Small business and everyday life needn’t be mutually exclusive. At least that’s what the 2017 Mercedes-Benz Vito 119 Crew Cab suggests for people who wish to bridge the gap between a work vehicle and one for home.

Trends these days suggest buyers look toward the dual-cab ute market for that lifestyle-oriented work vehicle. But what if you actually needed to use a car’s load space rather than just looking like you do?

From the outside, Vito 119 Crew Cab looks like any other VIP-spec van fresh from the Tullamarine Airport run. But open up the dual-sliding doors and you’re greeted by a layout designed with logistics in mind – with five seats and, more importantly, a 3600-litre load capacity. Certainly not something you’d expect on airport transfer duty.

It’s more intended as a halfway house between work use and family life, whereby you can drop the clan off at school and then head straight out to deliver goods to clients, or haul your apprentices to the worksite with you. For that reason, it’s quite basic on the inside.

The seats are fabric; the floor is durable chipboard and there’s next to no insulation in sight – sound or otherwise. There’s an older version of Mercedes-Benz’s COMAND media system that takes centre stage on the dash, the one with a toggle to switch between menu screens – it’s not a touchscreen.

Priced from $58,670 (all prices before on-road costs and options), the Vito 119 is considerably more expensive when compared to its competitors, like the five-seat Toyota HiAce Crew Van ($42,120) or the $43,790 Hyundai iLoad Crew Van (which seats six). If that wasn’t enough money already, there’s also smattering of options on offer for the Vito – our tester is fitted with $8780 worth of extras.