Europe Cars 1960's

Does anyone know where the premises of Europa Cars was in the mid 60's ?

There is a picture of the dealership on picturesheffield which is captioned 115 Ecclesall Road and I'm looking for confirmation or otherwise of that address.

The Kelly's directories for 1973 and 1974 show Europa Cars Ltd. at 115 Ecclesall Road South - see here. Earlier directories from 1971 back to the 1950s show "Rippon Bros. Ltd., motor car agents and dealers" at that address.

I remember that in c. 1970 there was a firm with the name "Europa Cars" in Hillsborough which sold NSU Prinz cars. The 1971 directory confirms that Europa Cars Ltd. were at 100 Middlewood Road at that time.

Hi Person6

I bought an NSU Prinz (like the ones parked on the road in the Picture Sheffield image) from that company in late 1965. At that time their showroom was on Middlewood Road, Hillsborough although they may have had a second one on Ecclesall Road as well. Alternatively they could have subsequently moved there. I think they also had a connection with the Waldot Service Station.

hillsbro is quicker on the draw and has confirmed the S6 connection.

echo.

I just looked at the picturesheffield.com photo - reference No. s39737. It actually shows the building at 100 Middlewood Road where Europa Cars Ltd. were based, and so the picturesheffield.com description is mistaken. Here is a "Google" street-level view - the building has been altered but is recognisable, as is "Hillsborough Cottage" and its garden wall to the left. The 1973 and 1974 directories show "Parkside Cars, secondhand car dealers" at 100 Middlewood Road, and so perhaps by that time Europa Cars had moved to Ecclesall Road South. It must have been Parkside Cars that I remember selling the Bond "Bug" in c. 1974.

In my earlier post I mentioned Rippon Bros. Ltd at 115 Ecclesall Road South - here is a link to a picturesheffield.com photo showing this address.

I just looked at the picturesheffield.com photo - reference No. s39737. It actually shows the building at 100 Middlewood Road where Europa Cars Ltd. were based, and so the picturesheffield.com description is mistaken. Here is a "Google" street-level view - the building has been altered but is recognisable, as is "Middlewood Cottage" to the left.

Thank you for that hillsbro. You're correct of course. The image is of Middlewood Road and is wrongly labelled on Picture Sheffield.

On the latest Google streetview image from August 2016 it looks as though Crucible Sales and Lettings now occupy the building.

So, as you have discovered I guess they moved from Hillsborough to Ecclesall Road at some point between 1971 and 1973.

echo.

Thanks very much to both of you.

My vague memories of the Ecclesall Road branch didn't fit with the

photograph. Really appreciate that so thanks again!

I had a summer job at the bakery next to the dealers when it was Rippon Bros

and couldn't reconcile the image with my (admittedly faulty these days) memory.

Glad to have been able to help a little with this. My own 69 year-old memory is also somewhat faulty but I do remember Europa Cars in Middlewood Road (and I think there was indeed a connection with the Waldot Service Station). I wonder if Mrs hillsbro would let me buy a secondhand Bond Bug....

Glad to have been able to help a little with this. My own 69 year-old memory is also somewhat faulty but I do remember Europa Cars in Middlewood Road (and I think there was indeed a connection with the Waldot Service Station). I wonder if Mrs hillsbro would let me buy a secondhand Bond Bug....

Expensive cars these days Bond Bugs. I remember a forlorn looking stack of them in a yard next to a garage on Suffolk Road in the early seventies, and I regularly used to see one, driving around the Apperknowle/Unstone area, which someone had replaced the single front wheel with a pair making it a four wheeler.

You're dead right, Person6 - here is one for sale on eBay: a snip at £7,495.

Blimey! I can't have one anyway, at 6'7" I don't fit in them. I've tried.

You're dead right, Person6 - here is one for sale on eBay: a snip at £7,495.

Good grief, our kid had two of them. He'll be seriously dischuffed.

Waldot Service station was owned by Walter and Dorothy Dungworth who started their business from

premises behind Jack Dysons motorbike shop on Middlewood Rd later they bought land Higher up and Established Waldot Service Station which sold Fina petrol and oils also carried out car servicing and repairs later expanding the business into car sales taking on the Rootes group Vehicles Hillman etc.A while later taking VW ,NSU Wartberg and Reliant,VW and NSU being the most profitable enabling them to open Europa Cars further down Middlewood Rd.A couple of years later opening Europa 2 at the old Attercliffe Palace after Brook Shaw commercials had vacated it.This was a commercial mistake so they took on Ripon Bros old place at the top off Ecclesall rd a block of private flats are there now,they were there a few years until they had sourced the Mercedes dealership for Sheffield and had a new Showroom and workshops built in the German Style.Whilst there Alan Urquarts Auto electrical business was acquired and Europa Carriage Company was set up on Hoyle street.The businesses were very successful until personal affairs forced them to sell the companies to a London concern and they took no further involvement.Walter Dungworth died in 2005 and Dorothy in 2016 aged 80 and 92 respectively I kept in touch with both of them until their deaths.Hope this has helped.