9:30 am, December 29, 2025
As 2025 draws to an end, the automotive industry will no doubt reflect on another dramatic year of highs and lows.
With so much going on, it has been a busy period for all of us here at Car Dealer HQ, where we have seen another successful year of traffic across our platforms.
The Car Dealer Podcast has gone from strength to strength our YouTube channel once again drawn in record numbers, buoyed by the success of our video series following the fortunes of the Clever Car Collection.
Here on the website, we have welcomed readers from as far afield as Antarctica, the Northern Mariana Islands and Timor-Leste but what have our loyal readers been looking at this year?
To mark the end of 2025 we have been looking back at the last 12 months to find our ten most-read stories.
This is what we found…
10. Used car dealer blocks Land Rover dealership entrance with truck until his car is repaired
Written by: Rebecca Chaplin
Page views: 68,230
JLR have been in the headlines a lot this year but it may surprise you to learn that our most-read story about the firm actually has nothing to do with the cyber attack, which forced production to a halt earlier in the year.
Instead, the Car Dealer audience were more interested in the case of luxury used car dealer Rob Kelly, who blocked the entrance to Vertu Land Rover Leeds after he was told his warranty was void.
After his car broke and Land Rover voided the warranty, he decided to park his 7.5-tonne Iveco flat-bed truck across the entrance to Vertu’s dealership until they agreed to give him a new engine.
While the tactic may have been far from conventional, it certainly had the desired affect, with Vertu eventually agreeing to repair the engine as a ‘goodwill gesture’.
It was a case of ‘all’s well that ends well’ for Kelly and almost 70,000 of you read about his protest via the Car Dealer website.
9. Mercedes-Benz Retail Group axes final sites and ceases trading after years of heavy losses
Written by: Jack Williams
Page views: 82,134
Back in April we brought you the news that Mercedes-Benz Retail Group had sold off its remaining dealerships and ceased trading following years of downsizing and heavy losses.
The announcement was made in a filing via Companies House, which confirmed that the German brand’s in-house dealer group had been settling its debts with a view to moving to a ‘dormant’ status.
The company’s accounts said that the outfit had ‘disposed of its remaining leasehold premises’ and ‘recovered its remaining trade and other receivables’ with directors not expecting any further trading activity.
The news had a major impact on the UK’s network of Mercedes dealers and more than 80,000 of you were keen to find out what was going on.
8. Used car dealer jailed for illegally selling £300,000 worth of insurance write offs
Written by: Jack Williams
Page views: 87,760
In May, rogue car dealer, Zana Ahmed Muhammed was jailed for four years after he made a staggering £300,000 selling cars that had previously been written off.
The dodgy dealer ran an illegal operation selling insurance write offs out of a base at The Old Ambulance Station, Flint, using acebook Marketplace and eBay to advertise the illicit motors.
The 42-year-old ignored repeated warnings from Trading Standards until he was eventually hauled up before Mold Crown Court where he pleaded guilty to fraudulent trading.
After hearing all the evidence, judge Timothy Petts handed Muhammed a four-year jail term and accused him of acting ‘thoroughly dishonestly’.
Stories of dealers like Muhammed giving the motor trade a bad name always get the blood boiling and more than 87,000 of you clicked on this one to read all about his well-deserved downfall.
7. Council orders used car dealership to close after it was found to be operating illegally
Written by: Jack Williams
Page views: 88,255
Another car dealer to fall foul of regulations this year was the Moorings Garage in Hornchurch.
Car Dealer reported in September that the firm had been found to have been operating without planning permission and ordered to vacate their-long term premises by January 6.
A planning enforcement notice by the local Havering Council, ordered the business to close, labelling it ‘inappropriate’ and ‘harmful’ to the green belt land which it sits on.
While bosses vowed to fight on, there has been no further word on any appeal, and as it stands, the dealership will be forced to close in the new year.
Our coverage of the story received almost 90,000 clicks, making it the seventh most popular story of the year.
6. Family-run car dealership sold off after 70 years as long-standing owner announces retirement
Written by: Jack Williams
Page views: 96,619
The motor trade is full long-serving family businesses and when a stalwart retires after decades in the industry, tributes always pour in from across the used car world.
That is exactly what happened when Adam H Erwin Car Sales boss Taylor Erwin decided to call it a day back in November. He sold the business to dealer group Lochside Garages, bringing the curtain down on 70 years within the same family.
The news got a heartfelt response, especially in Erwin’s native Northern Ireland, where fellow retailer MB Motors Ballymena described him as ‘one of the most respected names in car sales’.
News of his retirement clearly struck a nerve with the Car Dealer audience too, with just under 100,000 reading our story – a figure which narrowly sees it miss out on the top five.
5. Family-run Ford dealership to close down next month with site earmarked for demolition
Written by: Jack Williams
Page views: 118,196
One of the most interesting developments over the past few years has been the downsizing of Ford’s presence in the UK, as the Blue Oval continues to shed dealers – and market share.
In April it was announced that family-run dealer group TC Harrison was to close its St Neots branch after planners granted permission for a new retirement village on the site.
The news did not result in any job losses – with operations relocated to the firm’s nearby Huntingdon branch – but the loss of another Ford site certainly got tongues wagging in the dealer world.
It came hot on the heels of the brand terminating 50 car dealerships as part of drive to slash the number of retail points it has in the UK.
As a result of that interest, this is the first story on our list to reach a six figure numbers of readers, with over 118,000 clicks since it was published.
4. Volvo cancels dealer’s contract with immediate effect after it moves into temporary showroom
Written by: James Baggott
Page views: 127,352
The most recent story on our list, this one was only published on December 5 but the very public spat between Volvo and Brindley Group certainly caught the attention of our readers.
The car dealer group was issued with an immediate termination notice from Volvo after a row erupted over the use of a temporary showroom.
Brindley said it had already been issued with a ‘two year notice period’ from the Swedish car maker because it ‘refused’ to sell its dealership to the brand’s preferred bidder.
It was claimed that Volvo took issue with being moved into temporary accommodation while the main showroom was being readied for use by Chery – a new partner for the group.
Boss Che Watson was pretty scathing about the situation and it was soon confirmed that Brindley was ‘no longer part of the Volvo network’.
Whatever the details, the row made for compelling reading, with close to 130,000 people clicking on the story.
3. Family-run used car dealer to close down as bosses call it a day after 54 years in the motor trade
Written by: Jack Williams
Page views: 138,771
More than one automotive stalwart decided to call it a day this year and in August Denbury Diesels owners Mike and Tracey Perryman announced they would be stepping away from the industry after several happy decades.
The firm had been a staple of the community in Newton Abbot for the past 54 years but the shutters finally came down for good over the summer.
The news of another family-run operation leaving the motor trade was met with widespread sadness, with customers flooding the company’s social media pages with well-wishes.
The sentiments were clearly shared by the Car Dealer audience too, with almost 140,000 reading about the couple’s retirement.
2. Long-standing car dealership goes up for sale as business closes down after 45 years
Written by: Jack Williams
Page views: 250,174
It has been a year of high profile closures across the used car market but none have gathered more attention on the Car Dealer website than this.
Back in June, we reported that the much-loved Stanley Street Motors had ceased trading after 45 years serving the people of Lowestoft, having first set up shop way back in 1980.
The firm remained in the same hands throughout its history but boss John Mitchell has decided to step back earlier this year due to ill health and retirement.
The outgoing Mitchell paid a heartfelt tribute his loyal customer base, before bowing out when the site was auctioned off.
The story of yet another family firm disappearing attracted an incredibly strong response on Car Dealer, with the story read more than a quarter-of-a-million times.
1. Car dealership fined £200,000 after employees are diagnosed with incurable condition
Written by: Jack Williams
Page views: 347,725
So here we have it – our most read story for the year. In May, we brought you a shocking story out of Vertu Honda Truro, where two employees were left with a permanent condition as a result of working at the site’s bodyshop.
Two workers at the site were diagnosed with Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS) back in 2022 as a result of regularly using powerful hand tools.
The dealership – which was owned by Rowes rather than Vertu at the time of the incidents – pleaded guilty to breaching The Health and Safety at Work Act after a prosecution was brought by the Health and Safety Executive.
The firm was fined an eye-watering £204,000 and ordered to pay £8,099 in additional costs after experts said that the employees suffered ‘painful and disabling’ disorders of their nerves, blood supply, joints and muscles of the hands and arms, as a result of repeated exposure to vibrations.
The story highlighted just how dangerous the motor trade can be and you lovely lot were clearly very interested, as it raked in almost 350,000 views to become our most-read story of 2025!
