Eric Barton meets up with Cheltenham Suzuki Dealership Principal,Stephen Wilkins

In 1957 the USSR launched the first ever spaceship, Sputnik. And in the very same year John Wilkins decided to opt for a career in motoring rather than farming. This is good news. Now these two events aren’t linked in any way, however they both signify the beginnings of something very worthwhile.

John Wilkins Cars in Cheltenham has been providing a ‘sales and servicing’ facility from their purpose-built premises in Leckhampton since those mind boggling days of the space race. They are in fact the oldest family run franchised car dealership in Cheltenham. It’s a testament to the way the business has been run that they’re still around to this very day offering a range of car products and services to the local community. Th company is now spearheaded by his two sons, Stephen Wilkins (Dealer Principal) and John Wilkins (Managing Director).

It’s quite refreshing to see a family business like this bucking the trend. By that I mean that most automotive dealerships these days are usually part of a huge PLC group. So in a sense, individuality goes out the window in a trade-off against the corporate machine. Not so at John Wilkins Cars. The family values are as true today as they’ve always been.

The company has 15 employees with some of them tucking away 40 years of service to the family firm. That’s unbelievable in this day and age. It smacks of deep-rooted values in what’s right and what’s wrong.  As a main Suzuki GB dealership the business offers a wide range of products; everything from new and used cars sales, through to servicing and accessories. In fact, John Wilkins Cars was the very first M.O.T. testing station in Gloucestershire.
It’s really a one-stop-shop for everything Suzuki or Citroën. Servicing cars has changed massively over the last seven years, so much so that most
manufacturers change the diagnostics at least every month, pushing the boundaries of technology and telemetry. Only main dealers can really keep up with this myriad of technical wizardry.

“We’ve seen a huge increase in the levels of technology on the vehicles and it’s our aim and duty as a main dealer to ensure we keep up to speed with all of this,” says Stephen Wilkins. The business has in some cases three generations of customers from the same families returning to either purchase cars or to have them serviced. It’s back to the old adage of customers coming first. “We’ve always been in this for the long game.

It’s a legacy that our father heavily instilled in us. For us our customers will always be the prime focus of the business. We’re adamant that they should be happy with everything we do for them.” The Suzuki side of the family business came on stream in 1995, recently seeing a good period of growth with their latest second generation hot hatch, the Suzuki Swift. This little beauty incidentally returns almost 64mpg. Much cheaper to run than a space rocket.

New Suzuki Swift from John Wilkins Cars

Dealer Principal, Stephen Wilkins interviewed on the Mark Cummings breakfast show Friday 10th September 2010.
“How complicated are cars these days?”

To listen to the interview click on the link below and go to timeline 2:26:16 to 2:28:29

http://bbc.in/cLqAHx

Used cars in Cheltenham from John Wilkins Cars

New Suzuki Alto now VAT FREE at John Wilkins Cars for September 2010.

New Suzuki Alto from John Wilkins Cars

Follow this link

http://bbc.in/axtvdO

and go to time line 1:09:00 to 1:18:00 to hear the full interview with Presenter David Smith in the Afternoon.

Dealer Principal, Stephen Wilkins was interviewed today on BBC Radio Gloucestershire about the Government Scrappage Scheme. Follow the link below to listen and go to the time line 2:16:50 to 2:18:45 and 2:56:50

http://bit.ly/aPFCr1

Scheme extended to 31st March 2010

Buy a car before VAT goes from 15% to 17.5% in January 2010

Quick, time is running out. Not just on the £2000 discount offered through the Government Scrappage scheme that finishes in February but also on the discounted VAT rate enjoyed by car buyers over recent months. That’s right, the VAT rate on cars goes up from 15% to 17.5% in January.
Now that might not sound like a big rise when we’re talking cars that 2.5% VAT rate rise might well add up to a significant amount of money. That’s £500 on a £20,000 car for example. Move fast to save money.
With year on year increases of 11.4% and 31.6% in September and October respectively it would seem that a combination of increasing consumer confidence, uptake of the Government Scrappage Scheme and the current discounted VAT rates are working powerfully to re-launch the motor industry. With the industry recovering rapidly from the toughest of tough times and now getting back on an even keel there will be no need for further incentives. Don’t miss out on the deals while they’re about. If you are one of the reported 1 in 20 motorists thinking about a new car over the next 3 months then now is the time to put those thoughts into action and save a packet in the process.
This is serious stuff, we’re talking hundreds of pounds, if not thousands of pounds in savings ready and waiting. Don’t find yourself later next year repenting in leisure, wishing you’d move just that little bit quicker and saved cash when you had the opportunity.
Check out the show rooms, talk to dealers and see what sorts of competitive offers they can out on the table. The chance are you will pleasantly surprised. Remember it’s not just car scrappage and VAT benefits on offer, dealers are throwing in free extras, flexible payment terms, maintenance deals you name it. For now it’s still a buyers markets – you’re in the driving seat. Be sure to take full advantage of the situation and enjoy the great offers before it’s too late.

Have you taken advantage of the Government funded Scrappage Scheme yet? No? Well you had better hurry as time is running out fast. You’ve only got until the end of February to take advantage of the scheme and enjoy a full £2,000 off a new car if you trade in one that’s at least 10 years old. With a VAT increase due in January there’s no time to waste if you want to make the most of the great deals on offer.
So popular has the £300m Government funded Scrappage Scheme proven with nearly 250,00 orders placed through it, that the Government has increased the amount available to £400m. Other changes to the scheme include the age qualification dropping by six months to any car registered before 29 February 2000, and the the minimum age of vans eligible cut from 10 years to 8 years.
What are you waiting for?
Plenty of other people are trading in and saving.
October car sales recorded their biggest increase this year. According to The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) a massive 168,942 new cars were registered last month. That’s a 31.6% increase compared to a year ago. Of those around 35,000 sales were as a direct consequence of the Government funded Scrappage Scheme.
Have you felt tempted by the scheme but not quite able to commit? Well remember your vehicle isn’t getting any younger and the scheme will only be running for a short while more. Don’t end up kicking yourself in March or April wishing you’d taken the £2000 discount.
While the money’s still on the table there’s no harm in considering it. Why not take a trip to your local dealer and see what they can offer? What sort of discount package they can put together for you. Chance are you will be shocked at the low costs and value for money out there on the forecourts. It’s very much a buyers market at the moment. The iron is hot – strike it. Use the scrappage scheme and to save yourself a cool £2000 before it’s too late.

Suzuki 01242 224477
Citroen 01242 255550
Mazda 01242 526981
Parts 01242 573426
Fax 01242 226950

John Wilkins Cars Ltd
170 – 172 Leckhampton Road
Cheltenham
GL53 0AA

email : sales@johnwilkinscars.com