1992 Toyota Hiace LWB review from Australia and New Zealand

Water pump needed replacing at 220,000 kilometer's.

Side door sliding mechanism broke after being sticky & hard to open for a few months.

Drivers seat worn pretty badly on one side, but still comfortable to sit on.

Brake lights often malfunction.

Rubber seal lining inside side & rear doors damaged and or severed.

Central locking mechanism no longer works on side sliding door.

Impossible to lock/ unlock rear door manually with key anymore.

Lacks acceleration even with a light load. This is frustrating in some situations.

Extensive rust along bottom window line of rear the door. Seen this occurring on many other Hi-ace's on the road, regardless of year model. Seems to be a universal flaw in the rear window/ panel structual design.

Being a Diesel, it's fairly noisy in operation, even when idling, but not unbearable.

Despite using my Hi-ace almost exclusively for demanding courier work, I have to say it's reliablity has been bulletproof. It's only broken down on me once in six years!

I often carry heavy loads yet my Hiace diesel is remarkably strong up steep hills, i. e 1.5 - 2 tonne loads.

Turning circle is good even without power steering.

Smooth & reliable operation over long distances.

Very rarely overheats.

It's provenly hard to break into! I once famously locked my keys in my Hi-ace by mistake. A passing locksmith tried to help open it, but couldn't, even with all his fancy methods & tools. I found that amusing.

But in all seriousness, I wouldn't swap this vehicle for any other make of van. I have driven Mitsubishi's, late Ford Econovans & Transits among others in my time as a courier - yet in one way or another, they all fall short of the superior Toyota Hi-ace 92'. I would be much better served upgrading to a later model Hi-ace than straying to a rival car maker.

Overall, I am very impressed with this vehicle. What flaws it does have are niggling at worst & in no way detract from the Hi-ace's strongest quality, it's legendary reliability. It's engine is quite simply, a piece of

engineering brilliance.

I look forward to keeping it in service for many years to come.

P.S, I have no affiliation with Toyota, just an impressed customer.