Toyota Hiace Van

The cabin of the Toyota Hiace Van has been completely lifted off from the passenger version of the vehicle. The cabin, however, has been eradicated with many features to make things look bare basic and functional.

The four-spoke large steering wheel as well as a simple instrument console behind it makeup for a dated looking driver’s cockpit. The rest of the dashboard too looks quite drab, with a rectangular theme carried out for the provision of the music system in the centre console, AC vents, AC control panel, and dash-mounted gear lever.

The cabin has a seating layout for two passengers, and behind that, you get a large cargo bay, which only gets better in the high roof version with additional height available in it.

While the passenger version of the Toyota Hiace has been revamped completely with an all-new generation styling, the Hiace Van continues to be based on the previous generation Hiace. This makes it appear dated and basic, as the original styling is now almost a decade old. 

However, the Toyota Hiace Van tries to impress one with its laid back design and large dimensions. Starting from the front, the Hiace Van gets a very large and slightly steeply raked front windscreen, which gets a vertical front hood styling. The tapered design between the windshield and the grille adds some character to the otherwise bland front look.

The two slat grille with heavy silver surrounds and block-shaped simple halogen headlamps with tapered inner edges form a majority of the front fascia of the Hiace Van. The front bumper is finished in an all-black theme, with heavy cladding below the headlamps.

The Toyota Hiace Van looks quite long and huge from the sides, thanks to the long body design of the van. The window panels here have been fully covered, given its commercial roots. The black door handles and simple wheel caps have been fitted to keep costs in check.

At the back too, the rear hatch has been made devoid of the windshield and is fully covered, with the vertically laid tail lamps and a license plate holder being the only design highlights here.

To minimise the costs and make it feel rugged and solid for a commercial vehicle, the Toyota Hiace Van is armed with double-wishbone at the front and lead springs at the rear. The ride quality has gone for a toss with stiffly sprung suspension setup and body roll, but it is unshakable on bad roads, even in heavy load conditions.

The Toyota Hiace Van sources its thrust from a 3.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged diesel engine, which is available with both the transmission options of a 5-speed manual and 4-speed automatic gearboxes. The engine is capable of producing a maximum power output of 143 PS and a maximum torque output of 300 Nm.

The Toyota Hiace Van is not as rich as other Toyotas when it comes to safety equipment, with the vehicle getting only the bare basic essentials of dual front airbags, ABS, and rear parking sensors.

The Toyota Hiace Van looks and feels as basic aa it could, both from outside as well as inside. However, all the compromises made on the front of visual appeal have been neutralised in the practical aspects of the vehicle, like load carrying capacity, reliable and torquey engine, and solid suspension setup. On all these fronts, the Toyota Hiace Van feels rock-solid and hugely practical.