Staria confirmed for NZ release

Hyundai here says it will take the big lugger, but offers few other details

 TWO, five and eight-seat configurations will apply in Kiwi market versions of the Hyundai Staria, a van whose styling is definitely out of the box.

 Aside from provisioning the seat counts – which suggest a pure commercial/speed camera version, plus two that will potentially set to act in family-sized people carrier and potentially a luxury minivan mode – Hyundai New Zealand is giving little away in respect to the model.

It says specifications for this market will be released closer launch, though the date for that is also undetermined. The best the Auckland-based distributor can offer is that arrival is due in “the second half of this year.”

Staria’s bold styling has attracted a lot of attention but so has its sheer size; the full length is 5.2 metres and it has a 3.2m wheelbase.

The chair configurations for this market seem to be different than those cited by Hyundai headquarters. They have also spoken of a seven-seater in a plush Premium layout, above, which offers reclining armchairs in the second and third row. They also configure an 11-seater. Hyundai NZ says that one is not on their wish list.

Insofar as powertrains go, it gets the 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbodiesel and 3.5-litre V6 petrol that serve in the super-sized Palisade sports utility, these respectively outputting 129kW and 431Nm and 199kW and 331Nm. 

There’s no suggestion that it is in line for the hybrid drivetrains that Hyundai has also developed, for Santa Fe.

Covers pulled from Staria

Get a load of this …. Hyundai’s spaceship-styled Staria is fully revealed.

NO word yet from Hyundai in New Zealand, but with other markets – including Australia – indicating they’re starters, the star signs are surely looking good for this dramatic looking next-generation people-mover making a local debut. 

The Staria is touted as a replacement for the iMax, the passenger version of the iLoad van, and in that people-provisioning format it will be built in seven-seater and nine-seater variants, with a luxury Premium edition billed in the latter format.

After sharing teaser images last week, Hyundai has now properly revealed the model and offered unexpurgated viewing of its mono-cell body.

The Premium version seen here is wearing a '3.5' badge. Does this mean its powertrain could be borrowed from the recently-released Santa Fe, offering 200kW and 332Nm via an eight-speed torque-converter automatic?

A turbo diesel is likely to be offered in entry-level Staria models, and could use a version of the Santa Fe's 148kW/440Nm 2.2-litre four-cylinder, or potentially the 137kW/416Nm 2.0-litre four-cylinder borrowed from the new-generation Tucson, also incoming to NZ soon.

Hyundai dealers in Australia have been told all-wheel-drive versions may be available. That’s of relevance here; our markets often share common models.

It’s thought the Staria, and the next-gen iLoad, will ditch the current generations’ rear-wheel drive layout for a front-drive monocoque platform.

The passenger version will incorporate independent coil rear suspension whereas the commercial editions are on a solid leaf-sprung rear axle.

Hyundai says the interior has been inspired by the lounge of a cruise ship, hence the enormous dark-tinted panoramic windows.

Staria will be offered in multiple seating configurations, with bench seat options in lower-spec variants taking up to 11 occupants. That latter provision comes with a model with four rows of seats that will apparently only sell in South Korea.

The top-spec variants will have individual arm rest for front and middle row passengers. Captain seats, with 180 degree swivelling function in the second row, will also have ottoman and recline function.

Infotainment will come from a centrally-mounted 10.25-inch screen, and the driver will be greeted with a digital instrument cluster and a button-type shift lever.

Staria – Hyundai’s stunning space shuttle

It’s intended to look like a spaceship visiting from another star system.

AS much as sports utility vehicles and crossovers have become Hyundai’s bread and butter in this market, the maker has not lost hope in there being a market for people carriers.

In that vein, Seoul given allowed a sneak peek at what it prefers to call a minivan that is production bound and potentially accessible to Hyundai New Zealand.

That’s wholly conjecture, though. Every piece of info about Staria has come from head office in South Korea. Hyundai NZ has not said a word.

 Fair to suggest the Staria is far more futuristic and interesting-looking than your average MPV.

Even the latest Kia Carnival, which has just landed here and would conceivably be considered a rival, is made to look quite old-fashioned.

For its part, Hyundai isn’t shy about supporting thought that the Staria is very much a future-now vehicle, probably vying to be the most outrageous and extrovert offer in the large MPV category since the Renault Espace and Avantime.

Indeed, in blurb sent out with these images it is bold enough to outright state the vehicle has a spaceship-like exterior design.

Certainly, it is bold: American website AutoBlog sums up well in describing Staria as looking as though it was “beamed to 2021 from 2121.”

 The styling highlights are numerous. The heavily raked windscreen and boxy monobox elements deliver a tie to the Ioniq 5 electric car that is coming here later this year.

The head-turning front end is characterised by an LED light bar that stretches across the entire fascia and headlights positioned at about the same level as the wheels. They're integrated into an extra-wide grille with bright mesh inserts. The tail lights are made up of individual dots that look like pixels; a signature also of the Ioniq 5. 

The short overhangs hint at an expansive wheelbase to maximise interior space. The dashboard is dominated by a centre-mounted touchscreen for the infotainment system and it appears there's no driver's display behind the steering wheel. The gear selector is a set of buttons, positioned right below the screen; the same layout already used by the Santa Fe.

The version in the images is a flagship model, designated the Premium, so it’s all about luxury. For instance, rear passengers travel on individual seats with retractable footrests. How much plusher it is to the standard fitout is a mystery, as that has yet to be seen. But you’d imagine there will be one better suited to the school run.