Hyundai Staria 2026 review: Hybrid – Australian first drive

Hyundai’s Staria people mover seemed destined to live in the shadow of its segment-dominating cousin, the Kia Carnival.

Now though, Hyundai is rolling out a serious overhaul to the Staria van range, including the long-awaited introduction of fuel-sipping hybrid variants.

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Let’s take a look.

First and foremost - pricing. While you can get a hybrid version of the cargo-hauling Staria Load delivery van at an appealing price point compared to some rivals, the people-mover version is only offered in this new top-spec Lounge variant, for now.

A higher trim level than ever before, the Lounge moves the Staria into previously unseen levels of luxury, but it comes at a steep price.

At $73,740 before on-road costs, the Lounge is nearly a $20,000 jump over the base people mover, making it a tall order not just to justify the leap to hybrid, but also among its core rivals.

This is especially true since Kia has rolled out its version of the same hybrid technology to its Carnival, and you can now get into a base Carnival S HEV from just $56,310.

Like-for-like when it comes to spec though, you’d be looking at a Carnival GT-Line, which costs $76,840.

If you’re keen on what this taller and in some ways more spacious Hyundai offers, it might be worth waiting for more affordable versions. Hyundai will need a wider range of hybrids at more affordable price points imminently as it's facing tough fines under Australia’s recently implemented New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES).

Standard kit on this new Lounge grade includes refreshed LED headlights with an integrated light bar across the front and unique 18-inch alloy wheels. 

Inside it scores Nappa leather seat trim, heating, ventilation, and power adjustment for the first two seating rows, near fold-flat relaxation mode for the second row, suede headlining, privacy glass, acoustic lamination for the windscreen, and integrated sunshades for the windows in the rear rows.

It’s a lovely place to be, and that’s before we mention the overhauls to the dash design. The pre-update Staria was already ahead of the pack, but the new version takes it to new heights with a fresh sporty steering wheel, a bigger digital dash, the re-introduction of physical buttons for the multimedia and climate controls (previously they were touch-capacitive), a stalk-mounted gear shifter from the brand’s EV range, and an update to the all-new software suite.

The Lounge also gets a few extra bits of the interior clad with soft-touch finishes compared to the cargo van, particularly in the door cards, although this comes at the cost of dash topping and overhead storage areas.

On the practical side, the Staria Lounge and its high roof and seven-seat layout (2 + 2 + 3) means access to the third row is one of the easiest of its contemporaries. You can just stroll between the second-row captains' chairs and room in all three seating positions is more than generous, with all three rows on rails for adjustability.

The boot, as is the case with many van-based people movers, is not long, but it is tall and wide. This can be a challenge with baggage when all three rows are in use, as you’ll need to stack upward, but more room can also be found in the cabin behind the front seats. Some brands offer a shelf accessory for the boot to help with this. Hyundai does not.

The Lounge only offers a tailgate rear. It provides nice shelter in the rain, but it's sheer size means there are limits as to where you can open it.

One dire cost of the hybrid powertrain is its lack of any kind of tow rating.

On the road, the Staria Lounge is unmistakably a van, missing out on the passenger-car feel of its Carnival cousin, but it’s still by far one of the best vans to drive.

Visibility is commanding from the front two positions, while the inputs come with all the panache of other Hyundai vehicles. There’s nice organic steering and good feedback from the pedals, making it surprisingly confident on curvy stuff. 

The suspension, specifically improved for this version of the Staria, improves ride quality all-round, and the front-drive hybrid powertrain (180kW/304Nm) offers both strong electric torque and whisper-quiet operation at commuter speeds.

Like other plugless hybrid systems though, the 1.6-litre turbo-charged four-cylinder engine can be noisy under load, at freeway speeds, and when travelling up steeper hills.

It’s certainly more refined than any diesel offering though, and significantly more convenient than having to plug in as you do with rivals from China like the GAC M8.

Fuel consumption isn’t as low as some hybrid SUVs, rated officially at 6.5L/100km. It’s a huge improvement on the 10.5L/100km of the previous V6 petrol version, but only a little better than the diesel (7.2L/100km), which can also tow. If you’re spending a lot of time on the freeway, the diesel may actually be better. Something to ponder.

A boost to ownership costs, the hybrid costs an average of $487.80 per year under the five-year service schedule, which is slightly more affordable than the petrol or diesel.

The warranty is seven years or unlimited kilometres, unless used for a commercial purpose, then it reverts to five years or 160,000km.

Hyundai is conducting testing for the hybrid version with the hope it will be covered by the Staria’s maximum five-star ANCAP rating. It comes packed with all the expected safety gear at this price.