THREE new dealers have been appointed by SsangYong distributor Koelliker UK Ltd, taking the maker’s UK coverage to 33.
Kinghams in Croydon and Wiltshire and Sons in Farnham will offer new car service and sales, while the company has also signed up Andover’s E.W. Pinchbeck and Sons as a service dealer.
The trio were lucky enough to enjoy a trip to the recent Paris Motor Show, to toast the deal – and see SsangYong’s hope for the future, the dramatic C200 concept car.
Kinghams has been going for nearly half a century, with SsangYong adding to its current Daihatsu franchise, plus service for SEAT and Alfa Romeo.
Sp why did they jump on board? Dealer principal Keith Kingham said: ‘We used to sell the Daihatsu Fourtrak very successfully and we wanted something similar.
‘We know that there are customers who want a car like that to do a job of work, and they want value rather than a premium-priced badge; SsangYong works very well in that respect and fills a gap in our showroom and in our local market.’
Barry Wiltshire, sales director of Wiltshire and Sons in Farnham, Surrey, was just as buoyed: ‘We were looking for new products and a franchise that would add value and complement what we already had.
‘In the first week of having SsangYong, we sold four new vehicles – in the middle of the credit crunch and financial mayhem!’
Wiltshire and Sons is an established SEAT dealership, in business since 1974.
Eddie Pinchbeck added: ‘We’re in the middle of farming country, and while there will always be some people who want a car for status reasons, most people round here want value and ability.
‘SsangYong is adding value to our business, and we hope to develop a healthy relationship with the importers.’
