Motor 2007 - Company News Summary

Roush Technologies, the Brentwood-based automotive engineering subsidiary of US-based Roush Enterprises, has been acquired by an investor group and management team for undisclosed terms.
05-Dec-2007

Renault Retail Group has acquired the former Whitehouse car dealerships in Orpington and Dartford, and is now planning to expand its network from 23 to 30 sites by 2009.
04-Dec-2007

Reflex Vehicle Solutions is planning to expand the workforce in its vehicle rental business from 60 to 180 over the next three years.
03-Dec-2007

HR Owen is to sell its BMW and Mini car dealerships in Chiswick and Heathrow to Marsh Wall for £2.8m.
29-Nov-2007

Howard Basford has acquired Auto & Marine, the Formby-based accident repair firm with 20 staff, for undisclosed terms.
29-Nov-2007

Springfield Motor Group is planning to expand turnover at its North East-based chain of six car dealerships by 50% over the next five years, including the development of a commercial vehicle centre in Washington.
27-Nov-2007

Pentagon Group is to invest £5m in two new car dealerships due to open in Sheffield in 2008, while a new Chevrolet outlet will open in Barnsley in January and its Vauxhall business in Mansfield will relocate to a new site.
22-Nov-2007

Helphire has acquired Cab Aid, the provider of replacement vehicles to the taxi market with 80 staff in Sutton and Manchester, for up to £5.2m.
21-Nov-2007

Carcraft is to shed 49 of the 500 jobs at its car hypermarket in Rochdale, having failed to secure a site at the new Kingsway Business Park to expand the business.
08-Nov-2007

Arnold Clark has acquired Patterson Motor Group, the car dealership with 370 staff at sites in Newcastle, Hexham and Shiremoor, for undisclosed terms.
05-Nov-2007

TG21 is to sell its Sextons in-car entertainment and satellite navigation systems business to Car Electronics of Leicester for about £0.6m.
31-Oct-2007

Harwoods has acquired Webbers, the Basingstoke-based Land Rover, Jaguar and Subaru car dealership, and is looking to relocate the business from the town centre within two years.
18-Oct-2007

TMD Friction is to invest £2m in the expansion of its brake pads factory in Hartlepool, with the creation of 68 jobs.
17-Oct-2007

Inchcape has raised £6.8m from the sale of Wilcomatic, J&S Components and its VW car dealership in Wrexham.
17-Oct-2007

Myhome is to acquire Edwin Investments, the operator of more than 400 ChipsAway car repair franchises, for up to £20m.
15-Oct-2007

Rolls-Royce Motors is to add a second assembly line at its luxury cars factory in Goodwood, with the creation of up to 400 jobs.
12-Oct-2007

Rybrook Holdings has acquired the Conwy Land Rover and Jaguar car dealerships in North Wales for undisclosed terms.
11-Oct-2007

Schrader Electronics is planning to expand the workforce at its tyre pressure monitoring systems factory in County Antrim from 550 to more than 600 by next year.
08-Oct-2007

James & Jenkins is to invest £2m in the expansion of its car dealership in Cardiff, including an improved showroom area and a refit of the workshop.
05-Oct-2007

Europcar is to create about 95 jobs in Leicester, in order to consolidate the customer services and finance departments of its various car rental brands.
04-Oct-2007

Inchcape is to sell its Maranello car dealerships in St Albans, Egham and Sevenoaks to HR Owen, Sytner Group and Lancaster respectively, in a £16m deal.
04-Oct-2007

Lookers is to acquire Dutton Forshaw, the chain of 31 car dealerships, from Lloyds TSB for £60m, taking its total network to about 140 outlets.
04-Oct-2007

HR Owen has acquired the business and assets of the Ferrari and Maserati car franchises in St Albans from Inchcape Retail for £0.3m.
02-Oct-2007

North Eastern Tyre & Exhausts is planning to expand its chain of seven retail outlets across the North East and Yorkshire, with the creation of about 300 jobs over the next two years.
28-Sep-2007

Nissan is to convert 180 temporary jobs at its car factory in Sunderland to permanent positions, due to the success of the Qashqai model, and £2.4m will be invested to increase production.
26-Sep-2007

Camden Corporate Fleet Services has undergone a £66m management buy-out from Camden Motor Group, with the backing of Barclays Private Equity.
26-Sep-2007

Dagenham Motors is to open a new £4.5m flagship Ford car dealership in east London in April 2008.
19-Sep-2007

MacNeillie has acquired an automotive parts factory in Coalville from EPM Technology for undisclosed terms, with the transfer of 23 staff.
13-Sep-2007

Kostal UK is to invest about £4m in new equipment for its automotive electromechanical components factory near Rotherham, having secured a Yorkshire Forward grant that will help to secure 100 jobs.
12-Sep-2007

Nidd Vale Group, the Yorkshire-based car dealer with 210 staff, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms.
05-Sep-2007

Vertu, the chain of 46 car dealerships, is to set up a customer services call centre in Sunderland this month, with the creation of an initial ten jobs.
03-Sep-2007

West Riding Motor Group is to set up a new Lexus car dealership at Station Road in Bradford next year, with the creation of 20 jobs.
31-Aug-2007

Lookers has won approval to sell Ford cars and commercial vehicles, having bought some Sheffield-based assets of Dixon Motors out of administration.
30-Aug-2007

Leyland Trucks is to increase truck production at its Lancashire factory by 17% to 20,000 trucks a year next month, securing the future of the 1,200-strong workforce and creating "further job opportunities".
30-Aug-2007

Fuel Parts UK, the Bromsgrove-based supplier of car components, has undergone a management buy-out.
21-Aug-2007

Halliwell Jones Group has acquired Premier Cars, the North Wales-based BMW and Mini car dealership, for £6.7m.
17-Aug-2007

Arvin Meritor has sold its Lancashire-based exhaust manufacturing business to a new company called Klarius Group for more than £10m, including 500 staff in Cheadle and Lancaster.
10-Aug-2007

Pendragon has bought 19 Dixon Motors car dealerships out of administration, securing the future of 600 jobs, but 27 sites will be closed with the loss of 800 jobs.
03-Aug-2007

Carcraft is recruiting up to 35 staff at its new national car sales call centre in Rochdale.
01-Aug-2007

Speedmaster is to set up a new £1.5m supercar showroom and conference facility at Albion Mills in Bradford by spring 2008.
31-Jul-2007

Gravells has won permission from Carmarthenshire Council for the £3m expansion of its Renault car dealership in Kidwelly, which will create up to 20 jobs.
30-Jul-2007

KL Automotive, the Ripley-based manufacturer of vehicle air conditioning systems, has been acquired by Tamworth-based Elite Automotive Systems for undisclosed terms.
19-Jul-2007

Gilder Group is to set up a new £13m headquarters at Meadowhead in Sheffield in 2008, including Audi and Volkswagen car dealerships.
18-Jul-2007

North Eastern Tyre & Exhausts is to open a new £2m car servicing centre near Harrogate early next year.
10-Jul-2007

National Tyres is planning to open 14 new motor repair centres in Scotland by the end of next year, as part of a strategy to expand its nationwide network from 204 to 400.
04-Jul-2007

Scottish Motor Auctions, the chain of car auction sites in Glasgow, Livingston, Kinross, Aberdeen and Newcastle, has been acquired by a consortium of investors backed by Alliance & Leicester Commercial Bank.
04-Jul-2007

Peter Vardy has acquired the Dunedin BMW and Mini car dealership in Edinburgh from John Martin Group for undisclosed terms.
04-Jul-2007

Vertu Motors has acquired the Ford car dealership in Morpeth, Northumberland, from the Jennings Group for £2.6m, and will re-brand the site as Bristol Street Motors.
03-Jul-2007

Tomkins has sold Trico Wipers, the US-based manufacturer of automotive wipers, to affiliates of Kohlberg & Company for £55m.
03-Jul-2007

Vertu Motors has acquired Grantham Motor Company for £4.6m, including four Honda car dealerships in Grantham, Lincoln, Boston and Retford.
02-Jul-2007

South Ribble Council is to consider plans from Hurstwood for the development of a £2m Bentley car showroom at the South Rings Business Park in Bamber Bridge, which would involve the transfer of 25 staff from the existing site in Rishton.
28-Jun-2007

Saga is to merge with the AA motor breakdown services business to create a combined group worth £6.2bn with 11,100 staff.
26-Jun-2007

Williams BMW is to relocate its head office and 15 staff from Manchester to a new £10m building in Bolton by August 2008, and a new car showroom with 115 staff will replace its existing site in Bradshawgate.
21-Jun-2007

Vospers has acquired Sidwell Motors, the Exeter-based Fiat car dealership with 28 staff.
20-Jun-2007

Alfred McAlpine is forming Dealership Developments, a Bromsgrove-based joint venture with Wayland Developments, to build new showrooms for car manufacturers and retailers.
20-Jun-2007

Just Car Clinics has acquired a car accident repair business in Hinckley from Trinity Motors for £0.1m, with the transfer of 45 staff.
18-Jun-2007

JL French, the Essex-based car parts manufacturer, has been bought out of administration by Amtek of India, securing the future of 250 jobs.
15-Jun-2007

Takao is to invest £12m in the expansion of its automotive parts factory at the Rassau Industrial Estate in Ebbw Vale, with the creation of 80 jobs.
13-Jun-2007

Zenith Vehicle Contracts, the Leeds-based fleet management firm, has been sold by Dunedin Capital Partners to Barclays Private Equity for £40m.
12-Jun-2007

Inchcape is to acquire two Latvian car dealerships - Baltic Motors and SIA BM Auto - from MVC Capital for up to £60m.
12-Jun-2007

Nissan is setting up a £4m manufacturing training centre at its Sunderland plant, in order to train production supervisors from other countries, and the first group of trainees will arrive from Russia in the autumn.
12-Jun-2007

Inchcape has sold its Inchcape Automotive vehicle transportation business to Camden Ventures for up to £19m, in order to focus on car retailing.
05-Jun-2007

JCT600 has acquired a Vauxhall car dealership in Castleford and will invest £3m refurbishing the site.
31-May-2007

Reflex Mouldings is to create 34 new jobs at its car accessories and floor tiles factory in County Armagh, having secured a £2m investment from Invest NI that will help the company double its turnover over the next four years.
25-May-2007

Gaz, the Russian vehicle manufacturer that owns LDV, is recruiting about 20 staff for its new office in London, as part of a strategy to expand its international operations.
24-May-2007

Inchcape is to acquire a 67% stake in the automotive retail operations of UAB Vitvela for up to £13m, including Mazda, Ford, Hyundai and Mitsubishi car dealerships in Lithuania.
22-May-2007

Nissan is to set up a new 200,000 sq ft logistics centre at its car factory in Sunderland, funded by the £4.5m sale of land to Wilton and Clugston for the development of a new business park and hotel.
15-May-2007

Sherwoods has acquired the former Patrick's Vauxhall car dealership at Preston Farm on Teesside for undisclosed terms, with the transfer of 43 staff.
14-May-2007

JCT600 has acquired the Bentley luxury car dealership in Newcastle-upon-Tyne from Inchcape for £3m, taking its network of sites to 42.
11-May-2007

Reagroup has acquired Lewis Reed of Birkenhead for undisclosed terms, as part of a multi-million pound expansion programme for its network of Renault car dealerships in the North West.
10-May-2007

MNH Vehicle Contracts has acquired Platinum Fleet Management of Wakefield for undisclosed terms, creating a new group called MNH Platinum with 10,000 vehicles.
09-May-2007

Vertu Motors has acquired Blake Holdings, the operator of three car dealerships and a vehicle service centre for £4.9m, including sites in Chesterfield, Worksop and Matlock.
03-May-2007

Honda is to recruit an additional 300 staff at its car factory in Swindon by August, due to rising demand for the CR-V and Civic models.
02-May-2007

TruckEast, the chain of 12 commercial vehicle dealerships in the Eastern counties, has undergone a management buy-in for more than £10m.
01-May-2007

Nissan GB is planning to set up a nationwide network of 50 light commercial vehicle dealerships, providing van sales, servicing and parts.
26-Apr-2007

Blackcircles, the Edinburgh-based online tyre supplier, is planning to expand its nationwide network of franchised outlets from 150 to 300 outlets.
24-Apr-2007

DaimlerChrysler is to submit plans for the development of a £48m McLaren Mercedes motor racing test centre at Brixworth in Northamptonshire, which would involve the transfer of 80 technical jobs from Germany.
18-Apr-2007

Floform, the Welshpool-based manufacturer of automotive ignition components with about 100 staff, has undergone a management buy-out.
17-Apr-2007

Castle College is to set up a £8.2m automotive training centre at the Highfields Science & Technology Park in Nottingham by the end of the year.
17-Apr-2007

BMW is creating a further 450 jobs at its Mini car factory in Oxford, its pressing facility in Swindon and its Hams Hall engine plant in Warwickshire.
16-Apr-2007

Nissan is considering plans to create more jobs at its car factory in Washington, Tyne & Wear, as demand for the new Qashqai model is higher than expected.
16-Apr-2007

Nanjing Automobile is looking to expand the workforce at its MG sports car factory in Longbridge from 140 to at least 500 by the end of next year.
16-Apr-2007

Riverside Truck Rental has acquired Trio Hire Direct, the Milton Keynes-based recycling vehicle leasing company, for undisclosed terms.
13-Apr-2007

Bearmach, the Bedwas-based supplier of Land Rover spare parts with five retail outlets and annual turnover of more than £30m, has undergone a management buy-in led by the Hotbed private investor network.
12-Apr-2007

Available Car has acquired the Motorhouse 2000 car supermarket site in Sutton-in-Ashfield, and will retain the 44 staff.
11-Apr-2007

Universal Salvage, the vehicle salvage and auction company, has recommended a £57m takeover offer from Copart of the US.
09-Apr-2007

Arnold Clark Automobiles is to build a £10m Motorstore car supermarket at the Primepoint 14 business park in Stafford by April 2008, with the creation of up to 200 jobs.
09-Apr-2007

Motor Services Group of Bath has been acquired by Cwmbran Motors for undisclosed terms, including more than 100 staff at Audi, Ford, Skoda and VW dealerships.
05-Apr-2007

Connaught Motor Company is to set up a £12m headquarters and sports car factory in Llanelli, with the creation of 200 jobs.
30-Mar-2007

ITIS Holdings has sold its NavTrak vehicle tracking subsidiary to Cobra Automotive Technologies for an initial £2.2m, in order to focus on traffic information.
28-Mar-2007

Sytner is to relocate its Bentley Manchester car dealership from Old Trafford to a new £5m site in Knutsford by the end of the year.
27-Mar-2007

Proteus Cars, the replica sports car manufacturer, has been acquired by Enduro Cars of Coventry.
23-Mar-2007

Advantage West Midlands is to help fund the £26m Motorsport Development UK scheme, which aims to encourage innovation in motor sport, including the development of energy-efficient racing and a virtual academy.
21-Mar-2007

Hydro is to sell its aluminium car parts factory in Worcester to Holden Lightweight, securing the future of 130 jobs.
21-Mar-2007

General Motors is to set up a network of up to 12 Hummer car dealerships in the UK by the end of 2009, with Kroymans acting as the distributor.
20-Mar-2007

Car Shop Megastore is to open a new 123,000 sq ft car supermarket in Swindon in April, as part of a strategy to double its chain of three sites by the end of 2008.
16-Mar-2007

Stamford Group has acquired Philip Wilks & Sons, the Durham-based chain of nine petrol stations and three car dealerships with 135 staff, for about £15m.
15-Mar-2007

Aston Martin, the luxury car manufacturer, has been sold by Ford to a consortium of investors backed by Investment Dar and Adeem of Kuwait for £479m, and production at its Warwickshire factory will rise with the creation of at least 200 jobs.
13-Mar-2007

Henson Motor Group is planning to open two new car showrooms on North Tyneside and Teesside, with the creation of 60 jobs by the end of the year.
08-Mar-2007

Perrys has acquired four Vauxhall car dealerships in Bury, Burnley, Clitheroe and Colne from the Vantage Group for undisclosed terms.
07-Mar-2007

Inchcape is looking to sell 47 non-core car dealerships, including Ford and Ferrari franchises, as part of a strategy to focus on brands such as Toyota, BMW and Audi.
07-Mar-2007

Just Car Clinics has expanded its chain of 17 collision repair centres with the acquisition of a 27,000 sq ft site in Durham.
05-Mar-2007

Colt Cars Mid-West is to open a new £4m Mitsubishi car dealership near Gloucestershire airport in August.
01-Mar-2007

Vertu Motors is to acquire Bristol Street for £40m, creating a nationwide chain of 35 car dealerships with 1,700 staff.
28-Feb-2007

Ridgeway Group has acquired Mercedes Benz and Smart car dealerships in Southampton, Chichester and Winchester, as well as Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge operations in Portsmouth.
27-Feb-2007

Reflex Vehicle Solutions is planning to double the 32-strong workforce at its Stockton-based vehicle rental business over the next 18 months, and is looking to open new sites in the Midlands, the South West and North London.
20-Feb-2007

ADR Accident Repair Centres has acquired the Premier Accident Repair Centre in Derby for undisclosed terms, and plans to expand the 20-strong workforce to 30 over the next three months.
08-Feb-2007

Car People is setting up a new £10m car showroom on a 10-acre site in Sheffield, and the initial 70-strong workforce is expected to rise to 150 within two years.
08-Feb-2007

Bell Truck Sales has acquired a Mitsubishi car dealership in South Tyneside, which will involve the refurbishment of the former Bridge Street Motors site in East Boldon.
05-Feb-2007

Teesside Audi is to relocate its Teesside-based car dealership and 55 staff to a new £5m site at Preston Park in June.
02-Feb-2007

Nanjing Automobile has announced that MG sports car production will restart at Longbridge by April, with the creation of about 250 jobs.
31-Jan-2007

Liverpool Victoria is to acquire Britannia Rescue, the provider of roadside rescue services, for £36m.
31-Jan-2007

Bedfordia Motor Holdings has acquired the Sewell BMW and Mini car dealerships in Bishop's Stortford for undisclosed terms.
25-Jan-2007

Takao Europe is investing £3.2m at a new car parts factory at the Rassau Industrial Estate in Ebbw Vale, with the creation of 100 jobs.
25-Jan-2007

Manheim has acquired the Saltash Car Auctions site in Cornwall for undisclosed terms, taking its network to 19 sites.
24-Jan-2007

Rybrook has acquired the Varsity ChryslerJeep car dealership in Oxford for undisclosed terms.
24-Jan-2007

Lawrence Automotive, the Nottingham-based vehicle trim manufacturer, is expected to be acquired by Huaxiang of China for about £2.5m.
22-Jan-2007

Ford is to create a further 200 manufacturing jobs at its engine factory in Bridgend.
19-Jan-2007

Nationwide Autocentres is planning to expand its chain of 210 car servicing centres by acquiring up to 50 additional sites in 2007.
16-Jan-2007

RMB Automotive is to create 40 jobs with the opening of two new Toyota and Lexus car dealerships in Stockton in February.
09-Jan-2007

Approved Car Finance is to open two new regional centres in Hampshire and Newcastle-upon-Tyne over the next few months, with the creation of more than 20 jobs.
09-Jan-2007

Hanif Automotive has acquired three Nissan car dealerships in Ruislip, Slough and High Wycombe from Dan Perkins for undisclosed terms.
08-Jan-2007

Henry Bros, the Glasgow-based BMW car dealer, has been acquired by Park's Motor Group for undisclosed terms.
03-Jan-2007

Vertu Motors has raised £25m in a flotation on Aim to fund the development of a new business acquiring car dealerships.
03-Jan-2007