Flying the VW flag in Limerick

Newcastle West Autos Ltd has been flying the Volkswagen flag in Limerick for the past eight years. Commercial vehicle sales specialist Anthony Nestor told Irish Trucker the German marque continues go from strength to strength in the South West.

Tommy Heaphy MD, Newcastle West Autos Ltd

Newcastle West Autos Ltd is a wholly owned and family run Volkswagen dealership with a penchant for delivering imperiously high levels of customer service. It’s motto - ‘ a dealership with a difference’ is more than just a catch phrase.

Directors Thomas and Ken Heaphy fully realise they don’t run the biggest or the most modern Volkswagen dealership in the country, but they make the very best use of the assets at their disposal to differentiate the company from the competition. To that end the company sets out its stall to deliver a totally customer focused service to both its private and commercial customers.

Anthony enthused: “We win on service. Our slogan ‘a dealership with a difference’ is very simple and straight forward. It means giving the customer extremely high levels of customer service. It means looking after the customers’ every requirement from collecting their vehicles when they are due a service to offering a comprehensive breakdown service.”

Theresa Rigan and Pat Wolfe

Newcastle West Autos is fully tuned to the needs of the commercial customer. It is one of the reasons Anthony was recruited as commercial vehicle specialist three years ago. “We started our drive for excellence in terms of commercial sales when I started here three years ago. We are now ranked fifth in the country, so we must be doing something right,” Anthony quipped.

The company now has its sites set on becoming the number one Volkswagen commercial dealer in the country. “We are surprised we have come so far in just three years. We still have a long way to go to become the leading Volkswagen commercial dealer in the country, but we are giving it our best shot.”

He elaborated: “Commercial customers want to talk to somebody who knows the commercial market inside out. I can advise the customer on every model in the Volkswagen range and give advise on finance and the tax implications of the various types of finance,” he commented.

Katey White, administration

He continued: “The commercial customer is looking for reliability and the back up service that is on offer. He can’t be without his vehicle for any length of time, or his earning capacity will be affected. That is why we offer our customers the use of a courtesy vehicle, when his vehicle is in the garage for a service. He is looking to see if you can offer a back up service 24-hours a day.”

Newcastle West Autos is continually looking to improve its overall package to the customer. In that light the company is well down the road towards achieving ISO accreditation.
“We are seven months down the road towards attaining ISO accreditation. The process is almost complete and it certainly threw up a few areas where we needed to tighten up our operations,” he noted.

As you would expect of a quality main dealership the company’s workshop is equipped to a very high standard. Its technicians are also out of the very top drawer. “Motor Distributors trains all our mechanics on a regular basis. Our technicians are continually taking refresher courses. That training is reflected in the quality of the work that comes out of the workshop,” he explained.

Rickie O'Rourke and Tom Kenny

Employing a staff of 26, many of the company’s employees have been around since inception. “Our service manager Patrick O’Rourke has been here since day one, while many of the staff have been with us for five or six years,” he noted.

The Volkswagen commercial range has something for everybody from the all-new Caddy van, which was launched in May to the ever-dependable IT range which starts at 1.5 tonne. The arrival of the new Caddy is sure to shake up the market, according to Anthony.

He enthused: “it has been totally restyled and has a new 2.0 litre diesel engine. It has a larger load capacity than its predecessor and we are expecting it to make a big impact. It will be competing with the Transit Connect and the Citroen Berlingo. We feel it will be a big seller for us.”

Like the Caddy, the Golf car van has been totally revamped. “It is based on the new Golf car. Traditionally the Golf car van has been a very popular seller for us and we are expecting the latest version to perform equally as well,” he commented.

Volkswagen’s Transporter is the biggest mover in the range at Newcastle West Autos, according to Anthony. “We are currently second in the overall standings for sales of the Transporter. For a small dealership that is a remarkable achievement. The local businesses in this area just love the Transporter,” he enthused.
He added: “The LT range which has a range of models is built on the same platform as the Mercedes Sprinter. Again they are performing very well for us.”

The Volkswagen range of cars and commercials is renowned for reliability, its practically indestructable diesel engines and high re-sale value. Anthony added: Volkswagen has the most economical diesel engine in the country and the most powerful diesel engine in the world. They hold their value like no other brand.”

Volkswagen customer are extremely loyal and the company benefits from a significant amount of repeat business. “There is unbelievable brand loyalty to Volkswagen. Most of the demand for the new Caddy and Golf van will come from customers driving the older models. You just don’t see that kind of loyalty with other brands,” he remarked.

To date commercial vehicle sales are well ahead of expectations. The recent arrival of the new Caddy and the new Golf car van should ensure the second half of the year remains buoyant.

Newcastle West Autos is open Monday to Friday 9.00am to 6.00pm for all services and from 10.30am to 3.00pm on Saturday for sales.