It has been years since Hyundai had a commercial van in its range, but now the all new Hyundai iLoad is here. It’s very different to the old Hyundai H100; it’s no longer forward control, and it has a whole host of spec that will make both drivers and passengers happy. The van is available as standard as a ‘two and a half’ seat model, but the most interesting version for work fleets is a five seater with a full floor to ceiling bulkhead behind the rear seats.
Bosch Common Rail Turbodiesel Engine
The iLoad is powered by a 2.5 litre Bosch common rail turbocharged diesel engine hooked up to either a five-speed manual gearbox or a Jatco designed five-speed automatic. Thanks to a variable geometry turbocharger there’s 125kW (167hp) and 392Nm (289ft lb) of torque available and the towing weights are 750kg (1,653 pounds) unbraked and 2300kg (5070 pounds) braked.
High Powered Van
The power and torque make the Hyundai iLoad stand out from the rest of the van offerings in New Zealand. For example, the Hyundai H1 sports 45kW (60hp) and a whopping 106Nm (78ft lb) more than the Toyota Hiace 3.0 litre diesel automatic.
And Hyundai claims good fuel economy as well, with the manual drinking 8.5L/100km (27.6mpg) combined and the auto doing 9.6L/100km (24.5mpg) combined.
In the standard two and a half seat Hyundai iLoad there is a load bay that is 2375mm (93.5 inches) long, 1350mm (53.1 inches) high and 1620mm (63.7 inches) wide for a total volume of 4308 litres (1,138 gallons).
Eight Seat iMax Minivan Option
There’s also an eight seat iMax with faux leather upholstery, roof mounted air conditioning controls and vents, and LED lights that can be changed in colour according to the occupants’ mood. There’s a fair amount of room in the centre row of seats, but the rearmost row should be used by children only if travelling full up. At least there’s still an impressive amount of luggage space left behind the seats.
In the city the Hyundai iLoad is nimble, and thanks to being rear wheel, rather than front wheel drive, the turning circle radius is only 5.6 metres.
Once at the delivery/pickup site it is easy to get into the rear of the Hyundai H1 due to the standard sliding doors on each side and the big rear hatch. Option up the barn doors and it is possible to fold them out 90 degrees and get right up to the loading dock.
The iLoad van is priced at NZ$45,990 for the two and a half seater manual, while the auto costs an extra NZ$2,990. The eight seat iMax costs NZ$55,990, while the auto is NZ$2,000 more.
High Specification for Both iLoad and iMax
Air conditioning is standard in both iLoad and iMax, as well as an MP3 compatible stereo, with an axillary input for an iPod or other such player.
In the end though, it’s all the extra spec that’s piled into the van that makes it an attractive proposition. It may not have the high class image of a European van, but it sure has more equipment.
Sam Domett - I have been a motoring journalist for over 15 years, beginning with my own website. I then moved on to the Manukau Daily News. My next job ...
Join the Conversation