Let’s be honest, Niall Horan has probably had the phrase ‘sexy ride’ shouted at him more than once in his time, from love-lorn Directioners who dedicated their lives to the poppy quintet. 

However, if Niall hears it a little more regularly of late, we’d be willing to wager that these new wheels have something to do with it.

Mullingar man Niall has recently taken the keys to a brand new Mercedes Benz, from MSL Ballsbridge. The longest serving Mercedes Benz dealership in the country handed over the keys to this stunning Mercedes CLA AMG. Horan is in good company, as MSL already count Luke Fitzgerald, Nicky Byrne, Stephen Kelly and Robbie Keane among their high-profile ambassadors. 

Mercedes has a strong Irish heritage, dating back to the 1930’s, when a man called Stephen O’Flaherty from Passage East in Co. Waterford worked for the Ford Motor Company in Co. Cork before eventually making his way up to Dublin to work for McCairns Motors. He rose up the ranks to become the Secretary and General Manager of the company, and in 1939, just as World War Two began to heat up, O’Flaherty left McCairns Motors to go work for a small engineering company called Howard McGarvey & Sons, based in Townsend Street, Dublin.

At the time, Howard McGarvey & Sons specialised in servicing steam engines and steam-powered trucks. By 1946, O’Flaherty had managed to turn the company into a thriving car business and in 1948 Howard McGarvey & Sons became the first head quarters of MDL (Motor Distributors Ltd.), which is now the parent company of MSL Ballsbridge Motors, located on the Shelbourne Road.

In 1949 O’Flaherty set about securing the VW franchise for Ireland. This was the first sign that Ireland would soon become a manufacturing hub for both Volkswagen and Mercedes – one of the first outside Germany.

By June 1950, O’Flaherty managed to secure the franchise for VW here in Ireland and in doing so, moved the business from Townsend Street to the location where Ballsbridge Motors stands today, and where Niall Horan became the latest in a long line of proud Irish Mercedes drivers!

 

For more, visit MSL Ballsbridge