Towards the end of 2019, a new commercial vehicle model attempted to come into the Singapore market. Despite having a more stylish outlook and interior, larger space and better technology (maybe?), this commercial vehicle did not receive the response that many importers thought it may have and is now trying to clear off the remaining vehicles on hand.
So what vehicle is that? It is the 6th generation Toyota Hiace!
Although it does receive relatively good response in Australia, Indonesia, Philippines, Mexico and Thailand, it failed very badly in the Singapore markets due to its’ unsuitability to the Singapore markets. It is so unsuitable to the local market that we decided to discourage 98% of our customers to avoid it at all costs!
In this article, we would like to discuss some reasons why we do not recommend most of our customers to get it. But instead of writing about the technical aspects of it which you can easily find online, we will discuss the more practical reasons why one should not get the latest new Toyota Hiace (6th generation). Specifications can be found at the end of this article.
Reason 1. Navigation Difficulties
Although the latest Toyota Hiace offers a larger cargo space, the vehicle length is much longer than it’s predecessor. And because it is longer, it makes navigation more difficult on the roads and in places where the space is extremely limited like the loading bays.
Reason 2. Length Issues
Another issue that length of the latest Toyota Hiace face in Singapore is the parking space limitations. There are many places in Singapore that does not allow vehicles that are longer than a certain length to park. This will make delivery, loading and unloading very difficult. Even if you were to just use the van for personal use, you may likely face problems also when you drive to public carparks.
Reason 3. Unladen Weight Issues
Unless you are staying in a private property or have your own personal parking space, this is going to be another pain in the neck. Because the unladen weight of the new Toyota Hiace (6th generation) is higher than 1800kg, you are not qualified to enjoy the normal parking rates. The season parking rate for this new van is much higher than your normal Toyota Hiace. Well, this may not be an issue if you have a lot of spare cash.
Oh, one more! Because of its’ weight, the 6th generation Toyota Hiace is also not allowed to be parked in multi-story car parks (MSCP).
Reason 4. Price Issues
This is one thing that we personally cannot accept. The vehicle is way overpriced! It is easily 40% more expensive than it’s predecessor! Therefore, we do not think it makes any business sense to buy the 6th generation Toyota Hiace. Well again, unless you have a lot of money to spare or you desperately need the space. But even if you need the space and have the money, do take note of the other points as well.
Reason 5. Resale Value
Due to the low demand of the 6th generation Toyota Hiace in Singapore, the resale value is going to be crap when you want to resell it a few years later. The price of anything is determined by supply and demand. Look at the demand of this vehicle now. Don’t take our word for it. Look at the roads and see how many of the 6th generation Toyota Hiace you see in a month and ask yourself if the demand is there. Based on our experience, we haven’t seen any of these on the road for the past 3 months! So can you imagine the demand?
Reason 6. High Loan Difficulty
When running a business, many of the business owners will choose to have lower upfront and this is the reason why many business go for higher loans to as high as 100%.
But for this vehicle, business owners definitely face issue getting high loans. The reason is simple, the banks or financial institutions have to also calculate their risks. If any one were to default the payments and they tow back the vehicle, are there any demand for the vehicle when they auction it away. If not, then risk is high. In short, the 6th generation Toyota Hiace’s selling price and it’s value DOES NOT MATCH!
These are the reasons why we discourage majority of of customers to buy this vehicle. Well, unless they really want, we will not recommend it to any one at the moment. In case you wish to know the specifications of the van we are talking about, here you go:
WAIT! Before you go off, we want to clarify that we are not saying that this is lousy vehicle. Actually, the 6th generation Toyota Hiace is a very good van! However, it is just not so suitable for the Singapore markets. Otherwise, we will definitely recommend it and we believe it will sell like hot cakes!
Lastly, if you do not mind the above-mentioned points and still wants to get one, you are welcome to contact us and we can arrange something for you. But please do not say we did not warn you of the above reasons ya. 🙂
We hope this article helps some of you better understand the suitability of the new 6th generation Toyota Hiace in Singapore. Do feel free to search for and look around for other articles. See you on the other page! Cheers!
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