Published 12:00 am Sunday, October 26, 2025
By Chandler Inions
SALISBURY — Sometimes, a factory car straight off the lot just is not going to cut it.
At least that is what the owners of Carolina Luxury Auto Group, Liz and Carlos Coello, believe with their business that just opened up a location in Salisbury.
“We specialize in luxury cars,” Liz Coello said. “We try to find top-of-the-line cars for car enthusiasts. We don’t just go for the base model of a Ford Mustang. We feel like Ford can sell those better. We go for the Ford that has already had someone love that vehicle to the point that they specialized in modifying it or making sure the car stays primo and is maintained well.”
The latest Carolina Luxury Auto Group location, 2218 Statesville Blvd., Salisbury, is actually the couple’s third location. Originally from New York, the couple moved to North Carolina in 2004 and lived in Rockwell before getting a place in Salisbury. They had a dealership in south Charlotte but opened Carolina Luxury Auto Group in Denver in 2019. In 2022, they expanded to Mooresville and now have the Salisbury location.
Liz Coello is happy to have an operation closer to their home now.
One could say that car dealerships are very much a part of the Coellos’ love story.
“Me and my husband met in a car dealership in 1994,” Liz said. “I have been in the car business since 1990. starting off as a receptionist working in high school. He was in the car business in New York. We got together and married and moved down here.”
Now they are sharing their love of luxury automobiles with Rowan County.
“We did not see any of our inventory that we specialize in this area so we felt like it would work over here,” Liz Coello said.
With a relatively small showroom and operation, the dream car a customer is looking for may not be on the lot, but Liz Coello said they have ways of finding it.
“(Sales Manager) Ethan (Frank) will get all the information about what you are looking for in a vehicle and then he will go out and search it,” Liz Coello said. “It might take us some time but we can scrub the data on auction sites or trades and just other clientele and see who has it.”
Frank indicated that their business model allows them to help customers find a unique car that matches their interests in a package that makes it easier to afford.
“When you are trying to finance a stock car, as a car enthusiast, you are not trying to finance the car, make a monthly payment and also buy modifications while you are paying that,” Frank said. “If you just buy it all together like that, then it is already done. You are getting the car you want for a little bit more but you can budget accordingly.”
When sourcing their cars, since many of them are aftermarket, Liz Coello said they take care to ensure they are in good condition.
“We are very big about testing vehicles to make sure that there is nothing wrong with the car,” she said. “We have mechanics that can fix things but if it’s beyond repair we wash our hands of it and go to the next one. Some of the most beautiful cars we might have to send back, something might be wrong with it.
If we can fix it, we will try.”
Visit Luxury Carolina Auto Group’s website at https://carolinaluxuryautogroup.com/.

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