Remember the Hiace? Toyota has a new van for breakfast roll man

There was a time in Ireland when it seemed every van in the country was a Toyota Hiace. First built in 1967 and still sold outside of Europe, Hiace came to prominence in Ireland in the 1980s and went on to enter Irish motoring folklore. Hiace was a massive hit with buyers for a number of reasons, it was great value for money, loved by owner operators and let's not forget those cash buyers who liked to occasionally tow their homes. In its heyday there was no rustproofing and the light body of the legendary Hiace would simply dissolve to rust after a few years of hard work, owing nothing. Hiace, almost unnoticed, slipped out the back door in 2014.

Toyota Ireland is set to launch itself back in to the van market after a conspicuous absence. The void Hiace left has since been filled by rivals. Ireland's growing light commercial vehicle (LCV) market is now dominated by Ford, Volkswagen and Renault.

The new Proace launches at the end of the month and so at last buyers will be able to buy a Japanese-built machine to take on the Europeans - right? Eh, not exactly.

Proace is a co-production with French motoring giant PSA Group and is a near-identical triplet to the Citroën Dispatch and Peugeot Expert.

Back seat

Toyota’s relationship with the PSA Group is a long-standing and ongoing one. In 2005 the first-generation Toyota Aygo, Citroën C1 and Peugeot 108 rolled off the same production line in a Czech Republic factory. Toyota led that joint venture and applied its knowledge to the plant and cars’ construction, with its French partner looking after the paperwork from the back seat, so to speak.

With Proace the roles are reversed. Proace is built in France alongside Dispatch and Expert under PSA's design and direction. It uses PSA's EMP2 platform that underpins the Citroën C4 Picasso and Peugeot 308. Toyota Proace is as much an exercise in rebadging as it is for Peugeot's 108 and Citroën's C1. Toyota Ireland says the reality of financing a low-volume complete vehicle type did not make sense, so partnering with PSA Group on Proace was a great fit. In commercial vehicle manufacturing there is a tradition of incestuous relationships. Brands often buddy up on van production to be able to have a presence in certain sectors of the commercial vehicle market.

Pricing and specific grade details will be revealed later this month. What we can say it that there will be three body lengths: Compact (known as L0) at 4.6m, MWB (L1) at 4.9m and LWB (L2) at 5.3m. Compact sits on a 2.9m wheelbase while the L1 and L2 versions have the same 3.2m wheelbase.

Proace Compact is a very significant machine as it is the spiritual successor of the LiteAce. Compact is perfect for town use thanks to a tiny 11.3m turning circle. At just 1.9m tall Proace is car park barrier-friendly too. Proace bodyshell types available will be Panel Van, Crew Cab and Verso people carrier. Unlike Citroën and Peugeot, Toyota Ireland will not offer the convertible Chassis Cab version.

Big seller

Proace has diesel engines only and these range in power from 95hp to 180hp. The van is available in three power outputs, starting with a 95hp 1.6-litre, rising to a 120hp 2-litre; a 150hp 2-litre tops the van range. The Verso passenger range features the same 1.6-litre but with a boosted 115hp and 2-litre engines with 150hp up to 180hp in the VIP automatic version. The big seller in Ireland is expected to be the 1.6-litre entry 95hp van.

All of the latest electronics and connectivity you’d expect in a car are available in Proace. Mirror Screen that features CarPlay and Android Auto helps connectivity via the dash mounted touch screen. Toyota’s Safety Sense is available along with a host of features and driving aids like parking sensors, rearview camera that displays via the rearview mirror or touch screen depending on model, blind spot indication, lane-keeping assist and adaptive cruise control linked to speed sign recognition.

There are a few other headline-grabbing toys such as the powered cargo doors that can open via an under-bumper leg kick and an in-house Toyota Europe fleet monitoring telematics solution called Toyota ProBusiness. This is a factory fit option that is unlikely to be popular in Ireland as there are already established firms offering a similar service.

Foothold

Toyota Ireland expects to sell 500 units in 2017. While the panel van will be the volume seller, the Verso passenger versions will account for about 10 per cent of sales. Proace Verso will give Toyota a foothold in the important shuttle MPV sector. Verso can be configured to carry up to nine passengers.

In Europe there are three grades, namely a more robust Verso Shuttle with a rubber floor, Verso Family that focuses on space and modularity, and Verso VIP six-seater which is the plushest of all. Verso models get increased sound-deadening insulation. The so-called VIP gets captain’s chairs up front and in the middle, with the middle seats reversible. Verso VIP is only available in medium or long body.

Just how Toyota Ireland is going to re-establish itself in the highly competitive LCV market remains to be seen. Citroën and Peugeot in Ireland have a solid LCV presence but their dealer networks are nowhere near the size of Toyota’s soon-to-be 47-strong dealer network when Liffey Valley comes on line.

The mid-sized van market is about to get very hot as the big players won't give up their market share without a fight. The LCV market is growing but there are new variables to add in to the mix like the impact of Brexit, as many buyers find they can land a van for less than the Irish list price. There is also the rise of the budget-priced Chinese commercials being imported by the Harris Group to add into the mix too.

Toyota has a tough task on its hands to win back the Hiace customers it abandoned, but with Proace it stands a good chance.