- Doors and Seats
5 doors, 8 seats
- Engine
2.2DT, 4 cyl.
- Engine Power
130kW, 430Nm
- Fuel
Diesel 8.2L/100KM
- Manufacturer
4WD
- Transmission
Auto
- Warranty
5 Yr, Unltd KMs
- Ancap Safety
5/5 star (2021)
2022 Hyundai Staria Highlander diesel launch review
One of Australia’s largest people movers has had its biggest makeover in 14 years.
- Long list of advanced safety and technology
- Choice of diesel all-wheel drive or petrol V6
- Roomy cabin and cargo hold
- Futuristic styling not for everyone
- Still drives more like a van than an SUV
- Caution required in low-roof car parks
Introduction
Meet the family shuttle inspired by a spaceship that turns more heads than a Ferrari (though not always in a good way). It’s called the 2022 Hyundai Staria, the new name for the successor to the Hyundai iMax eight-seat family freighter.
It arrives in Australian showrooms this month after a brief blackout with the previous model. As before, the new Hyundai Staria is also available as a delivery van (now renamed Hyundai Staria Load rather than Hyundai iLoad).
While the original Hyundai iLoad and iMax twins were based on heavy-duty commercial vehicle underpinnings, the new-generation Hyundai Staria and Staria Load are based on the same underpinnings as the latest Hyundai Santa Fe SUV. In other words, this is a ground-up redesign. But you probably figured that out just by looking at it.
The changes under the skin bring many advantages (namely in terms of safety and technology). However, as we would discover, it’s not quite as polished as we were expecting. More on that shortly.
There are three models in the range – Staria, Staria Elite, and Staria Highlander. All three model grades are available with a choice of turbo diesel all-wheel drive or V6 petrol front-drive power.
Prices range from $48,500 plus on-road costs to $66,500 plus on-road costs, an increase of up to $16,000 as Hyundai stretches the new model upmarket. As this article was published, Hyundai’s website showed drive-away prices ranged from $53,000 to $72,600.
The previous Hyundai iMax was priced from $44,930 to $49,480 plus on-road costs and was a diesel-only proposition by the end of its model cycle.
A detailed price and specs story on the 2022 Hyundai Staria can be found here.
Rivals include the Kia Carnival (Australia’s top-selling people mover for 16 of the past 17 years), and people-mover variants of Mercedes and Volkswagen delivery vans.
The Hyundai Staria is closer in size and philosophy to the Mercedes and Volkswagen vans; however, the sleeker new-generation Kia Carnival serves the same purpose with more car-like driving characteristics.
Key details | 2022 Hyundai Staria Highlander diesel |
Price (RRP) | $66,500 plus on-road costs |
Colour of test car | Abyss Black mica |
Options | Tan leather interior ($295) |
Price as tested | $66,795 plus on-road costs |
Rivals | Kia Carnival | Toyota Granvia | Mercedes V-Class |
Inside
The cabin of the 2022 Hyundai Staria is huge, and the futuristic styling continues inside on the flagship Highlander model tested here.
Large 10.25-inch digital displays for the driving instruments and infotainment system, as well as mood lighting around the cabin’s ‘waistline’, give the interior ambience a lift.
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However, the beauty is only skin-deep. While the Hyundai Staria looks good in brochures and has plenty of showroom appeal, the plastics are hard to the touch and the vehicle’s dual purpose as a commercial vehicle starts to become apparent.
All versions of the Hyundai Staria are eight-seaters initially; however, a six-seat (2-2-2) Lounge Edition may follow. Only the second-row seating has top tethers (three) and ISOFIX attachment points (two) for child restraints.
With all seat positions occupied, there is still ample space for luggage – one of the many advantages of a people mover that’s the same size as a delivery van. All seating positions have a lap-sash seatbelt and adjustable headrests.
The top two model grades have leather upholstery (black, light tan or dark blue on the Highlander, or plain black on the Elite).
There are sliding doors on both sides of the vehicle (power-operated on the top two model grades). A power-operated tailgate is also included on the top two grades.
Visibility is excellent for drivers and passengers thanks to the massive glass area and low window line.
There are three tiers of storage pockets in the front doors, a massive centre console, and ample cubbies in the dash. You’ll never find your phone again – unless you remember to use the wireless charging pad that’s standard on all three model grades.
All models come with six USB ports (two up front and two each for second- and third-row seats), one 12V socket up front, and 16 cupholders – all of which should be enough to keep everyone charged and hydrated.
The top of the range also comes with dual panoramic sunroofs, heated and ventilated front seats, a heated steering wheel, and LED interior lighting.
2022 Hyundai Staria Highlander diesel | |
Seats | Eight |
Boot volume | 831L all seats in use / 1303L third row stowed |
Length | 5253mm |
Width | 1997mm |
Height | 1990mm |
Wheelbase | 3273mm |
Infotainment and Connectivity
The base-model Hyundai Staria has wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The wireless connection has proven problematic in other Hyundai/Kia vehicles tested. The company is working on a fix.
Helpfully, the top two models of the Hyundai Staria range (the Elite and Highlander, which is tested here) have wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto (as well as Bluetooth) and it works seamlessly.
The infotainment system has a 10.25-inch high-resolution screen. Buttons and dials are absent, so you need to take your eyes off the road briefly to adjust volume or switch functions – or use the controls on the steering wheel.
Safety and Technology
All versions of the Hyundai Staria come with the works when it comes to advanced safety as well as the basics, with the exception of a difference in camera coverage.
The base model has front-view and rear-view cameras; the top two models have 360-degree camera coverage. The images are clear during the day but the resolution is weak at night.
While the 2022 Hyundai Staria is yet to be given a safety rating, it has the ingredients for a five-star result – pending the outcome of a series of crash and avoidance tests.
Standard equipment on all models: seven airbags (including one between the front seats, and curtain airbags along each side that go all the way to the third row), autonomous emergency braking, radar cruise control, speed sign recognition, blind-zone warning, rear cross-traffic alert, lane-keeping assistance, safe-exit warning, front and rear parking sensors, and tyre pressure monitoring. A full-size spare tyre (with matching alloy wheel) is also standard.
The excellent LED low- and high-beam headlights are a safety bonus on dark country roads.
2022 Hyundai Staria Highlander diesel | |
ANCAP rating | Not tested as this article was published |
Safety report | N/A |
Value for Money
Prices range from $48,500 plus on-road costs to $66,500 plus on-road costs. As mentioned earlier, this is an increase of up to $16,000 as Hyundai stretches the new model upmarket.
As this article was published, Hyundai’s website showed drive-away prices ranged from $53,000 to $72,600.
This compares to the Kia Carnival with drive-away prices ranging from $50,890 to $70,790 as this article was published, and the Toyota Granvia between $70,700 and $83,400 drive-away.
Service intervals are 12 months or 15,000km (whichever comes first) whether you choose the 3.5-litre V6 petrol or 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbo diesel.
The cost of routine maintenance is identical for both, too, at $360 per visit for the first five visits up to five years/75,000km.
Warranty is five years/unlimited kilometres for private buyers, and five years/160,000km for commercial owners such as hire car drivers, hotels, or Uber operators.
At a glance | 2022 Hyundai Staria Highlander diesel |
Warranty | Five years / unlimited km (private use), five years / 160,000km (business use) |
Service intervals | 12 months / 15,000km |
Servicing costs | $1080 (3 years) | $1800 (5 years) |
Fuel cons. (claimed) | 8.2L/100km |
Fuel cons. (on test) | 9.0 to 11.0L/100km |
Fuel type | Diesel |
Fuel tank size | 75L |
Driving
We tested the top-of-the-range Hyundai Staria Highlander powered by a 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbo diesel paired to an eight-speed automatic and all-wheel drive. There are no plans for a cheaper, front-drive diesel at this stage.
Outputs are rated at 130kW at 3800rpm, and 430Nm between 1500 and 2500rpm. Helpfully early for a vehicle that's likely to be doing plenty of laden trips at urban speeds.
First impressions? The spaceship looks are a love-it-or-hate-it design. Most of us in the office happen to like it, but that opinion wasn’t universally felt by others we came across during our two-day preview test drive.
I can see both points of view. The vast front end offers plenty of opportunity for a facelift should one be deemed necessary sooner than planned. What matters most, however, is what it drives like for a people mover.
The first thing you need to get accustomed to, if you’re new to van-based people movers, is that this thing is tall: 1.99m. That’s the same height as a Toyota Granvia and a few millimetres taller than a Toyota LandCruiser 200 Series.
So you need to be selective which shopping centre carparks you approach. If you’re worried, the much sleeker Kia Carnival – at 1.78m tall – limbos way under most height limits.
Hyundai recommends a roof clearance height of 2.1m to be on the safe side. Opening the tailgate exceeds this height limit.
There is another limit to look out for: payload. With a gross vehicle mass of 3040kg and a kerb weight of 2325kg for this top-of-the-range model, that only leaves 715kg for all on board – including luggage. Without luggage, all eight occupants would need to weigh an average of 89.4kg each. The base model V6 has a payload of 778kg (or 97.25kg per person).
Despite being based on SUV underpinnings, the Hyundai Staria is not as car-like to drive as we were expecting. Of course, the laws of physics apply here – and a tall, box-shaped vehicle should not hug the road like a sports car. Although we are yet to do a back-to-back test, I reckon it’s a safe bet to say the Kia Carnival feels more sure-footed on the road.
As is the case with many van-based people movers, the Hyundai Staria creaks and groans turning into driveways as all the rubbers behind the doors make their presence known. It’s not a deal-breaker, but the body doesn’t feel as tight as a car or an SUV – despite the radically overhauled body and underpinnings.
We’re keen to see how it compares to the likes of the Kia Carnival and Toyota Granvia.
In the meantime, we ran some numbers. It averaged between 9.0 and 11.0 litres per 100 kilometres in a mix of freeway and inter-urban conditions, and in the hands of two drivers not focused on fuel economy. We’d call it fair for this size and style of vehicle, but it’s not as miserly as the lighter and sleeker Kia Carnival (6.6-7.6L/100km on my last test of a diesel front-drive).
The Hyundai Staria’s emergency braking from 100km/h was fair to average rather than outstanding – despite the fitment of larger brake discs front and rear for the new model – pulling up in 42.5m, a touch longer than a double-cab ute. Further brake tests yielded slightly longer braking distances despite extended cool-downs, so we reckon 42.5m is the best-case scenario.
Of course, these vehicles are not meant to be performance cars, but we were curious to compare acceleration. The Hyundai Staria diesel did the 0-100km/h run in 12 seconds time after time, a bit slower than the average city hatchback. The V6 petrol would almost certainly be perkier.
The eight-speed gearbox is a smooth operator, though some people may prefer a traditional gear lever rather than push buttons, which take you a fraction of a second to check have engaged properly.
All-wheel drive would be handy on wet roads or add peace of mind when driving to the snow, but to be frank, the AWD system was not apparent during our time with the car in dry conditions.
The steering feel is what you might expect from a people mover (user-friendly, gets the job done), though splitting hairs I’d say it was at times a bit too light or a bit too heavy, depending on how tight the turn.
While the top-selling Toyota HiAce is rear-wheel drive, which delivers an exceptionally tight turning circle (for a van) of 11.0m, the 2022 Hyundai Staria's turning circle has grown from 11.22m from its rear-drive predecessor to 11.94m with the new model.
Towing capacity on the new van has improved to 2500kg, up from 1500kg previously.
One final observation: the Hyundai Staria is a touch noisier overall than I was expecting – from the engine and tyres – given its new SUV underbody. It’s not a deal-breaker, but there’s room for improvement.
Key details | 2022 Hyundai Staria Highlander diesel |
Engine | 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbo diesel |
Power | 130kW @ 3800rpm |
Torque | 430Nm @ 1500-2500rpm |
Drive type | All-wheel drive |
Transmission | Eight-speed torque convertor automatic |
Weight | 2325kg |
Tow rating | 2500kg braked / 750kg unbraked |
Turning circle | 11.94m |
Conclusion
If you need the most amount of space in a modern people mover, the Hyundai Staria is worth a look, especially now Hyundai’s family freighter finally has up-to-date safety systems and technology.
However, based on first impressions, it can’t match the refinement, comfort, fuel-efficiency and driving enjoyment of the Kia Carnival.