Stewart Lawton founded the Ford dealership in April 1989 on a brown field site. It took only 9 months to complete from start to finish, with Stewart Lawton doing much of the work himself.
Prior to this, Stewart Lawton's association with Ford goes back to 1967, when he first started selling Ford cars. The first car sold by Lawtons of Tadcaster was a white Ford Orion to a Mr Ford, who has since bought all his cars from us.
With over 50 years Ford experience, Stewart Lawton has created a dealership that has received the Dealer of Distinction and Chairman's Awards for outstanding service from Ford on many occasions.
In 1993 we were awarded ISO9002, being one of the first Ford dealerships in the UK to achieve this prestigious quality award and subsequently ISO9001:2000.
In 2011, Stewart’s son, Dean, joined the family business.
We became Ford authorised Battery/Electric Vehicle (BEV) specialists in 2021, with a fully equipped workshop for working on the latest BEVs.
In 2025, we became a Ford Authorised Repairer and Ford Direct approved used vehicle specialist.
Ford GT70
We are very proud owners of an original Ford GT70. Built in 1971, our GT70 is one of only a handful in existence. Featuring a Cologne V6 engine and ZF 5-speed gearbox, the GT70 was created as the basis for a new Ford Group 4 rally car. However, only 4 prototypes were built before the programme was aborted.
Why not come along and see this piece of motoring history, sitting alongside our 1928 Ford Model A and the latest Fords in our showroom!