A Valley favorite place to buy used cars closing after 45 years in business
Longtime auto dealership Roberts Auto Sales announced it is closing after 45 years in business. A banner on its website reads, “Thank you Modesto for 45 incredible years! This will be our final sale as we prepare to close our doors for the last time.”
It is unclear why the business is closing, but an obituary published in The Modesto Bee announced the death of founder and co-owner Douglas Roberts at the end of December, who ran the dealership with business partner Dennis Noland.
According to his obituary, Roberts started his business by buying and fixing cars in his driveway, then selling them. In 1980, he sold his home to open Roberts Auto Sales, originally located on 11th and L streets in Modesto.
In 1989, he purchased a large corner lot on McHenry Avenue between Bangs and Kiernan avenues, where it remains today.
Roberts believed in a haggle-free sales approach, providing service with “No salesmen ever following you around” as detailed on the website.
The business won “Favorite Used Car Dealer” year after year in The Modesto Bee’s Readers’ Choice Awards and was a sponsor of countless community events, including supporting Valley Music Institute’s yearly Modstock Music Festival.
Roberts Auto Sales was a frequent float entrant in the Christmas and Fourth of July parades. In the late 2000s, Roberts partnered with the Stanislaus County Office of Education for its “Every Day Counts” campaign, donating iPods and a car in a contest for students with perfect attendance.
Posts on Facebook discussing the announcement of the dealership highlighted love and appreciation for the business, with many comments lamenting the closure. “That has been our go-to place for decades,” “The only trustworthy car dealership in the Central Valley,” and “Got my first car from there, they did really great business,” are among the comments on the post, with hundreds more detailing memorable experiences at the car lot.
There was no announcement on when the last day of operation would be.
This story was originally published February 6, 2026 at 12:22 PM.
