Yesterday, we talked about the odd occurrence of Toyota if not saving the hide of GM’s new partner PSA Peugeot Citroen, then at least keeping one of PSA’s plants from being closed. This by having vans made by PSA for the European market, instead of shipping them from Japan.
When we wrote that, TTAC correspondent th009 rightfully questioned why in the world does Toyota order a van from PSA if they have a Hiace. Correspondent felix offered the explanation that due to its “cab-over configuration, the Hiace won’t meet European frontal impact crash standards.” This sounded like a logical explanation, until from Finland, correspondent Perc offered a resounding “mitää???”, explaining that the Hiace has been a big success in Suomi. Finland has the same safety standards as all on Europe.
So, what is it then?
The Nikkei [sub] to the rescue. It’s the damned yen. Says the Nikkei:
“Toyota sells only about 10,000 small commercial vehicles a year in Europe, roughly 1% of the total sales in the region. With the strong yen eradicating any prospects for improving the business’ profitability, Toyota stopped exporting its Hiace, a small commercial van, from Japan to Europe last fall. Several potential partners were considered, but Toyota went with PSA, with which it makes small vehicles in the Czech Republic.”
So there you have it. PSAS’s Sevelnord plant was nearly shuttered because PSA’s current joint venture partner Fiat bailed. Toyota took Fiat’s place and most likely received a better deal than shipping Hiaces from strong yen Japan to low euro Europe.
And anyway, looking at the picture …
Just to get a few things straight.
– The Hiace sold in Europe is different from the cabover Hiace that is sold elsewhere. The European Hiace is the one pictured above and was sold in Japan as the Granvia. It has little technical similarities to the Japanese Hiace, and is basically the same car as it was when it was introduced in 1995.
– Hiaces for Europe were assembled in Portugal in a joint venture with Caetano until June 2011. Any Hiaces still available (eg in Finland) are ‘old stock’. The Dyna small truck is still built there.
– The Euro-Hiace’s diesel engine does not comply with Euro5 emission standards, which are mandatory since January 2012 for every vehicle sold new. Toyota has repeatedly stated it would not update the engine to Euro5.
Thanks for the clarification. Personally, I prefer the cabover Hiace.
Amen. Cabover vans are a special breed. They are much more versatile than the front engined vans. You can park with your front bumper almost touching the car in front of you, and you can make u-turns like a subcompact.
The old Hiace did not meet the new Euro 5 emission standard, so Toyota stopped importing it per 1.1. 2012.
If the current Hiace(Granvia, as mentioned) is known for something it’s reliability and durability, something the French are not know for. Compared to the european rivals the Hiace is cramped, noisy, not very good to drive and not as safe as it’s basically a 1995 design. But it sold well at least in Finland because it will work reliably for twenty years, after which it will be shipped off to Africa.
Amen.
I was going to the dentist and – do to not wanting to drive in what I’d anticipated to be a slightly impaired state and missing the buss- ordered a Cab. A highace/Granvia arrived, it was like being back in the early 90’s or riding in the TGB11/13/20 I drove in the Army. It was an appallingly un-modern vehicle. Stick shift rattling a feet in every direction, vinyl and haaard plastic everywhere, rode like a overloaded king cab, engine sounded like god knows what. This in a city where I could have gotten a ride in a 5-series, E class, A6 or V70 for the same money, even a god damn VW Transporter would have been preferable. Why the thing sold well in Finland is beyond me, it was simply the worst vehicle that is currently (at the time) on sale making Renault Kangos feel like very refined cars.
On the other hand it’s probably very durable.
The reliability (and familiarity?) must really be it. Digging into the Finnish sales stats, in 2009 the Hiace was still the market leader, with about 25% market share, and it wasn’t any more modern then.
VW seems to be the main beneficiary of the Hiace sales collapse in Finland, even though its current Transporter is also 10 years old and due for replacement soon.
But I think VW, Ford and Mercedes are the only significant players in the European commercial vehicle space with unique offerings for medium vans rather than some level of joint ventures or badge engineering.
I don’t really agree that it’s miserable to drive, but it’s old and uncomfortable. ABS is the most high-tech option you can get and the HVAC panel is taken straight out of a 1987 Camry. To add insult to injury, Toyota of Europe has sprinkled the Granvia facelift details (new fascia, slightly updated switchgear, etc) on the Hiace a little at a time, much much later than the Granvia got them. The reasoning seems to have been that the old crud is good enough for the Hiace customers. :)
The simple reason it sold so well is, again, reliability. The competitors will all require much more maintenance. The Mercedes Vito has always been crap. The Renault (/Nissan/Opel) has suffered from catastrophic gearbox and engine failures through its entire production run. The SEVEL vans eat wheel bearings and chassis parts, the VW eats coil springs and chassis parts, and so forth. The Toyota, on the other hand, will run for hundreds of thousands of kilometers on just regular oil changes and maybe a set of brake pads somewhere along the line.
From what I understand, van buyers in other places in Europe like to lease new cheap vans and trade up after 3 years. Finns like to buy and own what they drive, and keep it for as long as possible after it’s paid off.
So it was the old Hiace Toyota was selling, and it can no longer be sold due to engine regs — that makes sense now, thanks.
And for the future, Toyota decided to buy vans from PSA at a nice price instead of certifying the new Hiace’s engine for Euro5 emissions and building them in Japan (or somewhere in SE Asia where they are also built).
Time will tell whether Toyota’s move is a good one. Toyota will end up with a van that is a PSA clone and has been only moderately successful. No real Toyota characteristics or parts interchangeability.
On the European level this has worked reasonably well for the Mercedes Sprinter/VW Crafter heavy van twins. On the other hand, VW commercial vehicle buyers didn’t really cotton onto the VW Taro (rebadged Toyota Hilux), preferring the Toyota original.
Only upside with the Taro was that you could swap grills with a Hilux and dispute parking tickets on the basis that it was the wrong car they ticketed.
Commercial van partnerships (badge engineering) is something of a pan European sport, Opel combo D/Fiat Doblò (GM and Chrysler in bed together) Nissan Primastar/Opel Vivaro/Renault Trafic (GM and Ghosn in bed) Renault Master/Opel Movano/Nissan NV400.
th009,
My guess is that Toyota wants its stake in the European LCV market back through PSA, with a co-developed van in the future and a simple rebadge for the short-term. Apart from Nissan, all the other Japanese brands (mainly Mitsubishi and Mazda) have bailed out of the European light van business years ago.
You are too kind on the miserable old tin box. Having to drive a Hiace for 20 years was a human rights violation.
Cool! Thanks for the clarification, Bertel, nvdw and th009.
My bad. Didn’t realize you were all talking about the Euro Hiace. Myself I’m only familiar with the Asian (and Japanese) version having driven a few of them of various generations. Cab-over configuration means tons of space in a small footprint. And a short wheelbase means a tight turning circle (as well as massive fore-aft pitching!). Not singling out the Hiace – all the cab-over vans I’ve experienced were just like that. Always felt vulnerable in them, as your feet are just a couple of inches behind the front bumper. In a hard collision, front occupants are likely to be trapped and have to be cut out. (When I say cut, I’m referring to sheetmetal, not limbs. But I wouldn’t be surprised if the latter are involved sometimes…. yuck).
Anyways, learned something new today. That’s why I keep coming back. :)
Hi felix,
It’s not just a safety issue; COE designs in vans also have issues in ride comfort and stability. In Europe, vans have to prove their worth on motorways as well. Volkswagen, Fiat and Mercedes (amongst others) offer vans with diesel engines producing 130 kW or even more.
I would have thought Toyota wants to manufacture in Europe because of the bad yen to euro exchange rate.
The Toyota kind of looks like an old Aerostar from the side.