Peugeot Expert vs Toyota HiLux

What's the difference?

Mid-sized (2.5 to 3.5-tonne) commercial van buyers have a variety of makes and models to choose from, even though most buy the venerable HiAce.

Latest VFACTS figures confirm Toyota’s long-standing dominance, as the HiAce commands just under 40 per cent market share with the remainder spread across ten competitors from Europe, China and Korea.

One of those is Peugeot’s Expert, which is available with a choice of wheelbases, transmissions and model grades. It currently represents just 1.3 per cent of sales in this segment, so we recently spent a week behind the wheel to see how it compares to the market leader.

The ninth-generation Toyota HiLux is not really a new HiLux in the true sense of the word, but there’s enough going on with it to have generated plenty of excitement in the ute-loving public.

This ‘new’ HiLux, in essence, is an update but it’s an update with substance: the HiLux now sports a new retro design, new interior layout, new suspension tune (softer rated springs and dampers for improved on-road comfort) – and it even has an electric park brake now.

So, with no major mechanical upgrades, is this HiLux enough of an improvement over past iterations to warrant your attention?