with its ChromaPremier paint. The solventborne base coat is formulated to
make coverage fast, and easy with a smooth finish. Axalta, a
leading global supplier of liquid and powder coatings, revealed
the recently restored car at its Engineered for Speed booth at
SEMA 2016 aftermarket tradeshow at the Las Vegas Convention
Center. Ray Evernham – TV show host and three-time NASCAR
champion crew chief, along with award-winning actress from the
American Graffiti film, Candy Clark, helped Axalta executives
unveil the car during a press conference.
“This project was a labor of love. I wanted that car from the
moment I saw the film as a teenage boy,” said Evernham. “As
luck would have it, not only was I able to acquire the Impala, but
my long-standing relationship with Axalta allowed me to call on
the industry’s best paint experts to evaluate the car, get recom-
mendations and, subsequently, restore a vehicle that was origi-
nally coated in obsolete lacquer material. I’m amazed at Axalta’s
color match ability.”
“Ultimately, this car represents our commitment to the au-
tomotive industry,” said Mike Carr, Axalta president – North
America. “We have been serving customers for 150 years and
the automotive industry since day one. We were there to coat
the first automobiles that were built more than 90 years ago and
we have continued to innovate to meet the needs of our cus
tomers. We were pleased to bring this iconic vehicle back to its
original glory.”
Evernham also discussed the meticulous restoration pro-
cess from preparation to paint job and shared why the vehicle
sparked a lifelong passion for cars. Candy Clark, who played
Debbie Dunham, discussed her role in the movie and her affinity
for the Impala.
Axalta’s Mike Carr; Painter Dan Baker; Actress Candy Clark; and TV Host Ray
Evernham pose with 1958 Impala from the film, “American Graffiti,” that was
recently restored with Axalta’s ChromaPremier paint. (Photo: Axalta)
