Liam’s labour of love
21/01/2026
Having caught the truck show bug three years ago, 16-year-old Liam Dore Barry is now a regular entrant at such events with his remodelled Scania R560 V8.
With the help of his family – who run Paddy Dore Commercials on the Dock Road in Limerick – Liam purchased the 2009-registered Scania in September 2024, and has since spent countless hours modifying the truck and ensuring it is spick and span for events such as Full of the Pipe and the Tipperary Truck Show. His dream is to be accepted and invited to the iconic Drifter Style Truck Show in Belfast.
Having received a great Junior Cert result from St Ailbe’s School in Tipperary Town, Liam recently bid farewell to the school books to start his HGV apprenticeship with T Nolans Scania in Limerick.
“Getting the truck ready for the shows is a labour of love for him. He sat his Junior Cert last June, but I think his mind was more on the truck shows that were coming up!” Liam’s mother Geraldine Dore jokingly remarks.
“Liam has been mad into truck shows since he was 13. His first was the Donnacha Ryan Luke Memorial Truck & Tractor Run in 2023. Donnacha was a young tractor and truck enthusiast from Cappamore who passed away just days after his 18th birthday in a tragic road accident in August 2022.
“His family have held the Truck & Tractor Run in his memory every year since. This year’s Run from Tipperary Town to Doon – where we live – was the biggest and best yet. Over the three years, it has raised a whopping €200,000 for various charities.”
Geraldine continues: “Liam bought the Scania last September with the goal of having it ready for this year’s Truck & Tractor Run, which took place in May. The truck got a great reaction at it and he has since brought it to Full of the Pipe, Truckfest in Edinburgh – where the judges spent additional time inspecting the remodelled details and the polished detail, and gave an acknowledgement to Liam's great work – and the Tipperary Truck Show. His father, also Liam, drives the truck to and from the shows because he’s too young to hold a driver’s licence himself.
“The truck means everything to Liam. He has painstakingly remodelled it with the help of Shane Quane, who works as a mechanic with Martin Ryan Haulage. They stripped it all down and it now has all the bells and whistles, including a Dutch bumper and lots of lights. It’s lit up like a Christmas tree!
“Liam is constantly polishing the truck and adding more features to it. He now plans on honouring my late father and his grandfather Paddy Dore with a graphic of him on the back.”
It would certainly be a fitting tribute to Paddy who established Paddy Dore Commercials in 1973. Paddy sadly passed away 33 years ago, but left a lasting legacy with his business which became Munster’s first DOE test centre in 1982 and continues to go from strength to strength under the direction of his daughter Geraldine and son-in-law Liam Barry. Paddy’s wife Margaret is still involved in the family business at the age of 79, while Geraldine and Liam’s daughter Aimee Dore Barry also helps out during her college holidays.
“I run the office and Liam is the test centre manager. We have a small and friendly team who are dedicated to looking after our customers’ needs,” Geraldine explains.
Paddy Dore Commercials is a one-stop shop for your CVRT testing, service and repair needs. The test centre is open from 7.30am to 6.30pm Monday-Friday to ensure greater flexibility for an ever-expanding client base.
The family business is an LGV, HGV and Bus test centre whose services include vehicle testing, safety checks, tachograph calibration, road speed limiters, ADR testing, safe loading inspections for the oil industry, vehicle plating, vehicle servicing and vehicle repairs. The CVRT inspection, which is carried out on behalf of the RSA (Road Safety Authority), includes checking brakes, lights, markings, wheels and tyres, steering and suspension, chassis and underbody, tachograph, speed limiter, exhaust emissions, electrical systems, glass, mirrors and more.
“We have one HGV and one LGV test bay each which are manned by two fully-qualified testers. We are currently in the process of investing in the latest equipment for testing. We recently invested in the newest VDO Tachograph Calibration equipment, ready for the October 15 upgrading requirements,” the affable office manager says.
“We can also service vehicles on the same day as the test and carry out any repairs required to ensure that the vehicle passes. When a vehicle fails initially, it is possible to have the necessary repairs carried out in our workshop.”
Quality, consistency and unbiased vehicle testing are the core values of the Paddy Dore Commercials team who are customer-focused, compliant, thorough and offer a comprehensive and courteous service. At all times, the test centre adheres to stringent guidelines as laid down by the RSA. Excellence in service and the highest possible standards are a given at the Limerick-based operation.
The premises includes a waiting room that makes customers feel at home along with a modern workshop that stocks a wide range of parts and modern equipment used for repairs and service work.
“The test centre and commercial garage go hand-in-hand. You can get both your pre-test check and test done here under the same roof.”
Paddy Dore Commercials boasts a large and loyal customer base that includes Bus Éireann – for whom it carries out testing of its fully-electric Limerick city bus fleet – Martin Ryan Haulage, Cosgrave Transport, Mr Binman, Fusion Logistics and Leatrans International to name but a few.
The long-standing family business would like to take this opportunity to thank its customers for their continued support, and looks forward to catering for all their vehicle test needs for many more years to come.
For your next CVRT test, be sure to get in touch. And for the truck enthusiasts among you, keep an eye out for young Liam Dore Barry and his Scania at your next truck show!
Paddy Dore Commercials
Dock Road,
Limerick.
Telephone: 061 228 422.
First published in Irish Trucker magazine January/February 2026, Vol 29-1
