From left: Darryle Bender, Bryce Bender, Brad Bender, Frank Pena and Gary Bender outside the Chevrolet store on Mabry Drive.
If you have bought a vehicle in Clovis in the last 35 years, there is a good chance you bought it from a Bender. That changed this summer — and less than you would think changed with it.
What happened
On July 15, Frank Pena bought Bender Auto Group from Gary, Darryle and Bryce Bender. The three stores on Mabry Drive now carry the Pena Bender name.
That is the whole of it. Same buildings, same service drives, same people. If you have a truck in the shop right now, nothing about it changed.
What this means if you are already a customer
Everyone kept their job. All 88 of them — the advisor who knows your truck, the technician who has serviced it since it was new, the person at the parts counter. We are hiring toward about 100.
Your warranty is fine. Factory warranties belong to the manufacturer, not the dealership. Nothing about your coverage changed because the ownership did.
Your service records came with us. Your file is where it has always been.
Brad Bender is still here. Brad has run the day-to-day for three years and is now a partner in the business. If you have always dealt with Brad, keep dealing with Brad.
There is nothing you need to sign, update or re-register. If you were planning to come in Saturday, come in Saturday.
Thank you to the Bender family
Gary, Darryle and Bryce bought these dealerships from their father, Gideon, in 1991 and ran them for about 35 years before deciding to retire. Three generations of Clovis families bought vehicles from them.
You do not take over something like that casually. We intend to be worth the name we kept.
Eight brands on one street
Something worth pointing out, because most people here have never had a reason to think about it: between the three stores we carry Chevrolet, GMC, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, Honda and Nissan. Eight brands, four manufacturers, three lots within a mile of each other on Mabry Drive.
In a town this size that is unusual, and it is genuinely useful. Cross-shopping a full-size truck against a mid-size against a crossover normally means a day in Lubbock or Albuquerque and three salespeople who each need you to buy the one thing they have.
Here you can drive a Silverado, a Ram 1500, a Sierra and a Frontier in one afternoon. If a Wrangler turns out to suit you better than the Trax you came in for, we have both, and nobody loses anything by telling you so.
The same goes for the numbers. Eight brands means eight sets of manufacturer incentives and eight financing programs. When Chevrolet is running 0% and Honda is not, we can just say so. And your trade is worth what it is worth on any of our three lots, toward any of the eight.
2500 Mabry Dr — Chevrolet and GMC
Formerly Bender Chevrolet GMC. Two truck lineups you can park side by side — Tahoe, Trailblazer and Equinox on the Chevrolet side, Sierra HD, Terrain, Acadia and Yukon on the GMC side.
3400 Mabry Dr — Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram
Formerly Bender Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram. Ram 1500 and the 2500 and 3500 heavy duty trucks, Wrangler, Grand Cherokee and Gladiator, and the Dodge Durango. Mopar-trained technicians, and Cummins diesel service — which not every shop in this part of the state is set up to do.
3000 Mabry Dr — Honda and Nissan
Formerly Bender Honda Nissan. Civic, Accord, CR-V, Pilot and Ridgeline alongside Pathfinder, Rogue, Sentra, Kicks and Murano. Deciding between a CR-V and a Rogue is a lot easier when you can drive both in the same hour.
What is changing
Honda is getting its own building. It currently shares a roof with Nissan, and we are putting up a dedicated Honda store on the campus.
The showrooms are going to feel different. Music on, grill going on Saturdays. You are welcome to a hamburger whether or not you are buying anything.
We are also making it easier to buy from the Texas side. The line is ten miles east and a lot of our customers cross it, so we will bring the vehicle to you.
And se habla español — not as a line on a website. Close to half of Clovis is Hispanic, and we are staffing and doing business accordingly.
Where you will see us
This is a farming, ranching and military town, so that is where we intend to show up.
Cannon AFB families deal with PCS timelines, out-of-state paperwork and short windows — tell us what you are working with and we will work around it. Dairy and cattle operations need trucks that run and a service department that understands what downtime costs. We are putting together an athletics sponsorship with Eastern New Mexico University, and we intend to be visible at the rodeos and the cultural events rather than a name in small print.
We serve Clovis, Portales, Cannon Air Force Base, Texico, Farwell and the rest of Curry County and eastern New Mexico.
Who Frank Pena is
Frank was born in the Dominican Republic and started in this business in 1996 selling used cars in Miami. He worked up through sales, finance and management, and spent much of his career with one of Florida's largest Hyundai dealerships — general manager, then vice president, then president and managing partner. He later served as Vice Chairman of the Hyundai National Dealer Council, and Automotive News named him to its 40 Under 40 in 2015.
Clovis is the first store he has owned outright. He is building it with his son, Frank Pena III.
“I definitely like a festive environment. I plan to bring a festive, fun, lively environment to our organization.”
Questions we have been getting
Is Bender Auto Group still open?
Yes. All three stores, same locations on Mabry Drive. Only the name changed.
Who owns Bender Auto Group now?
Frank Pena, as of July 15, 2026. Brad Bender is a partner and still runs day-to-day operations.
Is my factory warranty still valid?
Yes. Warranties are held by the manufacturer, not the dealership, and a change of ownership does not affect them.
Do you still have my service records?
Yes. Everything transferred with the business.
Did any of the staff change?
No. All 88 employees stayed.
Can I still get my Chevy, Jeep, Honda or Nissan serviced there?
Yes — all eight brands, same factory-trained technicians, whether or not you bought the vehicle from us.
How many brands do you carry?
Eight: Chevrolet, GMC, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, Honda and Nissan, across three locations on Mabry Drive.
Do I need to do anything?
No.
Come by
Three stores, one street: Chevrolet and GMC at 2500 Mabry Dr, Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram at 3400 Mabry Dr, and Honda and Nissan at 3000 Mabry Dr.
Same campus, same team, new name on the sign. We would like the chance to earn your business again — and if we never had it, we would like the chance to earn it the first time.