Dealer's Wives | Horse Thieves, Smugglers & My Mum

This week on Wheels & Deals, I’m joined by a very special guest Pat Grange - My Mum! She was the woman behind the man, the dealer's wife who saw it all. From a respectable job in a bank to being told she was dating a "horse thief," her life was turned upside down by the charismatic car dealer Ian Grange.

We drive back to the hilarious and sometimes hair-raising stories of their life together. We talk about the glamour of driving Facel Vegas and the grit of having to clean 40 cars on a Saturday morning. From disastrous first dates in leaky Corvettes to crashing a Bentley Continental on Christmas Eve, my mum shares what it was really like to be married to the motor trade. It was a world of mink coats and midnight deliveries, where cash flow was king and you never knew what the next day would bring.

Pitstops:

• From banking to Bentley Continentals: Mum’s journey into the motor trade.
• The infamous Christmas Eve incident involving a Bentley, a brand-new garage door, and half a bottle of whiskey.
• The art of the deal: How a crashed Bentley was legally transformed into a Rolls-Royce Cloud III Continental Chinese Eye.
• The reality behind the glamour: Juggling cash flow, raising kids, and driving across the country to make mortgage payments.
• A dealer's wife's duties: The endless cycle of cleaning cars with T-Cut, doing the books, and being on call 24/7.
• Star-studded Christmas parties with Matt Monro, Bernard Manning, and scandalous strippers.
• Celebrity cars and dodgy deals: Stories of Rod Stewart’s Lamborghini Miura, King Hussein of Jordan’s bulletproof Lincoln, and questionable bodywork repairs.

A Nod to:

• Frank Dale & Stepsons
• Red Line Autos (Cheadle)
• The Piccadilly Hotel & The Midland Hotel (Manchester)

If we've mentioned you but missed you here, drop me a line at [e-mail]

Come Along for the Ride

Instagram: @the_old_car_lady

Facebook, Tik Tok & YouTube: The Old Car Lady

WhatsApp on 07405 813554: Share your memories, stories, thoughts, and questions with us by sending a message or voice note.

Don't forget to like, rate, and review wherever you get your podcasts