Car Dealers, Garages, Petrol Stations

Thanks to Bridie Shields and the Coventrians FB page - petrol queues for the Motor Mart garage on London Road. Long queues are forming in a bid by motorists to beat the 6pm deadline, after which a 5d increase would be applied. 22nd November 1968.

And another - queues more than 100 yards long build up outside one Coventry garage as motorists fill up before tomorrow's price increases. Gulson Garage, Binley Road, Coventry, West Midlands. 19th December 1974.

Newsomes had a showroom in Corporation Street, my late wife's aunt was a secretary there (30s-40s I think)

I remember their later showrooms on the A45 by the island (roundabout for purists) opposite the Styvechale pub. It was a local landmark, and everyone use to refer to the island as Newsome's Island. It caused amusement in class when, in French lessons, nous sommes cropped up.

I hadn't realised they were there Slim. What year would that have been? Guessing it was on the spot now taken by the Peugeot dealer - anyone got an image?

Yes, it's now the Peugeot garage. If memory serves me correctly, they were there about 1970, maybe earlier. They also had main workshops in Job's Lane.

I think they were 'Henlys' for quite a long time in the 80s/90s

Thank you, that was the name I was struggling to remember. They were indeed Henleys, but everyone still called it Newsomes (island or garage). Old habits die hard.

Yes I remember it there as Henly's. Just found this - an 'F' plate would make it 1967.

It's still a local landmark and is usually referred to nowadays as Henly's Roundabout

Bobby Gould, Coventry City centre forward takes delivery of a Triumph Spitfire 3 from Mr. D. Harty of S. H. Newsome and Co. Ltd. This image is from the Standard Triumph Review November 1967 and featured in my blog post about S H Newsome of Coventry here.

Brill, Steve! Thank you!

Nice one, Steve - it just appeared under a Google search for me, so hope you didn't mind me adding. Lucky chaps, them footballers!

Highway Garage - now the Peugeot dealer?

Swan Lane Garage, which has been mentioned on here a few times, 1965. I think this is Ford Street at the junction with Priory Street.