Toyota Australia will offer the HiAce with rear barn door
Sometimes, we envy what other countries have available in their car market. The all-new Honda Jazz, next-generation Nissan Sylphy, as well as the Suzuki Swift Sport, are just some vehicles that we can only dream of getting here in the Philippines.
Over in Australia, Toyota will be releasing a new variant of the popular HiAce Cargo van. We're talking about the HiAce with rear barn doors. That's right, Toyota Australia will give buyers more choices in how they want to use the HiAce Cargo van.
According to the automaker, the rear barn door option was driven by customer demand as some buyers preferred a wider opening to the van's rear. More importantly, the HiAce barn door will provide customers with a more ergonomic solution to suit their cargo-carrying needs. This means easier loading of cargo pallets, as well as requiring less space behind the vehicle to open the rear doors compared to a tailgate.
No other details have been revealed yet. However, we won't be surprised if it continues to be powered by the familiar 1GD-FTV 2.8-liter turbo-diesel engine that makes 163 PS and 420 – 450 Nm of torque.
Could the HiAce with rear barn doors make its way to the Philippines? It's highly unlikely as we already have a cargo van version of the HiAce, albeit based on the previous cab-over generation. Still, we wouldn't mind if Toyota somehow decided to bring the barn door variant to the Philippines as it could attract logistical companies.
If you needed a HiAce Cargo van and had a choice to get it with either a tailgate or barn doors, which one would you get?