VW Transporter wins 2026 Continental Tyres Irish Van of the Year Award

The Volkswagen Transporter has been voted the Irish Van of the Year 2026, in association with Continental Tyres, by the Irish Van of the Year jury.

The Irish Van of the Year title is awarded by the van jury of the Motoring Media Association of Ireland (MMAI), the grouping that brings together Ireland’s most experienced motoring journalists.

Members of the Irish Van of the Year jury individually assess each commercial vehicle that is launched in Ireland each year and the winner is announced as part of the overall Irish Car and Van of the Year programme at an awards event each November.

MMAI Irish Van of the Year juror, Paul White, commented: “Congratulations to the Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles Ireland team on the accolade for the new Transporter, it is a very worthy winner of the Irish Van of the Year title. In every measure: versatility, comfort, fuel economy, new safety technologies, driving dynamics – commercial vehicles have come on in leaps and bounds over the last number of years and the Transporter scored very highly in each of those key attributes”.

Presenting the award to Paul Hunt of the Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles team, Tom Dennigan of award sponsors, Continental Tyres, said: “What a great winner we have in the Volkswagen Transporter. The Irish Van of the Year title for 2026 will undoubtedly be a huge boost for the Transporter in Ireland’s hyper-competitive van segment.

“In carrying out their assessment of every commercial vehicle launched here each year, the MMAI jury pay particular attention to how a vehicle meets the particular requirements of the Irish market, that is why their choices, year on year, are such a great help for fleet operators and van owners here in choosing the right vehicle for their needs”.

With a bumper field of 27 new Commercial Vehicle models launched in Ireland over the past 12 months, the eligible models for this year’s Irish Van of the Year awards were broken down into four categories.

The Irish Van of the Year 2026 category winners:

Irish Car-Derived Van of the Year: Jeep Avenger CDV
Irish Electric Commercial of the Year: Joint Winner Ford E-Transit Custom / Volkswagen e-Transporter
Irish 4×4 Commercial of the Year: Toyota Land Cruiser
Irish Panel Van of the Year: Volkswagen Transporter