This Will Be Hyundai

• Hyundai is presenting a new EV model at the Brussels Motor Show in January. 
• “The new model will showcase state-of-the-art electric technology, including an advanced 800-volt charging system,” Hyundai officials said.
• It’s an open secret what it will be: the electric Staria van. 

The Hyundai Motor Group’s electric lineup in the United States is impressive enough, spanning the award-winning Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 9 and (hopefully next year) the compact Kia EV3. But in Europe and South Korea, the EV family is even more robust, including quirky compacts like the Hyundai Inster hatchback. 

Now, the family is due to grow even bigger—literally. Hyundai announced that it will debut its “biggest EV yet” for Europe the Brussels Motor Show in January. 

“Continuing its commitment to electrification, Hyundai will launch new EVs in 2026, starting at the Brussels Motor Show with the world premiere of its biggest EV yet,” the automaker said in a statement. “The new model will showcase state-of-the-art electric technology, including an advanced 800-volt charging system.” And no, it’s not the Ioniq 9; that’s already for sale over there.

So what could it be? While Europeans generally lack our preferences for massively huge vehicles, they do love vans, and that’s what is expected to finally debut: the Hyundai Staria EV. 

For those who don’t know, the Staria is an extremely slick-looking van sold in various passenger and cargo configurations all over the world. It’s been around since 2021, and its sleek styling, LED front light bar and classy Hyundai design touches make it quite striking to see on the roads. And since it can be had with  gas, hybrid, LPG or diesel engines, it is highly versatile.

Now, it seems we can add battery power to that mix. (Technically, that already exists with the Hyundai ST1
truck variant, but what’s next is expected to be more robust.) 

Some reports indicate that the Staria EV will use Hyundai’s fourth-generation 84-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion NCM battery pack, the same as you get in the latest Ioniq 5, Kia EV6 and other cars. Others now say it could go bigger with a 99 kWh pack. Range estimates are unknown, although the smaller pack would deliver about 325 kilometers of range (about 200 miles) on the WLTP cycle. The bigger battery would do even more for longer-distance family trips or deliveries, obviously.

But the real edge here would be Hyundai’s 800-volt electrical architecture. That should enable extremely quick DC fast-charging; most of the EVs on that platform will go from 10% to 80% in 20 minutes or less on a powerful enough charger. 

Will we see the Hyundai Staria EV in the U.S.? That, unfortunately, seems unlikely to me. We do know that Hyundai and General Motors are teaming up on an electric van for our market, with the Korean automaker leading the way. But given the weird nature of EV rollouts in our current era, it’s hard to know if that will materialize until it actually does. For now, Europe’s van fans should be getting another compelling electric option soon.

Contact the author: patrick.george@insideevs.com