Vospers Group has expanded its coverage in the south-west of England with the acquisition of Sidwell Motor Company for an undisclosed sum.

Sidwell, owned by Keith Hoskin, operated a single Fiat dealership in Exeter, which will now join Vospers’ three existing Fiat sites in Plymouth, St Austell and Poole.

This means Vospers now has comprehensive coverage of Devon and Cornwall with its Ford, Fiat, Mazda and Subaru franchises.

The Hennock Road dealership will continue to operate under the Sidwell name in the short term. It will offer new Fiat cars and vans with full service and parts back-up, along with Alfa Romeo servicing. All Sidwell staff have transferred to Vospers.

Peter Vosper, managing director of Vospers, said: “Sidwell has an established team and we will be providing the necessary investment to grow the business and meet the standards required by the manufacturer.”

Vosper said he was excited about Fiat’s new products like the Bravo and the new 500 supermini. With a turnover of £183m in 2006, Vospers sits at No. 43 in the AM100. It bought Carrs of Exeter’s Mazda business last year and relocated it to Honiton Road alongside Ford in Tiverton.