Hino Australia will launch its 2011 model trucks with a number of key environmental, safety and operational changes
By Gary Worrall | August 9, 2010
Hino Australia is ready for the introduction of ADR 80/03 exhaust emission regulations with a raft of revisions to its model range across all categories.
The Japanese manufacturer will now comply its products to the Euro 5 standard, moving away from the American-based US04 compliance it held under ADR 80/02 regulations.
Hino’s 300 Series light duty trucks will now feature a diesel particulate active reduction system (DPR) across the range after the system debuted in Australia on the 714 Hybrid.
The DPR has a ceramic honeycomb structure to trap particulate matter or soot and incinerate it as part of the regular driving cycle.
When the cleaning process occurs during normal driving, the operator will notice an increase in the idle speed during the burn as the engine creates additional heat in the exhaust.
There is also a manual regeneration switch for use in situations where the automatic system is unable to generate sufficient heat, such as lightly laden stop-start urban driving.
If the driver does not carry out the regeneration within 150km or eight hours of receiving the signal, the engine control unit will reduce the power output which can only be rectified at a Hino service outlet following a forced regeneration.
While this is a major upgrade to all models, Hino’s product development manager, Alex Stewart, says other changes include standard ABS and EBD for the 300 Series.
A standard driver’s airbag on 300 Series standard cab versions is also included, while the wide cab variants also receive a passenger airbag and a rear stabiliser bar and a standard six-speed manual transmission.
Also new is a six-speed automatic transmission for the 714 Hybrid, while at the other end of the weight scale Hino’s 700 Series prime movers have the 16-speed overdrive version of ZF’s AS-Tronic automated manual transmission.
The move to the German-sourced transmission is expected to reduce running costs via improved fuel efficiency and reduced exhaust emissions.
Hino anticipates it will also require less maintenance.
While this move is a first for Australia, Hino has a long association with the product in Japan with a variety of models using the two-pedal set-up in applications ranging from heavy haulage to sensitive freight.
As part of the AS-Tronic package, Hino operators will also receive the ZF Intarder 2 integrated transmission retarder, with five stage application fitted as standard.
The device allows the use of ‘brake blending’ where a mix of service brake and retarder is used, with the Intarder handling the first stage of braking duties.
This, Hino says, helps increase the life of the service brakes and reduce maintenance costs.
To find out more about the upgrade to Hino models, see the September edition of ATN.
Click here to secure your copy.