Hosley said he is not the only one; other employees at Superior Chevrolet share his passion and have garages at home where they work on personal cars, while others even race in the Sports Car Club of America (SSCA).

"We are car people," said Hosley, who has worked at Superior Chevrolet since 1974. "The reason we have been so successful in performance parts is our people. They make the difference because they are well trained, enthusiasts, and into automobiles."

Superior Chevrolet, part of the Hendricks Automotive Group, is the largest authorized GM performance center in the four-state area (Kan., Mo., Iowa., and Neb.), which Hosley said began 15 years ago when they started promoting performance parts at the World of Wheels shows.

 
Now, he said, Superior Chevrolet participates in 15 shows throughout the Midwest, promoting engines, cylinder heads, valve covers, and other performance parts at shows ranging from the Automotive Service Association of Missouri/Kansas (ASA-MO/KAN) Vision Hi-Tech Training and Expo to the Ottawa River Run Show.

Although Superior Chevrolet attends only shows in the four-state region, Hosley said he markets performance parts worldwide.  "We sell all over the country, and we have sold parts in England, Germany, and Australia," he said.

Selling such parts worldwide has become easier since the development of the dealership's Web site, www.superchevyperformance.com, which is dedicated to performance parts, Hosley said, adding that the site is set up with a virtual dynamometer that allows customers to test and custom build an engine online before they purchase it, a GM feature that only Superior Chevrolet has.

All nonrace-application performance engines have a two-year, 50,000-mile warranty, and regular replacement engines have a three-year, 100,000-mile warranty, Hosley said. Crate engines are his No. 1 seller, he said, but he sells engines ranging from long blocks to a turnkey engine that comes with everything including an A/C compressor, power-steering pulley, alternator, water pump, and more. "All it needs is a hotwire and a home," he said. 

Parts Manager Jeff Kopp added that the LS Series engines are slowly taking over the interest of hot-rodders and racers. "They are extremely efficient engines that are built to make huge performance numbers but still be drivable," he said. "These are 500-600-horsepower engines that you can drive around town and get 20 miles per gallon." 

 
Performance parts are constantly in development, Kopp said, and the latest is an all-aluminum 427 ZL1. It will be released this year, he said, and only 427 are being produced. Superior Chevrolet will have access to a couple, which will come with a numbered leather jacket, certification, and a number badge for the car, he added.

Hosley said Superior Chevrolet also carries performance cylinder heads, brake upgrade kits for Corvettes, valve covers, performance cam shafts, accessory drive kits, wheels, tires, performance exhaust, and air intake systems.

Superior Chevrolet also has a general parts inventory of $2.5 million, including parts for Chevrolet, Buick, Pontiac, GMC, and Hummer, Kopp said, adding that he sells an average of $1.3 million in regular parts each month.

"Everybody that has a hot rod also has a regular car they drive or a truck that they tow their hot rod with," Hosley said, noting that offering performance parts helps to gain and maintain customers for all aspects of the dealership business.

Kopp said that being a performance authorized dealer sets Superior Chevrolet apart from the competition. 

 
"It is more of a customer retention tool than it is an actual profit center," he said. "It doesn't make huge money for us, but it gets our name out there, and it is something we are known for."

Hosley said the economy and rising gas prices have not kept customers away from Superior Chevrolet. In fact, he said, the Hendrick Automotive Group had a record year in 2007.

"We have sold more crate engines this year than last year," he said. "People that have the disposable income to mess with hot rods are probably not going to be as affected by the high prices of gas and a slumping economy."

Hosley said that being involved with performance parts has opened up the door to more service work for customers who want performance engines installed in their hot rods and who have made Superior Chevrolet the exclusive supplier for GM parts at the National Championship Runoffs, the largest amateur motorsport event in the world. This year's national championship will be held at Heartland Park in Topeka in October.

Hosley said that general automotive repair shops can also expand on their business by servicing customers' hot rods.

"If a shop wants to do performance work, it is just another thing that they can offer their customers to attract more customers or retain them."