Tesla has opened a pop-up shop and announced an official approved bodyshop partner in Northern Ireland.
The news from the world’s most valuable car manufacturer comes as the electric vehicle giant handed over its first new cars to four ecstatic customers at its pop-up collection facility at Porters’ Bodyshop in Portadown.
Porters’ Bodyshop has long held serious kerb-appeal as Northern Ireland’s number one autobody repair centre with vehicle manufacturers such as Mercedes-Benz and Audi topping their client bill of around 20 prestigious car marques.
Tesla now joins this list and brings a chart-topping star-dust factor to proceedings according to Porters’ MD Colin Porter:
“Welcoming Tesla onboard has been an absolute pleasure as has been the interactions with many of Tesla’s thousands of customers who have made the transition to electric power – a trend that’s set to stay and grow much larger.
“It’s taken a year to get everything in place and become an officially approved bodyshop and collection pop-up shop, but it’s been hugely rewarding and a major achievement for us.
“Tesla don’t just build phenomenal cars, but they have a ZERO carbon footprint as well and have more brand cachet than a Ferrari!”
Tesla has become a top ten seller in the UK and Ireland this year with business customers latching onto the zero carbon emissions and therefore zero company car tax benefits.
Colin Porter continues: “Even at an entry level the Model 3 Tesla will take responsible drivers from 0-62MPH in around 4 seconds, with a range of 250 miles and no electricity charging fee. Customers who’ve collected their new cars from us have saved up to £8,000 per/annum in company car tax. A win-win for everyone!”
South African born Anton Marnitz is Tesla’s representative in Ireland: “We are a company operating at the pinnacle of technical innovation and chose Porters’ Bodyshop in Portadown as our official approved centre of excellence because their core business values reflect our own.
“We are thrilled to welcome Porters’ to the Tesla family and we are especially grateful to have a pop-up shop format for new car deliveries and autobody repairs at their state-of-the-art facility in Portadown.”
Andrew Reid from Belfast was the first customer to experience Tesla’s pop-up shop first-hand: “I’m totally sold on Tesla, their ethos and the technology. Collecting my car in Portadown from Porters’ who themselves are innovators in the automotive field gives me complete peace of mind. I’m moving from a C43 AMG Mercedes-Benz to a Model 3 Tesla for business and personal reasons, but let’s just say that pound for pound there’s no comparison and the Tesla wins hands down.
“How do I feel about being the first customer to actually take delivery of their Tesla in Northern Ireland? I’m delighted for many reasons, but let’s just say there’s a lot to be said for being first in the queue.”
Porters’ Bodyshop is a third-generation business that has seen Colin Porter succeed as Managing Director from his dad Jim and grandfather Cyril. It has repaired vehicles to showroom condition standards for more than 50 years.
