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National motor retailer Lookers is taking on the North-West leg of the biggest charity drive in its history - the Lookers Electric Charge.

The carbon-neutral challenge, which is in aid of industry charity Ben, will see a relay of electric and hybrid vehicles travel 2,000 miles to destinations including all 154 of the retailer’s franchised dealerships, where a range of fundraising events are being held.

The relay has completed its Yorkshire leg having travelled through Ireland, Scotland and the North East.

At the time of writing, the Electric Charge, which is part of Ben’s Industry Leader Challenge, is now well into its North-West leg with many events having already taken place at its Stockport dealerships.

These have included bake sales and raffles, while, on the stranger end of the spectrum, staff have driven their electric vehicles dressed as everything from Mario and Luigi to basketball players and cheerleaders, all while singing the challenge’s theme song Electric Avenue to camera.

Staff at Lookers Stockport Kia have also dressed up as the Gallagher brothers to provide their own carpool karaoke version of the Oasis classic ‘She’s Electric’, while staff at Lookers Stockport Renault dressed up as Star Wars characters for the day. Manchester head office will also raise money by holding a BBQ and more carpool karaoke fun.

The group’s Manchester head office has also been a key stopping point during the relay’s drive through the North West and saw staff host a star a surreal barbecue that saw Bill and Ben the Flowerpot Men, the Ninja Turtles and the Powerpuff Girls in attendance. A fund-raising penalty shoot-off capped off the day, which managed to raise over £2,000 towards the challenge’s overall total.

The route will also take a detour to Center Parcs in Nottinghamshire where an electric boat race will take place between Lookers Group People Director Andrew Stephenson and Group IT Director Andy Garratt.

The electric car relay will take in all 25 of Lookers’ North-West dealerships before making its way to its sites in Staffordshire.

Lookers CEO Andy Bruce said: “We’re so excited that the Lookers Electric Charge is coming to the North West, as well as our group head office here in Manchester. We’ve already seen a number of fantastic fundraising events    held at our dealerships in Ireland, Scotland, the North East and Yorkshire and I’ve no doubt that the teams in the North-West will be more than up for the challenge.”

The initiative will include over 180 stops in total, including visits to the Electrification Centre of Excellence at the Jaguar Visitor Centre in Castle Bromwich and Ford’s iconic factory in Dagenham.

While in London, the Electric Charge will also hold the ultimate showdown between electric car and bike in a first-to-the-finish race across the city. 

Zara Ross, Chief Executive at Ben said: “We have been following the Lookers Electric Charge with great interest and have been amazed by the effort being made by staff at dealerships all around the country. They’ve really   grabbed this challenge with both hands and we can’t wait to see what they come up with next.”

You can follow all the action from the Lookers Electric Charge microsite at LOOKERS.CO.UK/EC4BEN, the Lookers YouTube Channel LookersWebTV, and Lookers’ Facebook and Twitter pages @lookersgroup, all of which  use the hashtag #LookersEC4Ben.