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Report - - Cranes Skoda Dealership & Garage - Marsham, Norfolk - April 2023 | Other Sites | 28DaysLater.co.uk

Report - Cranes Skoda Dealership & Garage - Marsham, Norfolk - April 2023

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Five.Claws

General Nuisance
28DL Full Member
Hello all, long time no see, been over three years now since I last posted on here but I figured it was time to get reporting again.

I thought I might be the first to document this place here, and that it might be a bit of an unknown gem but Mikeymutt has a report from last year that shows the site in a bit more of a 'complete' condition including still some of the old cars left out back: Report - - Cranes Skoda of Marsham .Norfolk, February 2022 | Other Sites

History:

Hard to find much about the early years of this place, but the central garage building beneath all the modern extensions and cladding looks to be quite old, maybe even pre-war. It seems it started life as a small roadside garage and service station alongside what was once the main road from Cromer to Aylsham to Norwich. It would eventually become branded as an Esso petrol station until at least the early 90s. Later in life, this road was bypassed, removing much of this purpose except to those who knew it was there and would detour off the new main road. (Only a few hundred yards away, mind you!) However the pumps did remain and the owners did in fact keep their licence to sell fuel, I believe right up until the end.

It's quite possible that the Crane family have owned the garage right from the start. It's still listed on Companies House, with the original director (if not the first, then certainly the first to be registered officially), Agatha Crane, born in 1910 and resigning in 2002. The final owner, who I have found mentioned around the web but mainly simply as "old Mr Crane" seems to have died somewhere around 2012 and the garage closed after that. Apparently he lived on site in an old shack, that I didn't get into this time but will try and take another look at. Various car enthusiast forums (particularly Skoda ones) talk about the place and how it was known as a bit of a Mecca for parts. If you look the place up on Google Maps then the only street photo of this road, taken 13 years ago, shows the garage still thriving with numerous old cars out front.

I can't find when they first started a dealership for Skoda cars but it was likely quite some time ago, at least the 80s if not the 70s or maybe even before. However from what I've read online it seems that after the Volkswagen takeover, they lost official dealership status as VW wanted their official outlets to be big, shiny, fancy new places and some little old series of sheds out in the country wasn't going to cut it. However, Mr Crane notably bought all the parts from the Kings Lynn Skoda dealership when it closed up, and did continue to be a specialist as well as selling used Skodas on the forecourt.
There was also some kind of lawn mower sales and repair service on site too, given the number of old mowers and paraphernalia about.

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A photo I found online of the garage in its heyday, when it still had Esso branding, taken 1992.

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The Google Maps photos of the garage showing it still up and thriving in 2010. Retro car enthusiasts like myself might be salivating a little at the number of everyday classics parked out front which have since vanished from the road. A surprising amount of Citroën AXs! Note that white VW T3 camper, you'll be seeing it again...


Today & The Explore:

Now sitting forlornly down a forgotten side road, the garage is in quite bad repair. The main sales floor area is suffering from an extremely rotten roof which is being propped up with scaffolding but still looks ready to collapse at any moment. The older parts of the building don't look too bad, but still the usual signs of age and nature trying to reclaim them.

The jewel in the crown of this place is the sheer number of old and no doubt very rare Skoda spare parts to be found, many of them still neatly stacked and boxed up. From official paints to doors, windows, seats, trim and more it's all here and mostly in perfectly good condition. For whatever reason it appears that the bulk of the parts are for the Skoda Favorit, but other parts for other models are certainly around too.
There are likely many retro Skoda owners out there searching high and low across the internet for these rare parts, and here they are in these sheds, mouldering away and no doubt due to be put in a skip some day... as a retro car lover (and previous Skoda Favorit owner) it does break my heart and quite honestly if given the chance I would break the rules, I would rescue as many of these parts and pieces as I could and make them available to Skoda owners to help them keep their cars on the road for many years yet. Sadly, for one thing, I'd need a huge warehouse just to store them all in the first place and an entire lorry to move them!

Talking of, it seems that since the last report some attempt at a clearup was started. The old cars previously found at back have been taken away (bar one) and things are a bit more in disarray as if they've been rifled through and started to be removed. However it looks like they gave up on that mammoth task fairly quickly, and I don't know what the plan is now. Very likely to come back with a bulldozer. The big black skip out front appears to be about as empty as when Mikeymutt visited a year ago, but certainly some things are changed.

This was a fairly brisk but very enjoyable little poke about on a whim, with my girlfriend. I didn't take in quite as much as I'd have liked so will likely return soon for a really proper look through every nook and cranny of the place!

Photos:

Sorry for the low quality, they were taken with my girlfriend's phone, which I'm not familiar with. I'd left mine in the car by mistake!

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And here's that camper! It hasn't had an MOT since before online records began. The registration on it would be worth a fortune.

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The original shop/garage front can be found inside, hidden behind all the more modern metal cladding and extensions. A really cute little unexpected feature.

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These old number plates and sets of keys were a real treat to a car nerd like me. Feel free to run the plates at your own leisure! Some real gems in there, most of which seem to have bitten the dust but there's a couple which may still be hanging on, SORNed somewhere.

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More pictures to follow in the next post!
 

Five.Claws

General Nuisance
28DL Full Member
Pictures part 2!
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Found a sales folder from 1995. A seven year old Skoda Rapid would have set you back £850. It would be a lot, lot more now. If you could even find one.
This particular one was likely scrapped in 2000.

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Thank you very much all and everyone for reading! Maybe not the most spectacular place to look at but certainly a gold mine in the back sheds for car geeks or anyone feeling a bit automotively nostalgic.
As said, I'll be trying to go back soon for a deeper look including where old Mr Crane apparently lived on site, so hopefully there will be a part two.

I'm also sitting on about three years worth of explores which I hope to get reporting on over the coming weeks and months.
 

Bikin Glynn

28DL Regular User
Regular User
Nicely done & still a fair bit to see.
Shame the cars have gone & strange the T25 is still there as that's prob the easiest to sell.
 

Five.Claws

General Nuisance
28DL Full Member
Nicely done & still a fair bit to see.
Shame the cars have gone & strange the T25 is still there as that's prob the easiest to sell.
Yeah, my tip off had mentioned the old cars out back so it was a shame to find them gone. Definitely weird about the VW, as you say, definitely the easiest to sell on especially if that plate was included! But it looks like it must have hung around that yard for at least about 15 years now.
 

Calamity Jane

i see beauty in the unloved, places & things
Regular User
Shame you missed the cars, but still plenty to shoot. Interesting to see how much they stored. Images are good. Nice report :thumb
 

Mikeymutt

28DL Regular User
Regular User
You covered it nicely, shame the cars have gone. But still plenty to see inside. I would go back again for another root about.
 

dansgas1000

28DL Regular User
Regular User
Really nice report mate, I thought it had been completely cleared but looks like it still may be worth a look around. Nice photos.
 

chevalliermaxime799@gmail

28DL Member
28DL Member
Pictures part 2!
IMG_20230420_201139_834_edit_47407224504223.jpg


Found a sales folder from 1995. A seven year old Skoda Rapid would have set you back £850. It would be a lot, lot more now. If you could even find one.
This particular one was likely scrapped in 2000.

IMG_20230420_200848_332.jpg


IMG_20230420_200959_498.jpg


IMG_20230420_200955_614.jpg


IMG_20230420_200941_780.jpg


IMG_20230420_200945_037.jpg


IMG_20230420_200931_875.jpg


IMG_20230420_200935_661.jpg


IMG_20230420_200938_470.jpg


IMG_20230420_200948_624.jpg


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IMG_20230420_201109_456.jpg


IMG_20230420_200906_889.jpg


IMG_20230420_200909_840.jpg


Thank you very much all and everyone for reading! Maybe not the most spectacular place to look at but certainly a gold mine in the back sheds for car geeks or anyone feeling a bit automotively nostalgic.
As said, I'll be trying to go back soon for a deeper look including where old Mr Crane apparently lived on site, so hopefully there will be a part two.

I'm also sitting on about three years worth of explores which I hope to get reporting on over the coming weeks and months.
I used to actually work there, first of all at Marsham; and then at the garage he had at Stalham. This was in 1989 to 1991. Chief Forman was "Steve" Harnavitch, Mechanics included Ron Storey, Julian (we called him Bosch), owen Bishop and Roger Knowles. Roger came from new Zealand and had previously worked for the Internal Affairs Police in N Z). Cranes? Strange "choice" !!! The Marsham Boss salesman was "paul" and number two a Londoner named Mathew. The lady whose calculator you found was called RHODA. the "Rose" among the "thorns". There were some Car valet's working here too. Boss at Stalham was Trevor Cobbly. Old man main "Boss" Geoffrey Crance (former ADC in the Royal Air Force) actually lived just up the road in Marsham. he used to have a great big FIAT MURVI a motor home based on the giant DUCATO FIAT Van chassis of the era. (MURVi = multi use Recreational Vehicle. Geoffrey was always "on his back" with some woman somewhere, especially weekends. he had a terible tempter i can tell you. But he had another garage at Hevingham I think down the road towards Norwich. The SKODA "FAVORIT" car offerred outstanding reliability and value for money. Until the "Germans" too over the business of course.....
 
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chevalliermaxime799@gmail

28DL Member
28DL Member
Geoffrey used to use a guy in a village called "Toni" who used to do most of his "re spraying" Cranes did a lot of Ford van's in those days, ex electricity "pieces of rusty shit" which he got the valets to clean out and had "re Sprayed" with a flash or surface thin spray. Then flogged to customers for triple their real worth...
Remember the Film? "used cars Buyer beware? used cars buyer take care ! used cars buyers go to hell.....unexplained fires are a matter for the courts...heh thats the way it was;...a real cowboy operation. Hardly fit for the hyper efficient German Volkswagen people to take on....

Geoffrey used to make a lot of money buying down at the car auction other side of Norwich. one freezing winters snowy day in 88 i had to go there, pick up a Car and drive it back to marsham. An roey old FIAT Panda.... half way "home" in the snow near Wroxham, the gear stick suddenely jumped right up and out of the gear box and i was so fucked. I had to go a house telephone owen Bishop who came with the recvoery truck they kept at marsham in those days, and bring me and the car back. What old geoffrey failed to sell on at a sky high price, he flogged on in the trade to Alice LATHAM down at Cawston. Alice Latham sold a lot of old cars....mostly Cranes old junk.....
 
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chevalliermaxime799@gmail

28DL Member
28DL Member
Sad to look back now, I am sixty years old, and most of the people I knew when i was young are all gone "down"....old age and fucking SARS Coronavirus 19.....
Geoffrey could be hard, could be tough and un compromizing, but he kept me on, even after i took a "week off" after a great big rowing quarrel or fight with Roger knowles the new Zealander. I was greatful you understand?

Cranes had a main garage at Norwich. I knew another salesman Neil Fitchet a guy from the North. There was also david, who was once upon a time (accorrding to rumour anyhow) to have once been "top salesman for BMW" in Germany Before his "wee problem and medical condition"....He became a rageing closet Alcoholic and old geoffrey had to let him "go"....

Lost everything by all accounts....

An Italian "Mickey Cannelli" (Michael Cannel) worked in Cranes at Norwich too. Later he took over Stalham when Trevor went some other place. I left soon after.....became an Insurance Salesman for Municipal Mutual Assurrance down in Maidstone .

I got told, heard, that David was at Dover EMMAUS St Martins a few years ago, someone seems to have given him free accomodation.....I saw him in Dover High Street one Saturday afternoon near the Fountain, but he did not seem to remember me or who i was It was really sad to be honest.... (Booze its dreadful stuff!!!!).

Seeing the old Red BMW registration HAH 1.....its a real "throwback" for me. Know what? I can still see and hear Roger knowles and Steve working on that thing....it was inside the main workshop for almost a year when i worked there. Guess Geoffrey never had it finished....

I movedon, the world turned, now I am Sixty one nearly. Funny the things one still remembers....Thanks for the memories. MJC France.
 
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