2024 Hyundai Staria Hybrid revealed

The 2024 Hyundai Staria Hybrid has broken cover in South Korea, and while for now it’s only being produced in left-hand drive, Hyundai Australia has confirmed it’s keen to add the petrol-electric people-mover to its local portfolio.

Largely resembling the petrol and diesel Staria models save for unique wheels, the electrified version features the same 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol-electric powertrain as the inbound Hyundai Tucson Hybrid and Santa Fe Hybrid SUVs, except in this application it outputs a hearty 183kW/367Nm – up from 169kW/350Nm.

It’s unclear if the Staria Hybrid will offer a choice between two-wheel drive and layouts, while fuel economy is rated at 7.7L/100km, based on testing in South Korea.

According to Hyundai, the Staria Hybrid’s economy is helped by a new ‘congestion section specialised control’ system that uses the sat-nav’s live traffic function and vehicle parameters to “strategically change shift patterns and engine start times in low-speed congested sections”.

The hybrid has debuted as part of a wider 2024 model year update for the popular people-mover, one that brings more USB-C ports, a new key fob, reprogrammed power sliding doors, tweaked safety systems, 2D exterior badging and LED interior lighting.

Expect price rises to be applied in conjunction with the upgrade, while the hybrid, if approved for sale here, would carry a premium over the combustion-engined models. The petrol Staria is currently priced from $49,000 plus on-road costs, while the diesel starts $3000 higher.

The Staria Hybrid would line up against its crosstown rival, the Kia Carnival, which will also soon offer a petrol-electric powertrain.

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