All Daihatsu Hijet reviews

"The addition of a 'Big Deck' pickup and a Tipper to the range boost the Hijet's versatility?"

The Daihatsu Hijet, in case you didn't know, is Britain's best-selling micro van. Quite an achievement for such a small importer, particularly when you consider that most of this model's early success was built on sales of a version with a 1.0-litre 3 cylinder engine.

Most businesses, you would have thought, would need something a bit meatier under the bonnet to haul their heavy loads. Well in 1998, Daihatsu finally provided it: a 1.3-litre four cylinder engine boasting 36% more power than its 1.0-litre predecessor. There was no penalty in fuel consumption either: quite the reverse in fact. Because the engine managed to haul a load more easily than before, there was a 4% improvement. If you haven't checked out a Hijet van since its last facelift, you'll probably notice some changes. Halogen headlamps and wraparound indicators now sit above a new bumper. Inside, steering lock security has been improved, a low fuel warning light has been added, the headlights are height-adjustable and euro standard head restraints are fitted. The addition of a 'Big Deck' pickup and a Tipper to the range boost the Hijet's versatility alongside the standard van and pick up. In addition to this a fully-approved LPG conversion is also now available that offers customers a 60% cost rebate under the Government's Powershift Register. Given that the conversion costs £1,500, after rebate you will be looking at a bill for £600. Though there's a slight increase in fuel consumption when running on LPG, the significantly lower price of the fuel can soon reap large savings. Even a conservative estimate would suggest that you should be able to recoup its additional purchase cost after around 15,000 miles.

That's assuming that you pay the LPG price offered to private individuals which, at around 38p a litre, is about half the price of petrol or diesel. Even that should save the typical motorist covering 15,000 miles a year over £700. If however, your Hijet is a company van linked to a company with its own 'bunkered' supply of LPG (commonly 28p a litre), the savings stack up even further. A fleet of 25 Hijets with 'bunkered' LPG could save over £70,000 based on 15,000 miles pa, or with 100 cars, this would escalate to over a quarter of a million pounds. The 32-litre LPG tank also increases the Hijet's potential range by over 75%, thus reducing the non-productive downtime spent on petrol station forecourts. Shares in Ginsters Savoury Snacks may plummet at this revelation. All Hi-Jets are covered by a three-year/60,000-mile warranty and by a six-year anti-perforation warranty. In addition, all Hi-Jet owners benefit from 12 months of free RAC rescue emergency breakdown cover. What's more, all models feature a 6000 mile/six-month service interval and every Daihatsu dealer operates menu-priced servicing. Regular running costs can be spread by joining the Budget Care Programme, with all the costs covered by single monthly payments. Voted by `What Van?` as the `Best Micro Van` eight years running, the Daihatsu Hi-Jet offers an impressive combination of class-leading specification and carrying capacity, refinement and low running costs. Together with flexible finance, servicing and fixed price assurance, this comprehensive package makes a lot of business sense. 64bhp may not sound particularly impressive from the 1,295cc fuel injected four cylinder 16v petrol engine but it develops enough torque to propel the little van at a reasonable clip, although when approaching the payload limits don't expect scorching acceleration up a hill. The torque figure of 73lb/ft is achieved at just 2,800rpm so there's little benefit in revving the engine to oblivion, and also negates the need for constant gearchanging around town. The petrol Hijet Van returns 40mpg in urban conditions and 42.0 mpg at a steady 56 mph whilst the LPG version manages combined figures of 36.7mpg (petrol) and 26.4mpg (LPG). A modified ignition system gives improved cold and wet weather starting, while refinements to the five-speed manual gearbox reduce noise and improve shift feel, say the importers. Despite all these changes, the Hijet retains the highest payload and load size in the sector. The Hijet Van and Pick-up can carry 635 kg and 760 kg respectively, while the van has a cargo capacity of 2.9 m3 (102 ft3). A kerb to kerb turning circle of only 7.4 metres ensures that even the tightest of parking spots are accessible. Sliding doors on both sides mean that you won't even have to leave a gap to lift the tailgate! Should you need to access the back the loading height of 540mm is a good compromise between reaching down and cripplinbg your back and hauling things up and in. Top marks to Daihatsu in understanding customer needs there. The Big Deck is a pickup with an even larger loading tray. Aluminium sides keep the all-important weight down but offer sufficient rigidity to transport heavy loads. The fully flat loading tray sits 740mm from the ground and is 70mm wider and 345mm longer than that of the standard Hijet pickup, boosting the available area by around 20%. The Hijet Tipper is also based on the pick up, buty in this instance featurees an electrically operatyed hydraulic tipper section that raises to a maximum angle of 45 degrees to shrug off loose loads. A switch labelled 'winch' is mounted on the fascia that raises and lowers the deck. Many drivers will yearn for one of these when being tailgated by a main-beaming lane hog! It's easy to see why so many businesses go for a Hijet - and difficult to understand why so many major manufacturers ignore the micro-van sector. While they continue to do so, Daihatsu will continue to lead. Bolstering the van and pick uyp range with new variants only increases the Japanese company's superiority. Ther aren't too many easy decisions in commercial buying but here's one of them?