2023 Hyundai Staria Premium AWD | Car Review | Not just an alternative
The Toyota Hiace has always been the king of vans on Philippine roads. Some would go as far as saying that it is in fact the king of the road with thousands being used as VIP transport, public transport vehicles, tourist rental vehicles, and many other purposes. There is an alternative though…no, a better option.
That’s the Hyundai Staria which was among the models that joined the Korean automaker’s lineup when Hyundai Motor Corporation took over the brand’s local operations last year, and it has everything you need and want from a van.
Hyundai Motor Philippines (HMPH) kindly lent us the range-topping 7-seater Staria Premium AWD for about a week to test it out completely. This is made to directly rival the very popular Toyota Hiace Super Grandia. Prior to that, a few months ago, they also lent us the GL Grandia-fighting 11-seater GLS+ variant. Our review of that can be found on our YouTube channel.
WATCH: 2023 Hyundai Staria GLS+ (11-seater) | Car Review | Is it better than the Toyota Hiace?
Design Impressions
The Hyundai Staria is certainly top-of-class when it comes to the styling department with its futuristic out-of-this-world spaceship-like design. The front fascia is composed of a large front grille on the bumper, flanked by LED headlights with six projector bulbs each on this Premium variant. The upper portion features the attention-grabbing LED light strip for the daytime running lights and park lights.
Meanwhile, the side profile is very clean with a minimalist theme. The only body lines you’ll find here are on the wheel arches, giving it a smooth overall look. You’ll also notice the large windows which we’ll dive into more later. Oh, by the way, this variant of the Staria rides on 18-inch alloy wheels. The rear on the other hand is very simple with vertical taillights and a largely flat tailgate, typical of vans. Hyundai was able to make this more eye-catching with the Parametric Pixel design on the full LED taillights.
Taking the Premium variant’s errr…premium-ness…to the next level are Tinted Brass Chrome accents found around the headlights, on the front grille, front bumper, side mirrors, and on the alloy wheels. That color choice isn’t common in any other vehicles and it certainly makes the Staria look even more expensive which is a good thing.
Getting inside, the Staria probably has the best interior among any van. We’ll get into what’s special in a bit but looking at its design is pleasing on the eyes. The dashboard is also futuristic and laid-out very well with everything within reach despite the large amounts of space. Materials aren’t exactly as premium as I expected with plenty of hard touch plastic surfaces, but everything looks and feels well-built at first glance. Also, since this is the Premium, it can seat seven people including the driver in a 2-2-3 configuration.
Practicality
Being a van, the Staria is extremely practical as expected. For starters, storage cubbies can be found everywhere such as on the dashboard, door panels, center console, everywhere. For cargo carrying, as long as you don’t need to prioritize passenger space, you can move the rear seats forward in a way that you can still comfortably seat passengers in full capacity. This allows for decent space for carrying baggage, especially for longer road trips. The third row bench seat bottom can also be folded up and pushed all the way to the second row seats in order to add even more cargo space behind it which makes it a whole lot easier to carry stuff.
Comfort and Convenience
Opening the power-sliding doors takes you into a cabin that is very welcoming with its rear 2+3 layout. The second row is composed of Hyundai’s Premium Relaxation Seats, which in other words are captain seats with power adjustments for recline and ottoman feature as well as heating and ventilation functions, the best seats in the house. Meanwhile, third row passengers get a bench seat enough for three people.
A whole lot of adjustment can also be done to the seats to provide you with the most comfort or space needed depending on the number of users in the back. It’s also not featureless in other aspects with the presence of USB ports for each passenger, a panoramic moonroof, window shades which a friend loves to call peasant shields, and various storage cubbies. Space is also extreme thanks to the large windows which just make the cabin feel a lot more spacious than it already is.
Once you get moving, you’ll really get to appreciate the comfort that the Staria Premium provides. Ride quality is what you’d expect from a van, a little firm when empty, but very smooth when packed. The suspension does a very good job of absorbing road imperfections, and NVH insulation is excellent as well with minimal road and wind noise, and barely any engine noise from the turbodiesel reaching rear passengers.
What could be improved though is probably build quality as there were some rattles from different parts of the cabin, somewhat taking away the premium in Staria Premium. On the bright side, they were also minimal and were barely noticeable thanks to the Bose premium audio system.
For front row occupants, the Staria features dual screens with a 10.25-inch Supervision digital instrument cluster for the driver, the usual we see on the latest Hyundai products, as well as an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity. In typical Hyundai fashion, these are very simple and easy to use which I like. None of that nonsense complicated systems found in many cars these days.
Driving Experience
Even if the best place to experience the Staria Premium is at the backseats, it’s no slouch when it comes to driving. If you need a van that you can drive when you don’t have anyone to chauffeur you around, or perhaps one that your kids can use when they need a car, then this is it.
Powering the Hyundai Staria Premium is a 2.2-liter Inline 4-cylinder turbodiesel CRDi engine that produces 177 horsepower and 430 Nm of torque, mated to an 8-speed automatic transmission. This puts it right on par with its Toyota Hiace main rival, with just a little less.
The first thing you’ll notice once you get behind the wheel of the Staria is how easy it actually is to drive. Its size may be a bit daunting for some, but thanks to the light tuning of the electric power steering, the presence of cameras all around, and the large windows all contribute to a pleasant driving experience. Visibility is no issue at all.
Here’s the thing, vans aren’t designed to be fun to drive, but in the Staria, it’s a lot of fun. The turbodiesel engine is very peppy and provides very good power and torque delivery. Put it into sport mode and you legitimately can call it a rocket ship.
Handling is also a strong suit of the Staria as it can be fun to toss around corners with its very planted nature, and lack of body roll, all thanks to its low center of gravity, and the presence of Hyundai’s H-TRAC AWD system.
Fuel economy isn’t bad either with the Staria able to achieve around 9 km/l in moderate city traffic, and as much as 17 km/l on the highway. Do take note that this won’t do as well as lower variants given that this has an AWD system, as well more equipment which all add up to weight.
Safety
Hyundai did not scrimp in the safety department as they fully-equipped the Staria with the Smartsense suite of advanced driver-assistance technology. This gives it adaptive cruise control, autonomous emergency braking, lane keeping assist, lane departure warning, blind spot monitor, among others. I unfortunately was not able to fully test them but based on a short trial I did, they’re up there but not as good as what we’d get in Toyota and Honda vehicles. Still, it’s great to know that we have all these features if needed.
More than an alternative
The Hyundai Staria 2.2 Premium+ 7-seater is priced at Php 2,930,000 which may sound a bit steep for some but it’s actually on par, if not cheaper than its rivals, while offering a better overall experience. I stand that this takes the sweet spot in between its rivals that have more seating capacity, and more luxurious ones that offer the same capacity, making it the balanced choice.
It is likely though that most people will think that this is just an alternative to the Toyota Hiace. I say no, because it’s actually the better option if you’re looking for something that is fairly unique and stands-out in the crowd whether you’re inside the city, or out on a long road trip with friends or family.
