Why do we have different Toyota Hiaces to everywhere else?

Why do we have different Toyota Hiaces to everywhere else?

Author
Discussion

Tampon

Original Poster:

4,637 posts

232 months

Wednesday 22nd August 2018
quotequote all
I am currently in Sri Lanka, spent a few months is Asia 5 years ago and saw and traveled in tonnes of h200 Hiaces. I think they are brilliant.

Get back to the UK and we have some weird melted bar of soap with no options or variants.

What gives? Would love to build the next family campervan on one of these.

Any info? Wiki page doesn't mention anything.

SonicShadow

2,452 posts

161 months

Wednesday 22nd August 2018
quotequote all
You should see what they get up to with them in Japan!


TooMany2cvs

29,008 posts

133 months

Wednesday 22nd August 2018
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We haven't got get any HiAce in Europe since 2012. Quite a few of the Japanese manufacturers have different ranges for different global regions, cars as well as vans.

You mean the ProAce? It's a rebadged PSA Dispatch/Expert(/Vivaro soon), just as the previous version was after they dropped the XH10 HiAce here. Maybe they didn't think the H200 was worth importing because it wouldn't stand up to the competition...? 14yrs now since it was launched...

sjg

7,532 posts

272 months

Wednesday 22nd August 2018
quotequote all
They have quite a high floor, I wonder if it just didn't fit with what the European market wants from vans. But then I don't really understand what Toyota are doing (in cars, commercial, everything) any more over here.

I like them, but it would make for a cramped campervan unless you put a hi-top on (like Jucy and others do in AU/NZ) or a pop roof.

Easy enough to import from Japan if you really wanted one though.

PartsMonkey

317 posts

144 months

Wednesday 22nd August 2018
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I remember thinking this after I went to Malaysia. When I looked into it I found a few people saying it was safety related as there is no space for a crumple zone (unless you count your legs).

TooMany2cvs

29,008 posts

133 months

Wednesday 22nd August 2018
quotequote all
PartsMonkey said:
I remember thinking this after I went to Malaysia. When I looked into it I found a few people saying it was safety related as there is no space for a crumple zone (unless you count your legs).
Nah. Japan has crash-testing, too. JNCAP don't seem to list vans and minibuses, though.
http://www.nasva.go.jp/mamoru/en/index.html

If anything, it's the engine position/floor height. Underfloor engine + RWD means high floor, and makes a third cab seat impossible. This segment's all FWD in Europe now.

H200 -
ProAce -

There's load length benefits to the cab-forward design, sure - we've got a VW T25 Transporter, and it's longer interior than the SWB T4, but shorter exterior. But there's an engine under the back, so for loading a van, it's awful. For a camper, it's less of an issue, because you can put the bed there anyway - a T4 would have some fairly useless storage there instead.

Wooda80

1,743 posts

82 months

Wednesday 22nd August 2018
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I can remember those forward control Japanese vans like the Hi Ace , Mazda E2000, Nissan Urvan etc, being popular with carpet fitters and the like as they had a longer, if narrower, load length that suited what they carried.

They also seemed popular amongst owner-driver type operators like tradespeople or small business owners.

Where they fall down I suppose is that they were never available in this country in the wide variety of dimensions and weights that the European manufacturers offer, and therefore never had the breadth of appeal and hence volume of sales.

Jag_NE

3,099 posts

107 months

Wednesday 22nd August 2018
quotequote all
sjg said:
They have quite a high floor, I wonder if it just didn't fit with what the European market wants from vans. But then I don't really understand what Toyota are doing (in cars, commercial, everything) any more over here.

I like them, but it would make for a cramped campervan unless you put a hi-top on (like Jucy and others do in AU/NZ) or a pop roof.

Easy enough to import from Japan if you really wanted one though.
Agree. Europe hasn’t really bought into what Toyota does best I.e. dull but reliable vans, big suv’s and saloons. I’m convinced that they are largely focused on the US and Japan markets. With the surge in petrol adoption I don’t see why dull but durable Camry autos wouldn’t sell really well here.

DanielSan

19,166 posts

174 months

Wednesday 22nd August 2018
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SonicShadow said:
You should see what they get up to with them in Japan!


KTF

10,053 posts

157 months

Wednesday 22nd August 2018
quotequote all
Jag_NE said:
Agree. Europe hasn’t really bought into what Toyota does best I.e. dull but reliable vans, big suv’s and saloons. I’m convinced that they are largely focused on the US and Japan markets. With the surge in petrol adoption I don’t see why dull but durable Camry autos wouldn’t sell really well here.
The Camry is coming back: https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/toyota/camry/...

Jag_NE

3,099 posts

107 months

Wednesday 22nd August 2018
quotequote all
KTF said:
Bring on the vanilla!

unsprung

5,818 posts

131 months

Wednesday 22nd August 2018
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Jag_NE said:
KTF said:
Bring on the vanilla!
after years of serving as a synonym for dull, Camry was relaunched with a dollop of pizzazz and claims about the driver experience

now available with, among other things, a red leather interior

"Camry: Boring No More"
https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/reviews/2018-toyota-...

"Toyota President Declares 'No More Boring Cars'"
https://autoweek.com/article/car-news/toyota-presi...






TooMany2cvs

29,008 posts

133 months

Wednesday 22nd August 2018
quotequote all
unsprung said:
after years of serving as a synonym for dull, Camry was relaunched with a dollop of pizzazz and claims about the driver experience

now available with, among other things, a red leather interior

What was that lyric...?

Beautiful South said:
And when faced with dull and dutiful
They fire red warning flares
Battle-khaki personality
With red underwear

hairyben

8,516 posts

190 months

Wednesday 22nd August 2018
quotequote all
Jag_NE said:
Agree. Europe hasn’t really bought into what Toyota does best I.e. dull but reliable vans, big suv’s and saloons. I’m convinced that they are largely focused on the US and Japan markets. With the surge in petrol adoption I don’t see why dull but durable Camry autos wouldn’t sell really well here.
that Toyota and nissan vans are rebadged euro junk is insane! Mind I suspect even their engines will struggle with the latest emissions regs, personally with van length in congested urban environments being dictated by parking space size/street space avaliable its daft that more manufacturers arent into cab-forward designs - the only reason I purchased a SWB Vito is at 15' is its pretty much as long as you want to go round here. Same too with electric incoming - missed opportunity to create city optimised vehicles by stuffing everything in the floor!