Will we see it here, though?
Hyundai’s biggest cars, the commercial iLoad van and the more liveable iMax MPV might be known best for their sheer size, but we suspect that that might not be the case for much longer. While sister brand Kia has been enjoying great praise with its Carnival MPV making people-movers pretty again, Hyundai’s big hauler has remained unmoving and unperturbed with the idea of hiding its straight-to-business approach.
It seems that the movers and shakers in South Korea don’t want the iLoad and iMax duo to remain that way though, with Hyundai revealing a revised Grand Starex (a name the iLoad and iMax carry in certain markets) to the world, and boy is it different from what we’re used to.
Gone is the upright orientation of the fascia, now adopting a more width-emphasising design, along with a higher bonnet line that (allegedly) gives it a more stately appearance. The headlights integrate neatly into the grille, and are now halogen-projector units (as opposed to the complex-surface reflector units of our model).
Precious little could be done to the sides of the Starex, though the rear now gains LED combination taillights. And the whole car rides on 17-inch machine-finished alloy wheels.
Further changes are to be found inside, with a totally-redesigned dashboard that also puts greater emphasis on width. It looks almost like a posh Mercedes-Benz V-Class, with integrated aircond vents, automatic airconditioning, and a ‘floating’ infotainment screen replete with satellite navigation.
There are no mechanical changes to report, with South Korean models available with a Euro-6 compliant 2.5-litre CRDi turbodiesel, available in either 104kW/353Nm (mated with a six-speed manual) or 131kW/451Nm flavours (with a five-speed auto). Power gets sent to the rear wheels in all models.
For more information on Hyundai, check out our Showroom.
