Rent Hyundai Staria 2023 in Dubai

The Hyundai Staria 2023 is the easiest car on this fleet to spot in a hotel car park, and the spaceship-nose styling isn't just a party trick. Underneath it sits a genuine nine-seat cabin, not a five-seater with a bench nobody wants to claim. We deliver it to your villa, hotel or terminal within one to two hours of booking, which matters when your group lands at the airport and needs one vehicle, not two. For a big family, a wedding party, or a work group who'd rather travel together than split into separate cars, this page settles whether your numbers actually justify a van this size.

The engine, and how it drives a vehicle this size

Every Staria sold in the UAE runs the same drivetrain: a 3.5-litre V6 petrol engine, naturally aspirated, making 272 hp and 331 Nm through an 8-speed automatic. There's no turbo and no diesel option here. The 2.2-litre diesel you'll find on Staria listings in Korea or Australia never came to this market, so don't expect that engine's low-end torque or its fuel economy. What you get instead is a smooth, linear petrol V6 that pulls a fully loaded van without drama, though it isn't quick off the line by SUV standards.

It's also worth knowing this is a unibody people-mover built on a car platform, not a body-on-frame truck. Power goes to the front wheels only, and there's no all-wheel-drive Staria sold in the Gulf. That makes it a smooth-tarmac vehicle. Fine for Sheikh Zayed Road, airport runs and mall parking, not something to point at a sand track or Hatta's rougher trails.

Nine seats, and what fits behind them

This is the reason to book a Staria over almost anything else in Dubai's rental fleet. Nine real seats across three rows, and the middle and back rows sit at a height an adult can actually use, not a low bench you fold yourself into. A group of nine colleagues, a large family with grandparents along, or two families travelling together can sit in one van instead of coordinating two separate cars and two drivers.

Behind that third row you get around 830 litres, which handles a case per passenger with a bit of room left for soft bags and duty-free. Fold one row down, where the configuration allows it, and that opens toward 1,300 litres for a smaller group with more shopping or sports gear. The honest limit is the one every van this size runs into eventually: nine passengers with nine full-size hard cases each will still mean packing some bags on laps or between feet for the ride from the airport. If that's your exact load, ask us about folding a seat before you book.

Running cost, heat and the cabin

A naturally aspirated V6 moving a van this size was never going to sip fuel, and Hyundai's own figures show why: 14.3 L/100km in urban driving against 8.3 on the highway, which averages out to roughly 11 L/100km combined. Dubai traffic sits closer to the urban number than the highway one, especially with the AC running hard and a full load of passengers. The 75-litre tank still gives a decent range between stops, so a week of school runs and airport pickups won't have you hunting for a station daily.

Cooling a cabin this size takes a little longer than a hatchback, simply because there's more air in it, but the V6 has the muscle to run the compressor properly, and roof-mounted vents reach the middle and back rows. Passengers three rows back get real cold air rather than whatever drifts down from the front, which matters more here than in most cars given how many people you're likely to be carrying. Give it a couple of minutes before everyone climbs back in from a hot parking lot and the cabin catches up fast.

Size asks for a bit of care. At just over 5.25 metres long and just under 2 metres tall, the Staria wants a full bay rather than a gap wedged between two SUVs, and the reversing camera earns its keep in a tight multi-storey. Ground clearance of 186 mm shrugs off speed bumps and steeper mall ramps without a second thought. This rental includes 250 km a day, with extra kilometres billed at AED 0.5 each, and you'll need to be 25 to take the keys. Salik tolls and any RTA fines during your rental pass to you, and every seat needs a belt, with a child seat required for under-fours, worth arranging ahead given how many family seats this van tends to fill.

Who should rent it, and who this is for

Rent the Hyundai Staria 2023 if your group is genuinely eight or nine strong, or close enough that splitting into two smaller cars feels like a waste of a driver. It earns its rate on airport runs for a large family, a wedding or event party moving as one unit, or a work group who'd rather ride together than convoy across the city. The styling turns heads, but the real case for booking it is the seats and what they save you in logistics.

Skip it if you're four to six people without much luggage. A three-row SUV parks easier, costs less to fuel, and won't leave you carrying empty seats around Dubai all week. The Staria's value is entirely in the seats it fills, so book it when you know you'll use what it offers, not because the styling caught your eye in a photo.