Journalists from all over Ireland have chosen the three-sister vehicles, the Peugeot Expert, Citroen Dispatch and the Toyota Proace as the group winners of Irish Van of the Year 2017. 

The award was voted upon by a jury of Ireland’s most experienced van journalists, in association with Continental Tyres.

All three vans are based on the same design, running gear and are manufactured together in the same factory and because of that they were pooled together for the vote. All come in three body lengths founded on two different wheelbases. The smaller version is 4,606mm long but can still offer load volumes of up to 5.1m3. The Medium and Long models are both on the same 3,275mm wheelbase but the Long model has an extended rear overhang yielding a 5,308mm overall length and a 6.1m3 maximum load volume.

On behalf of Peugeot, Des Cannon, Managing Director at Gowan Distributors Limited, Peugeot Importers in Ireland said; “We are thrilled with the Irish Van of the Year award. The new Expert is not only a tremendously good looking van, it is very keenly priced and has excellent levels of comfort and safety equipment as standard. With improved driving dynamics, a greater variety of body lengths and body types and unparalleled driving performance, the new Expert promises to deliver continued growth for us in the van market.”

Michael Gaynor, Marketing Director at Toyota Ireland stated; “This win is a testament to the quality of the van that Toyota has produced. The Proace is proving exceptionally popular with the Irish market due to its high levels of safety, comfort and convenience. Toyota is in tune with what customers are looking for and this win has once again proved our status in the industry”.

Chris Graham, Citroën & DS Ireland’s Managing Director, said; “We are delighted Citroën Dispatch has been voted Irish Van of the Year. In a very competitive market to achieve such an award is an incredible recognition for Dispatch.”
Meanwhile, the Nissan Navara was crowned the Irish Pick Up of the Year 2017. Similar to the van vote, the most experienced commercial vehicle journalists chose the Nissan for its all-round ability in a contest that included some extremely stiff competition from other brands.