<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
<S> <C>
FORM 4 UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[ ] CHECK THIS BOX IF NO LONGER WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
SUBJECT TO SECTION 16. FORM 4 STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP
OR FORM 5 OBLIGATIONS MAY
CONTINUE. SEE INSTRUCTION 1(B).
Filed pursuant to Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act
of 1934, Section 17(a) of the Public Utility Holding Company Act of
1935 or Section 30(f) of the Investment Company Act of 1940
(PRINT OR TYPE RESPONSES)
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Name and Address of Reporting Person* 2. Issuer Name AND Ticker or 6. Relationship of Reporting Person(s) to Issuer
Trading Symbol (Check all applicable)
X Director X 10% Owner
---- ----
X Officer Other
---- ----
(give title below) (specify below)
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Smith Ollen Bruton Sonic Automotive, Inc. ("SAH") See (1) and (2) below
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Last) (First) (Middle) 3. I.R.S. 4. Statement
Identification for
Number of Month/Year
Reporting
Person, if
an entity
(voluntary)
in c/o Sonic Automotive, Inc.
5401 East Independence Blvd. 8/99
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Street) 5. If 7. Individual or Joint/Group Filing (Check Applicable
Amendment, Line)
Date of ___ Form filed by One Reporting Person
Original ___ Form filed by More than One Reporting Person
Charlotte, NC 28212 (Month/Year)
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(City) (State) (Zip) TABLE I-- NON-DERIVATIVE SECURITIES ACQUIRED, DISPOSED OF, OR BENEFICIALLY OWNED
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
- --------------------- -------- ---------- ------------------------------ ----------- ---------- ----------
Amount of Owner-
Securities ship
Trans- Trans- Securities Acquired (A) Beneficially Form:
action action or Disposed of (D) Owned at Direct Nature of
Date Code (Instr. 3, 4 and 5) End of (D) or Indirect
Title of (Month/ (Instr. 8) ---------------------------- Month Indirect Beneficial
Security Day/ ---------- Amount (A) or Price (Instr. (I) Ownership
(Instr. 3) Year) Code V (D) 3 and 4) (Instr. 4) (Instr. 4)
- --------------------- -------- ---- ---- ----------- ------ --------- ----------- ---------- ----------
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------- ------------------- ------ --------------- ---- --------- -------------- ------------- ----------
-------------------------- ------------------- ------ --------------- ---- --------- -------------- ------------- ----------
-------------------------- ------------------- ------ --------------- ---- --------- -------------- ------------- ----------
-------------------------- ------------------- ------ --------------- ---- --------- -------------- ------------- ----------
-------------------------- ------------------- ------ --------------- ---- --------- -------------- ------------- ----------
-------------------------- ------------------- ------ --------------- ---- --------- -------------- ------------- ----------
-------------------------- ------------------- ------ --------------- ---- --------- -------------- ------------- ----------
</TABLE>
Reminder: Report on a separate line for each class of securities beneficially
owned directly or indirectly.
*If the form is filed by more than one reporting person, SEE Instruction 4(b)(v
<PAGE>
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
FORM 4 (CONTINUED) TABLE II -- DERIVATIVE SECURITIES
ACQUIRED, DISPOSED OF, OR BENEFICIALLY OWNED
(E.G., PUTS, CALLS, WARRANTS, OPTIONS, CONVERTIBLE
SECURITIES)
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11.
- ---------- -------- -------- -------- ---------- ------------ -------------- ------ ---------- --------- ----------
Title and Ownership
Number of Date Exer- Amount of Form of
Derivative cisable and Underlying Number of Deriv-
Securities Expiration Securities Price Derivative ative
Conver- Trans- Acquired (A) Date (Month/ (Instr. 3 of Securities Security:
sion or Trans- action or Disposed Day/Year) and 4) Deriv- Benefi- Direct
Exercise action Code of (D) -------------- -------------- ative cially (D) or Nature of
Title of Price of Date (Instr. (Instr. 3, Date Amount Secur- Owned at Indirect Indirect
Derivative Deriv- (Month/ 8) 4, and 5) Exer- Expir- or Num- ity End of (I) Beneficial
Security ative Day/ -------- ---------- cis- ation ber of (Instr. Month (Instr. Ownership
(Instr. 3) Security Year) Code V (A) (D) able Date Title Shares 5) (Instr. 4) 4) (Instr. 4)
- ---------- -------- -------- ---- --- ---- ---- ------- ----- ----- ------ ------ ---------- -------- ----------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Put Options Class A
(obligation Common
to buy) $12.50 8/9/99 S 300(1) 8/9/99 11/20/99 Stock 30,000(1) $112.50 -0- D
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Explanation of Responses:
(1) On August 9, 1999, Mr. Smith wrote a put option on 30,000 shares of Sonic's Class A Common Stock (represented
by 300 standardized option contracts for 100 shares each), which entitle the holder of the put option to require
Mr. Smith, at the election of the holder, to purchase any or all of the shares at a price of $12.50 per share
at any time prior to November 20, 1999.
** Intentional misstatements or omissions of /s/ O. Bruton Smith 9/8/99
facts constitute Federal Criminal Violations. -------------------------------- ------------
SEE 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 15 U.S.C. 78ff(a) ** Signature of Reporting Person Date
Note: File three copies of this Form, one
of which must be manually signed.
If space is insufficient, SEE
Instruction 6 for procedure.
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Potential persons who are to respond to the collection of information contained
in this form are not required to respond unless the form displays a currently
valid OMB Number.
Page 2
</TABLE>
