Old stereotypes about car salesmen die hard, concedes John King. That's why King -- like hundreds of other vehicle vendors in the Puget

Sound area in Seattle -- works double-duty: selling cars while working to dispel the myth about pushy car dealers, according to the Seattle Times.

"The toughest thing in car sales is overcoming people's fears," says King, sales manager at Chuck Olson Chevrolet in Shoreline. "A lot of people who come in to buy are shaking... They're making a major purchasing decision and they don't want anybody to rip them off. They have a huge wall of fear. My job is to break down that wall, make them feel comfortable, keep things relaxed, keep it informal and then show them the value of a car," he says.

Industry forecasts indicate dealerships need more people like King behind the wheel, according to the Times.

"Forget the old mechanic and salesman

stereotypes," says Jim Willingham, chairman of Automotive Retailing Today. "The times have changed, and automotive service and retailing are now careers that combine job satisfaction, continuous learning and economic security. It's an employee's market and will be for the

foreseeable future."

To improve the quality of the auto sales and

service force, some employers are adopting ethics policies, and using pre-employment drug testing, and criminal and credit background checks, according to Brad Engelbrecht, owner of Car People, an Eastside Seattle automotive job

placement company.