Nissan GB issued terminations to all 12 Nissan dealerships operated by Dixon shortly after the dealer group entered administration.

It is now seeking to open new dealerships in Barnsley, Grimsby, Halifax, Huddersfield, Lincoln, Scunthorpe and Sheffield within the next few months, and has been in urgent talks with dealer prospects. The outlets closed in Worksop and Birstall were “non-core” and will not be replaced.

Nissan said Dixon had “never been one of the strongest operators for us, we had had concerns for some time.”

The spokeswoman said the Nissan dealerships in Doncaster, York and Hull bought by Pendragon from the administrators “will be staffed as normal and will continue service as normal” in the short term. Permanent representation is uncertain at present, while Nissan GB decides “if or how this partnership is to continue in the long term. The spokeswoman said Nissan GB “will talk to Pendragon about going forward”.

Pendragon already has Nissan franchises elsewhere in the UK, including nearby Leeds, Bradford, Darlington, Middlesbrough, Sunderland, Mansfield and Bedford.