Hodgson Newcastle, the car dealer group in the north east of England, has relocated its Mitsubishi franchise into its state-of-the-art dealership in Gateshead.

The dealership already houses a Mazda franchise and has an Autopod - a space-efficient 32 car storage/display tower designed to increase the footprint of the dealership.

Hodgson's Mitsubishi aftersales operation will continue at the old site at The Silverlink in Newcastle.

The dealer has represented Mitsubishi since 2008, when it was added to its Toyota, Mazda and Suzuki franchises.

David Lowes, group general manager of Hodgson’s Mitsubishi, said: "At a time of doom and gloom in the economy we are delighted to be investing and expanding our business with the Mitsubishi brand to benefit our existing customers and welcome new customers to the Hodgson brand."

Lance Bradley, Mitsubishi Motors in the UK managing director, said: "Capacity is an issue at many dealerships in the UK and Hodgson’s have created the ideal solution. This new ultra-modern structure comes at an exciting time for us when Mitsubishi are launching new models to build on our already strong environmental credentials, encompassing new and innovative technologies."