#Dicklane Motorhomes

Although the roots of the firm go back almost as far again to 1936 when the father of Stephen Buckley, the present Managing Director, set up a motor business if the Frizinghall suburb of Bradford. The way that the original company grew, sprouted subsidiaries and took on a variety of car franchises is now ancient history but the important fact that led to the involvement with motor caravans is that the Dick Lane branch were Volkswagen agents.

In the early sixties there were few places where one could go to view motor caravans. Volkswagen, however, were already strong in the infant post-war motor caravan world and alongside brochures for the VW Beetle, the Transporter and then the newly arrived “notchback” VW 1500 many dealers were starting to keep information on the various conversions based in the split-screen Transporter. Canterbury Pitt was one of the popular conversions though the nineteen-sixties (Peter Pitt had been then sold Type 2 in Britain and had then sold out to Canterbury Sidecars) and it was for one these models that a customer placed an order. The only information the buyer had to go on was that I the brochure but he went ahead and committed his £1190 for the de-luxe version of the Canterbury Pitt, which was based on the Microbus version of the Type 2 with two-tone paintwork. The order was taken by a young Stephen Buckley, then a junior salesman in the family firm.

So great was the interest shown in the VW caravan during the few days that it stood at Dick Lane before the customer took delivery that it was decided to order another for stock. Within a few days of been put on display, the second ‘van was sold ad so a further order was placed – this time for two. VW motor caravans it was soon discovered, sold like the proverbial hot cakes and within a couple of years motor caravan sales were exceeding those of cars and all at Dick Lane were themselves converts to the motor caravan world. In 1975 the decision to pull out of the car business and concentrate solely of VW motor caravans.

Dick Lane Garage became the Yorkshire distributor for Devon, Dormobile, and Danbury and also for German Westfalia while it was officially important by VW (GB). In 1983 the company was invited by Autohomes (UK) to become their sole distributor and service centre for Yorkshire. In the mean time, however, the original family group of companies had been reorganised and its various parts divided between individual family members. Stephen Buckley found himself with the motor caravan sales department, located in North Bradford at Saltair, and the motor service section in the original Dick Lane premises, which benefited from the legacy of the workshop facilities of the earlier VW franchise.

Success with the Autohomes franchise found Dick Lane rapidly becoming one of the manufacture’s select “Top Ten” dealers and the growing volume of business, not to the growing size of the average motorhome, called for same rationalisation. Saltair was small with no prospects for expansion. On the other hand, the Dick Lane site extended to around five acres and, although the buildings there were old and less than suitable, it offered considerable scope for re-development.; Accordingly, in 1990, the decision was made to sell Saltair and combine the service work at Dick Lane.

The North Bradford property was actually sold early in 1992 and all activities moved to Dick Lane. In fact, there are good historical reasons for a major motor caravan development on this site for it is just around the corner from Parry Lane, which road gave its now to one of the great motor caravan classics of the sixties, the “Paralanian”. The re-development of Dick Lane will involve the construction of a new showroom, offices and petrol filling station but the project is not a straightforward one. The first stage consists of extensive landscaping, including construction of a storm-water culvert, and only when this dust or mud creating exercise according to the prevailing weather is complete can concrete be purred or bricks laid.

A degree of inadequacy of the present premises or the disruption caused by civil engineering works cannot, however, obscure thirty years of experience and expertise in the motor caravan world. The workshop side is the heart of the Dick Lane operation and is under Kevin Fryer who was VW trained and has been with the Buckley family enterprise now for twenty-five years. With the legacy of the years when the VW car franchise was held, this side of the business has the equipment and skill to cover the needs of the motor caravan. From tyres to top vents.

On the mechanical side, Dick Lane has computerised tuning and diagnostic equipment and they are not mere spanner men who take off the suspected defective parts and just bolt on replacements straight from the manufacturers packaging. When we visited, the workshop had just stripped and repaired gearboxes from an Iveco-based motorhome and a Winnebago. Bodywork? They can handle that too, and all the work needed to bring the injured Bambi which we pictured back to health and fitness would be carried out in-house at Dick Lane. GRP repairs are under-taken (they have undertaken the fitting of hightops for some converters not versed in the art) and they also have an MOT test facility. On the caravan side, naturally every aspect is covered from the simple fitting of a roll-out awning to the intricacies of the servicing and installing of heaters of all the kinds and of caravan 12 volt and mains electrics.

The comprehensive facilities and skills of the workshops at Dick Lane provide the after-sales support which is so necessary to keep the loyalty of those who have bought a motor caravan, new or used. Stephen Buckley himself heads up the sales side at this long established dealership and is supported by his wife Caron and Sales Executive Simon Bartle. When we visited, the frontage and the enclosed stock yard presented a selection of new ‘vans still bearing the Autohomes badge but now, of course, built by Elddis at Consett and a good variety of used conversions and coachbuilt models. The latter were all smartly prepared and would have the benefit of a thorough work-shop checkover by Dick Lane’s expert mechanics before going to the new owners.

Those who buy a new ‘van from this Bradford dealership get the benefit of having a rust proofed (normal cost £300) free of charge and a SIX year warranty which is additional to any anti-corrosion warranty from the vehicle manufacturer. Buyers of new motor caravans also get the chance of a courtesy car loan when they take their ‘van for service or repair work and should they need transport while their outfit is in the workshops. All buyers at Dick Lane are taken through a comprehensive handover programme which wither Stephen or Simon goes over each and every piece of caravan equipment.

Where is Dick Lane?

Dick Lane is a major road running between Thornbury roundabout on the A647 Leeds-Bradford road and the A650 Bradford-Wakefield road. At the latter end the connection is at Dudley Hill roundabout , from where Cutler Heights Lane leads on to Dick Lane in about half a mile. Click here for a detailed map and contact information.