A CAR dealership that has been serving Bradford for more than 70 years has closed its doors.

The city's Mercedes-Benz site, based on Thornton Road, became the first dealer and distributor for all Mercedes in the North of England and was the oldest in the UK.

In 2008, it was taken over by Pendragon and had been running under the management of Stratstone Mercedes-Benz Bradford.

A post on Stratstone's website says Mercedes-Benz of Bradford "ceased trading in November 2024". 

It is also listed on Google as 'permanently closed'.

When the Telegraph & Argus visited the site on Friday afternoon, the gates were shut.

An email sent to customers, seen by the T&A, read: "As a valued customer, we are contacting you to confirm the closure of Stratstone Mercedes-Benz of Bradford store on October 31, 2024.

"We understand the store closure may raise a few questions, so we have tried to answer as many of these for you within the FAQs.

"This addresses questions around car finance, workshop bookings, and servicing."

History of Mercedes-Benz Bradford

The contract with Mercedes-Benz was negotiated and signed in July 1953 by Raymond Scatchard and the dealership was passed down through generations.

The original site, which operated as Charles Sidney was opened on Westgate, Bradford, in 1953, and stood for 10 years before it was destroyed by fire.

The site then moved to where it is today on Thornton Road, but in 1963 it was a mill site.

Mr Scatchard converted the mill section of Bradford Dyers Association Mills into a large workshop.

This was opened by the famous Mercedes race manager Alfred Neubauer, noted as one of the key figures in the success of Mercedes-Benz.

The Telegraph & Argus has contacted Stratstone for a comment.