It’s September 2003, “Where is the Love” by the Black-eyed Peas is number 1 in the charts, Tony Blair is Prime Minister and the Smyth family have just bought LC Charles Ltd, acquiring SEAT, Volkswagen, and Audi dealerships, and with it Swansway Motor Group was born.
20 years on, Swansway has progressed from the humble beginnings to a multi-award-winning company, running 26 sites across 9 brands. The company has been able to achieve success in the automotive industry as well as giving back to the community. And perhaps most importantly have shown adaptability in the ever-changing world of cars.
The roads were a very different place back in 2003, diesel cost 78pence per litre for a start! So, we thought we’d look at the motor trade back then and how things have changed over the 20 years of Swansway.
The Nokia 1100 was the best-selling phone back then but 2003 saw the introduction of the first laws which restricted the use of mobile phones while driving. The regulations specified that using a hand-held device for ‘interactive communication’ (calling, texting, or using the internet) was an offence which carried a minimum penalty of £200 fine and six penalty points. However, 2001 had seen the Ford Focus become the first car to use Bluetooth, allowing drivers to go ‘hands-free’.
The Ford Focus led the way elsewhere in 2003, as it was the best-selling car in the UK; 131,684 were sold! The Vauxhall Corsa came in second, closely followed by its big brother the Vauxhall Astra. 2003 was the 5th year in a row that the Focus had topped the charts, the same could not be said for the Black-Eyed Peas who wouldn’t have their next number 1 single until 2009 with ‘Boom Boom Pow’. The Focus accounted for around 5% of total car sales in the UK, as a record high of almost 2.6 million cars were sold in the UK in 2003. David Beckham signed for Real Madrid for £25million whilst the average price of a new car was £16,831.28, whereas in 2023 Jude Bellingham signed for Real Madrid for £86million and the average new car costs £37,828.80.
Michael Schumacher continued his period of dominance by winning his 6th World Championship, but away from the racetrack cars were going driverless. The Toyota Prius became the first car that could park itself, sending shockwaves through the motor industry. However, Bluetooth in the Ford Focus was clearly a more desirable feature as only 387 Prius’ were sold in 2003. Although it wasn’t all bad for the Prius as since its emergence as the world’s first mass-produced electric-hybrid vehicle in 2000, it has gone on to become the best-selling hybrid worldwide .
2003 provided a major gearshift for electric cars however, as two American entrepreneurs, Marc Tarpenning and Martin Eberhard had the idea to create an electric sports car named after Serbian American Inventor Nikolas Tesla. We think you’ll know what happened next but by 2023 the Tesla Model Y has become the world’s best-selling car, and the first all-electric vehicle to do so. And there we were thinking that the Focus would dominate forever! Ford does however continue to have a strangle-hold on the UK market, as the Ford Puma takes the top spot for sales in the UK, with 22,765 registrations. It seemed inconceivable back in 2003 that the electric car would be more than a novelty figure on the roads, let alone that they would have provoked a complete changing of the guard in the motor industry. When Swansway began, electric vehicles were an afterthought, even diesel was considered “new”. Yet today, every brand in the Swansway line up has shifted its attention towards primarily producing electric vehicles, Swansway itself now provides offers and services which help drivers prepare for a fully electric future.
The remake of the Italian Job hit the screens in 2003, but it was a different Italian Job hitting the roads, following the public launch of the Ferrari Enzo. “Ferrari’s first hypercar” became the fastest production car in the world in 2003, clocking 0-60mph in just 3.3 seconds. The Saleen 7 came in at number 2 with a 0-60mph of 3.3 seconds, but ultimately in 2003, Ferrari were a few hundredths of a second quicker, proving “2Fast2furious”, another film released in 2003. Fast forward 20 years and the electric Rimac Nevera will go from 0-60mph in just 1.85 seconds and the Koenigsegg Jesko Absolut is theoretically capable of reaching a top speed of over 310mph, the only problem is finding a set of tyres which will survive that mind-blowing speed. We’re yet to receive a third edition of “The Italian Job” but 2023 saw the release of the tenth Fast and Furious film… time to call it a day guys?
Of course, the cars and rules of the road aren’t the only things which have changed since 2003, Swansway has as well. 23 members of the Swansway family have enjoyed the full 20 years, but along the way they have been joined by an abundance of hardworking, dedicated and most importantly good people who have helped take this company from strength to strength. Swansway began with three Crewe dealerships and now has 26 sites across 12 locations, employing 1100 people!