The 10-seater 2022 Hyundai Staria has just been launched in Malaysia, coming in with a sharper focus to the commercial or plain ol' people-carrying side of things. There's three variants (Lite, Plus, Max), and prices start from RM 179,888. Essentially also, this succeeds the long-standing Hyundai Grand Starex.

The three Staria 10-seater variants are priced as below:

• Lite - RM 179,888
• Plus - RM 196,888
• Max - RM 209,888

Recall that the 7-seater Staria Premium retails from RM 366,768. The massive price discrepancy between this and the 7-seater is mainly due to tax structures; the 10-seaters are classified as commercial vehicles, so there's a lower tax rate for these compared to the three-row Staria. Same story with the CBU and CKD Kia Carnival, you'll recall.

Also Read: This over Alphard/Vellfire? Priced from RM 359k, Hyundai Staria launched in Malaysia

Powertrain

Speaking of the Carnival, both the Hyundai and Kia are similar in terms of architecture (N3 platform), and choice of powertrain, at least for the Malaysian market – with the Staria also employing a 2.2-litre turbodiesel under the hood, good for 177 PS and 431 Nm.

This smooth, quiet engine is paired to an 8-speed automatic transmission. It's a brilliant powertrain, judging from our experience sampling it in the 7-seater Staria and of course, the Carnival.

Also read: Review: CKD 2022 Kia Carnival - For the boss or for the family? Why not both?

Exterior and interior features

Size wise the ovoid Staria has always been a big one, measuring 5,253 mm long, 1,997 mm wide, and 1,990 mm tall, sitting on a 3,273 mm wheelbase.

Designed for "big families and businesses", specifications for the 10-seater Staria range from the spartan to the well-equipped. The 'Lite' variant is the one better suited for a no-frills people carrier, judging from the minimalist feature set.

In this, you'll get full-LED headlights, 17-inch wheels, bulb-type rear lights and foglights, and going inside there's black fabric seats. No heating and ventilation for them, nor electric seat adjustments, but rows 2, 3, and 4 can fold fully flat for lots of stuff - it's the raison d'être of the 10-seaters anyway.

Seating arrangement for the MPV is 2-3-2-3, and they are flexible enough with sliding seats and a variety of storage spaces. All seats flat, there's 1,024 litres of cargo room.

The digital instrument cluster in the Lite is a basic 4.2-inch unit, air-conditining is manual, but there's an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment headunit with wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. The latter is standard fitment on all variants.

The Plus and Max variants add on LED, Parametric Pixel rear lamps, LED rear foglamps, semi-Nappa leather seats (Plus, full Nappa for Max) inside, while the Max variant gain an 8-way + 4-way lumbar support electric driver's seat adjustments.

A 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster is standard on variants above the Plus, and the Max gains dual-zone full-auto air-conditioning. Speaker count is bumped up to 6 on the Max (up from 4 on the Lite and Plus), and it also adds on Hyundai's Smart Key that enables opening the sliding doors and tailgate with the touch of a button.

Safety and ADAS

Safety wise, all variants score 6 airbags (driver, front passenger, and side), as well as the requisite ABS with EBD, VSM, TCS, and ESC. 3 ISOFIX mounts on the second row, rear occupant alert (ROA), and parking distance warning (PDW) are all standard fitments.

Active safety (ADAS) are only available on the Max variant, encompassing these features:

• Blind Spot Collision Assist (BCA)
• Rear Cross-traffic collision assist (RCCA)
• Lane Keeping Assist (LKA)
• Smart Cruise Control with Stop-and-Go (SCC)
• Forward Collision Avoidance Assist (FCA)

Other features specific to the Max variant are Safe Exit Assist (SEA), High Beam Assist (HBA), Driver Attention Warning (DAW), and Leading Vehicle Departure Alert (LVDA).

Purchase and aftersales

Exterior colour choices range from Moonlight Blue Pearl (exclusive to the Max), while Creamy White, Graphite Grey Metallic, Abyss Black Pearl, and Shimmering Silver Metallic are offered on the other two variants. 

Hyundai Sime Darby Malaysia (HSDM) backs the Staria with a 2-year/50,000 km warranty as standard, though for a further RM 10,000, you can bump that up to a 5-year/300,000 km warranty that also bundles in 3 years/50,000 km free service.