
Its name means palace: the word for the presidential residences of Singapore and Indonesia, on a minibus built off a Mercedes van.
Lead trim: Istana 2.9 OM602 diesel five
SsangYong Istana1995–2003
- 0spots by members
- Unclaimednobody has spotted one yet
- 0sets it belongs to
Nobody in Burbles has spotted a SsangYong Istana yet. See one on the street, point the app at it, and the first card is yours — with your @handle permanently credited on this page.
FactIts name means palace: the word for the presidential residences of Singapore and Indonesia, on a minibus built off a Mercedes van.
The SsangYong Istana is a 2, 9, 12 and 15-seater minivan and minibus based on the Mercedes-Benz MB100 "Bus" variant, with most of the MB100's options, produced in South Korea from 1995 to December 2003 (and in China as the SHAC/Maxus Istana from 2004 to 2014; sold as the Mercedes-Benz MB 100/MB 140 in Asia and the Daewoo Istana). It used a 2.9 L OM602 five-cylinder diesel with a 5-speed manual and was succeeded by the Rodius/Stavic; "Istana" is the Malay word for palace or castle, the name of the presidential residences in Singapore and Indonesia.
Collectors Spotted in the SsangYong Istana Lineage
No member has published a public street spot of the SsangYong Istana yet — the First · Worldwide stamp is wide open.
Trims & Figures
One published trim in the catalogue. A blank is a figure not recorded, not zero.
| Trim | Years | Engine | Power | Torque | 0–60 | Drive | Gearbox | MSRP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Istana 2.9 OM602 diesel five | 1995–2003 | 2.9 L Inline-5 | 94 hp | 140 lb-ft | — | — | — | — |
Owning one
We don’t estimate running costs for a car like this. What it costs depends on its condition, its specialist and how it is driven, and an average would mislead.
Owners’ builds
Nobody has claimed one yet.
Photographs


Rivals
Same body, same money, other badges — tap any card to flip.

Chevy pitched the Astro as the anti-minivan, telling buyers life was too big for one, while it rode on a rear-wheel-drive truck frame.

The IIHS rated the Astro Poor in a 1996 crash test, yet 2001–2004 Astros later had the lowest driver death rate of any US passenger vehicle.

The boxy, unglamorous Astro quietly posted one of the best real-world safety records in America: IIHS found 2001-2004 models had the fewest driver deaths per million vehicles of any passenger vehicle on US roads.

The third-generation Tourneo Connect, released in Europe in October 2021, is a rebadged fourth-generation Volkswagen Caddy, assembled by Volkswagen in Poland.

Ford beat the 25% "chicken tax" by importing the Transit Connect as a passenger van — rear windows and seats included, then stripped out and recycled once it landed in the US.

Ford spent years in federal court over the second-gen Transit Connect: in June 2019 the US won its appeal, and judges ruled the van was cargo-only — ending Ford's workaround for the 'chicken tax.'

GM sold a rebadged Nissan NV200 as the Chevy City Express for four years, then killed it in 2018, citing weak sales and the fact that its parts weren't even compatible with GM's own parts catalog.

Its name is a pun: "S-Cargo" means "Small Cargo" but sounds just like escargot — French for snail, the shape the whole van was built to resemble.