Van dealers take stock of thriving LCV market
In light of new LCV sales thriving and up over 17 per cent during the first quarter of 2026, I recently caught up with a number of prominent van dealers across the country.
Head of sales at Keary’s Nissan in Cork is Walter Brennan who has seen both sides of the van market. Right now, he’s confident and pleased – because he has the likes of the latest Primastar and Interstar models to meet demand.
He tells the story of how some customers have been known to take ‘the van’ to a match and leave the saloon at home such are its comforts, “new vans are a nice place to be these days”. He said when buyers are confident that the work is there for them, they will invest in a van. And when they do, more of them are looking for automatic transmissions in their vehicle.
Over at Windsor Group MotorMall in Finglas, Dublin 11, there is confidence about how things are going. According to fleet manager, Noel Hehir, business confidence is back. Construction and related activity underline the vast needs of van transport: from workers to large 3.5-tonne LCVs. Choice and availability are vital in winning sales and keeping customers.
Noel said that people want stability. “I have a lot of continuity in my customer basis over last seven years,” he said. He mentioned how the likes of the Renault Master and Nissan Interstar vans (diesel and electric) are both kitted out, with sensors, aircon and cruise control all standard. Meanwhile, the Renault Trafic E-Tech is popular with public bodies such as An Post.
Staying in Dublin 11, Paul Linders retains the art of good humour and business acumen. “Things are going well and van sales are going great,” he told me. “It looks like that could continue for some time but obviously all the outside forces at play are beyond our ability to have any influence.”
As managing director of the Linders group, Paul is upbeat about how the year is unfolding. Important too that van sales are on the up. His best-selling models now are the Opel Combi and Citroen Berlingo. He claims he has 50 per cent repeat business on his vans. That sounds like a good business.
It has also been a good year so far for Setanta Vehicle Sales with the Renault Trafic its number one seller, according to LCV sales manager, Stefan Schmalenberg. And the Master panel van is being bought in big numbers.
Stefan said owners of small to medium vans are looking seriously at the option of electric. But at the moment they are holding off for better range. For a plumber or electrician, an electric van will save money, tipping from one job to another, he claims.
He foresees tax being raised on diesels, while the day could come when only electric vans will be allowed on some urban streets. He is convinced EVs “will be incentivised”. Diesels are still selling strong.
Out West, van sales at Kenny Galway are running 30 per cent ahead of the corresponding figure for this time last year. That pushes them significantly above the 14 per cent of vans registered nationally, according to dealer principal, Brian Kenny.
Its best seller is the evergreen Peugeot Partner diesel. Brian said that the order take of electric vans is slower than cars. “I suppose that is to be expected at this stage of the general turn to EVs. Customers to date are mainly small and medium-sized enterprises,” he said.
“How is business?” The strongest reply to my question of all I interviewed came from Castlebar. “Business is flying, flying,” Shane Friel told me from the sales department premises of Edward Conway Ltd, Kia commercial dealership in the famous Mayo town.
The good news is there is substantial corporate interest in the new Kia PV5 Cargo van which went on sale recently. Government agencies, An Post, Coillte, County Councils etc, are all showing a lot of interest. And he has clinched deals with private buyers. It looks like it has a fair chance of doing well. Shane did point to one area of decline, saying “diesel is taking a bit of a hit”.