Toyota HiAce vs Foton Tunland

What's the difference?

The rear barn-door option brings a significant boost in versatility, ensuring Toyota’s dominant market leader not only maintains its vast customer base but potentially expands it to include forklift-reliant operators who have previously overlooked the HiAce.

Given we had to wait 55 years for this barn-door option, we hope we don’t have to wait another half a century for a fold-down inboard armrest on the driver’s seat, which is now the only item missing from an otherwise formidable workhorse specification. 

The 2018 Tunland is a big improvement on any Chinese ute we’ve driven. Foton has done a commendable job in selecting known brand components and bringing them together into one cohesive package that delivers robust performance. Although it doesn’t quite equal the sum of its parts (mostly owing to poor safety features and some technical quirks), it’s still a lot of 4x4 dual cab ute for not a lot of money, and it's worthy of a test drive.

It’s a typically robust design comprising MacPherson strut front suspension, a leaf-spring live rear axle that’s excellent for load-carrying, variable-ratio rack and pinion steering and four-wheel disc brakes on all automatic variants, like ours.

The rear-wheel drive chassis has an inherent traction advantage over front-wheel drive vans, particularly on loose or slippery surfaces and with heavy payloads. 

Its 1990mm height allows access to underground and multi-storey car parks and its 3210mm wheelbase boasts an impressively tight 11.0-metre turning circle.

The two-tone dash layout is neat and functional with easy-to-use controls and instrumentation. 

There’s still no fold-down inboard armrest for the driver’s seat to enhance comfort on long hauls, but given we had to wait more than half a century for a barn-door option, we know Toyota won’t be rushed on these decisions.

This is a big ute with an imposing presence, much like the Ford Ranger with which it shares similar dimensions (if not looks). Compared to the Ranger Wildtrak, the Tunland is 115mm shorter in wheelbase and 45mm shorter in overall length, but 20mm wider and 22mm taller. Ground clearance of 210mm is 27mm less and its kerb weight undercuts the Wildtrak by 250kg.

The Tunland uses traditional body-on-frame construction with a steel ladder-frame chassis, coil-spring twin-wishbone front suspension, leaf-spring live rear axle, four-wheel ventilated disc brakes and hydraulic power-assisted rack and pinion steering. 

Chrome body highlights include the grille, driving lights, side mirrors, door handle inserts and body badges. The dashboard and interior trim feature strongly textured grey surfaces with a tasteful mix of piano black, chrome, satin chrome and carbon fibre-look highlights. 

There’s good comfort for driver and front passenger, with a height-adjustable steering wheel and multi-adjustable driver’s seat with adequate under-thigh support that doesn’t feel too short like a Triton. The driving position is a big improvement on other Chinese utes we’ve tested, and is on par with many of the major players. The rear bench seat’s low cushion height results in raised upper thigh angles and knees, but also aids in providing unusually generous headroom, even for tall adults sitting in the higher centre position. 

With its 2225kg kerb weight and 3300kg GVM, the HiAce has a genuine one-tonne-plus payload rating of 1060kg, and up to 120kg of that can be carried on the roof using Toyota’s genuine accessory triple-bar roof rack set. 

It also has a braked tow rating of up to 1500kg and with a GCM (how much it can legally carry and tow at the same time) of 4800kg, it can carry its peak 1060kg payload while towing that weight, which is a versatile set of numbers for a working van.

Cargo bay walls and doors are lined to mid-height, the roof is internally lined and there’s ample internal lighting. 

It’s accessed from either side through sliding doors with 1010mm-wide openings, or from the rear through the barn-doors which are both equipped with demisters/windscreen wipers and can swing open to 180 degrees. 

Each door also has a simple brace which can hold them at 90 degrees opening if required.

The cargo bay offers a sizeable 6.2 cubic metres of load volume, measuring 2530mm long, 1760mm wide and 1340mm high. 

With 1268mm between the rear wheel housings and six floor-mounted load anchorage points, it can carry up to two standard 1165mm-square Aussie pallets or up to three 1200 x 800mm/1200 x 1000mm Euro pallets. 

Its spacious driver’s cabin has numerous storage offerings including a large-bottle holder and bin in the base of each front door, small-bottle/cupholders in the centre and on either side of the dash, plus a single glove box.

The centre console is well designed, comprising an open storage tray at floor level and a large lidded box between the seats. 

This not only has cavernous internal storage but there’s also an external shelf at the front, two large-bottle holders at the rear and another shallow tray set into the lid, which when closed can double as a handy work desk. 

Figures used here are provided by Foton Motor Australia Ltd and differ slightly from those shown in sales brochures. With a claimed kerb weight of 2000kg and 2925kg GVM, the Tunland is rated to carry a decent payload of up to 925kg.

It’s also rated to tow up to 3000kg of braked trailer, and with its 5925kg GCM, can tow that weight without having to reduce its peak payload, which gets a big tick from us.

Load tub dimensions of 1520mm length, 1580mm width and 440mm height provide more than a cubic metre of enclosed load volume. There’s also 1140mm between the wheel arches (not wide enough for a standard Aussie pallet) plus four sturdy tie-down points for securing loads.

Cabin storage options includes a bottle holder and pocket in each front door, a shallow tray inset in the centre dash pad, an overhead sunglasses holder and single glovebox. The centre console has an open cubby up front, two cup holders in the centre and a small lidded box at the back which doubles as a well-placed armrest.

Rear doors also have bottle holders and storage pockets, plus there are flexible storage pockets on the rear of each front seat and a fold out dual cup holder on the rear of the centre console. The rear bench seat’s base cushion also swings up through 90 degrees to reveal two hidden storage areas beneath for the wheel-changing tools and other smallish items.

The Foton Tunland is made in two model grades – the H-series (High End) and S-series (Super Value). The S-series (which is not sold here) is a low-cost, steel-wheeled version with components sourced from Chinese suppliers. The H-series is the premium model sold in Australia, so don’t let the red S badge on the tailgate confuse you as it did us at first. The S badge stands for Sport (not Super Value) and is only affixed to H-series vehicles.

The Tunland range comprises 4x2 manual ($26,990), 4x4 manual ($29,990), 4x4 auto ($33,990) and, thanks to its leather seats, 4x4 auto Luxury ($35,490). The 4x4 manual Luxury has recently had a big price reduction from $30,990 to $27,990, reflecting Australia’s growing preference for automatic transmissions.

Our test vehicle is the 4x4 auto, which for a snip under $34,000, brings numerous useful and desirable features including 17-inch alloys and beefy 265/65R17 road-biased tyres with matching spare, power/heated door mirrors, daytime running lights, side steps, auto headlights, rear-view camera and rear parking sensors, leather-trimmed steering wheel with audio/cruise control buttons, power windows, four-speaker sound system with multiple connectivity, eight-way (manual) adjustable driver’s seat and more. Plus there’s an extensive range of accessories.

HiAce’s venerable (1GD-FTV) 2.8 litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel produces 130kW at 3400rpm and in auto models like ours a meaty 450Nm of torque between 1600-2400rpm. 

Maintenance procedures are simplified by its Euro 5 emissions compliance which doesn’t require AdBlue.

A smooth-shifting Aisin (AC60E) six-speed torque converter automatic optimises fuel economy with full converter lock-up on fourth, fifth and sixth gears, along with overdrive on fifth and sixth for relaxed highway driving. It also offers the choice of sequential manual-shifting if required. 

The live rear axle is equipped with an electronically-controlled automatic limited-slip diff, which optimises the inherent traction advantage of rear-wheel drive.

One of the Tunland’s strong points is its Euro 5-compliant 2.8-litre four-cylinder Cummins ISF turbo-diesel, which Foton claims is the first ute in the world to be powered by this engine. It delivers 130kW at 3600rpm and 365Nm across a pretty flexible 1600-3200rpm torque band.

The smooth-shifting six-speed German automatic behind it is from another premium OEM supplier in Friedrichshafen AG, better known as ZF. Its gearing and shift protocols are well matched to the engine’s characteristics, offering a choice of full-auto mode or sequential manual shifting. Console buttons also provide a choice of Economy, Sport or Snow driving modes.

American OEM giant Borg Warner supplies the part-time, dual-range 4x4 transfer case, while another  major US supplier - Dana - has its stamp on the front drive-shafts and live rear axle assembly, featuring a 3.9:1 final drive and limited-slip differential. There’s no locking rear diff option available.

Toyota claims an official combined cycle average of 8.2L/100km. 

After 215km of testing, without a load and with the automatic engine stop-start function switched off, our figure based on trip meter and fuel bowsers readings came in slightly higher at 9.8L/100km. 

This single-digit economy was achieved purely in city and suburban driving, which is thrifty for a large commercial vehicle weighing more than two tonnes. 

So, based on our figures, you could bank on a ‘real world’ driving range of around 700km from its 70-litre tank.

Foton’s official combined figure is 8.7L/100km but our ‘real world’ road test figures based on fuel bowser and trip meter readings came in at 12.2 (after 503km) and 12.1 (after 297km). Based on those figures, you could expect a driving range of around 620km from its 76-litre tank. However, after only 500km the fuel gauge needle was nudging the red zone and the low-fuel warning light came on, so we weren’t game to find out if there was another 100km-plus of driving available from the theoretical fuel remaining. 

The big front doors swing wide open to provide easy access to the cabin, where it’s easy to find a comfortable driving position given ample seat adjustment that includes lumbar support, plus a height-and-reach-adjustable wheel and big left footrest. 

Responsive steering and strong braking, combined with a reasonably supple ride quality when empty or lightly loaded, makes for a comfortable daily work environment. 

This is enhanced by commendably low internal noise levels for a van without a bulkhead between the cabin and cargo bay. We suspect the full-length roof lining helps here.

Like all panel vans, the solid-walled cargo bay creates a huge blind-spot over the driver’s left shoulder which can’t be avoided. And the central join of the barn doors obscures vision through the cabin’s rear-view mirror.

However, the portrait-shaped door mirrors are a decent size and combined with a suite of driver aids like blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, rear parking sensors and reversing camera, a competent driver can easily steer clear of trouble. 

And it has easy manoeuvrability thanks to the tight 11-metre turning circle and lightness of the variable-ratio steering at parking speeds.

 The 2.8-litre turbo-diesel has good flexibility with strong low-rpm response thanks to its ample 450Nm of torque. 

The smooth and snappy shift protocols of the six-speed auto optimise engine response, which is most evident in stop-start city and suburban driving. 

It also delivers relaxed and economical highway travel, particularly with the cruise control activated, with overdrive requiring less than 2000rpm to maintain 110km/h.

It’s a tight build free of rattles and squeaks, but the ride is too firm when empty or lightly loaded, particularly in the leaf-spring rear suspension which feels every small bump and delivers a sharp kick in your back over larger ones.

Otherwise, the chassis performance is more than adequate with its four-wheel disc brakes and steering that’s responsive and nicely weighted. Engine refinement and noise insulation are not best in class, but at highway speeds the combined engine, tyre and wind noise is certainly low enough to allow conversations without raised voices. The Cummins fairly lopes along here, with only 1800rpm at 100km/h and 2000rpm at 110km/h.

It’s also quite an agile and energetic performer around town, particularly in Sport mode. Maximum torque of 385Nm from the Cummins diesel is far from the strongest in this category, but the Tunland’s relatively low kerb weight helps to compensate for it with brisk getaways from standing starts and good throttle response in city and suburban driving. 

To test its GVM rating we strapped 770kg into the load tub, which with driver was only about 50kg short of its 925kg payload limit. The rear springs compressed 50mm while the nose rose 18mm. This resulted in a near-level ride height and noticeably improved ride quality, with no major decline in steering or braking response.  

With this load it was a competent performer on a variety of sealed and unsealed surfaces, including some bush tracks on which we engaged in both high and low range 4x4. Back on the bitumen, it also coped well with our two kilometre, 13 per cent gradient set climb, maintaining the 60km/h speed limit in third gear at 2250rpm all the way to the top. 

Engine braking on the way down, though, was compromised by the auto transmission’s unusual shift protocols. With second gear manually selected (in sequential shift mode) it over-rode that selection and shifted up to third when the engine reached 3250rpm on over-run. We tried it again several times and got the same result.

Not sure if it’s an engine protection measure on Foton’s part (redline is 4000rpm) but it’s not a nice surprise when you’re heavily loaded on a steep descent and relying on engine braking to help restrain your speed.

Our only other gripes were poor radio reception on the AM band (too bad if you like talkback) and the cruise control, which stopped working during our test and would not switch back on. 

Its three-star (out of five) ANCAP safety rating is poor, with single airbags for driver and front passenger only. 

Bosch electronic stability control includes brake-force distribution and hill-start assist, but there's no trailer sway control or AEB. The rear seat offers three head restraints and lap-sash belts. There are also ISOFIX attachments on the two outer seating positions, but no top tethers. Foton says it has identified differences in ISOFIX fittings between China and Australia, which it is now addressing for future export models. 

The HiAce is covered by a five-year/unlimited km warranty.

Scheduled servicing is set at relatively short six month/10,000km intervals, whichever occurs first. 

Capped-price of $290 per service covers the first six scheduled services over three years or 60,000km.

Expect a three year/100,000km warranty and service intervals of six months/10,000km whichever occurs first. Roadside assistance is also available.