DETROIT — Forty-nine U.S. auto dealers have been nominated for the 2017 Time Dealer of the Year award, Ally Financial announced this week. They will be honored at the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Convention & Expo in New Orleans on Jan. 27, 2017.

"A remarkable group of dealers have been nominated for the 2017 TIME Dealer of the Year award," said Tim Russi, president of auto finance at Ally. "We are honored to acknowledge these dealers that 'do it right' in their businesses and communities every day, and we are excited to recognize their achievements at the NADA convention in January."

For being nominated, Ally will contribute $1,000 to each dealer's charity of choice. The nominees will also be highlighted on AllyDealerHeroes.com, a site that showcases the philanthropic contributions and achievements of auto dealers.

Including the charitable grants pledged to this year's nominees, Ally will have committed nearly $480,000 as part of the TIME Dealer of the Year program.

Past winners of the award include Kitty Van Bortel of Van Bortel Motorcars in Rochester, N.Y., Andy Crews of AutoFair Honda in Manchester, N.H., Jeff Teague of Teague Auto Group in El Dorado, Ark., Michael Alford of Marine Chevrolet in Jacksonville, N.C. and Mike Shaw of Mike Shaw Automotive Group in Denver.