The all-new Hino 500 Series Wide Cab

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Hino Australia  /  February 21, 2017

The astonishing, all-new Hino 500 Series "Wide Cab" redefines what to expect from a hard working truck. Its unrivaled build quality delivers next level chassis, suspension and axles. You also have more engine and transmission options to choose from including the 6 speed Allison automatic transmission.

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Hino unveils all-new 500 Series Wide Cab

Prime Mover Magazine  /  February 22, 2017

Hino Australia has introduced the much-anticipated Hino 500 Series Wide Cab. 

Hino Motor Sales Australia Chairman and CEO, Steve Lotter, said the company had invested significantly in the 500 Series Wide Cab product, designed to enhance safety, vehicle application and performance, and reduce environmental impact. 

“These trucks are a gamer-changer for us and we now offer the broadest range of trucks in these important segments that straddle Australia’s competitive medium & heavy duty markets,” he said. “By increasing the model range and giving our customers more than 50 models to select from, it provides us with an opportunity to engage in different applications which previously hasn’t been possible.”

According to the truck manufacturer, the Hino 500 Series Wide Cab boasts the most comprehensive active safety package of any Japanese truck in the medium duty truck category.

“In an Australian-first for this class, Vehicle Stability Control (VSC) is now fitted as standard across the new Wide Cab range,” said Daniel Petrovski, Manager – Product Strategy at Hino Australia. “Another safety feature is the standard inclusion of a microphone equipped and night vision enabled reverse camera.”

Prime Mover industry expert, Peter Shields, said the Hino 500 Series Wide Cab was unique to the Australian truck market. “It is more than just a new body or cab, the chassis and axle are different and has the latest in safety feature that make the truck very user-friendly,” he commented. “It’s definitely an exciting new range for the medium to the lighter end of the heavy-duty market.”

The Hino safety package also includes ABS, Anti Slip Regulator (ASR), UN ECE R29-rated cab strength, a driver SRS airbag, ADR84/00 Front Underrun Protection System (FUPS), Easy Start, Cruise Control and Fog Lamps.

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Hino's new wide cab 500 series launched

Big Rigs  /  February 22, 2017

Hino Trucks has opened 2017 with the launch of the new wide cab 500 Series.

"It's a game changer," said Hino's national marketing manager Sarah Rosales, as she describes the company review of marketing approach.

"Quality, Durability and Reliability," echoes Product Strategy Manager Daniel Petrovsky, who points out that the new 500 Series trucks have been on the market in Thailand and Indonesia since 2015, albeit with Euro II versions of the eight and nine litre engines rated at 280 and 320 horsepower.

The donks in the Australian models have Euro V emission standards, using SCR (AddBlue) and a series of new transmissions,

The launch, the first major Hino curtain raiser since the 300 Series in 2011, happened at the Eastern Creek car racing complex in Sydney and the ribbon cut on the future of the new trucks formalised the Managing Officer of Hino Motors, Kenji Nagakubo.

Steve Lotter, Chair and CEO of Hino Motor Sales in Australia told Australian journos that the new Hino 500 trucks were being let off the chain at a propitious time with a gentle buoyant improvement in the truck market.

"By increasing the model range and giving our customers more than 50 models to choose from, it provides us with an opportunity to engage in different applications which previously haven't been possible," he said.

The new trucks will be available with synchro manual and Allison automatic transmissions.

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Hino Hits Back

Steve Brooks, Trade Trucks AU  /  February 22, 2017

Hino has taken the wraps of its new 500 series wide-cab models and revealed a truck with loads more muscle and a suite of safety initiatives.

They’ve been a long time coming and executives at Hino Motor Sales Australia make no secret of the company’s competitive need for trucks of this calibre, but finally, the covers have come off a vastly rejuvenated range of Hino 500-series wide cab models.

Despite the somewhat confusing wording which can infer these trucks have a new, wider cab, the cab actually retains the same generous dimensions of the first 500-series wide cab models launched a decade ago.

There is, however, no confusion in the release of a model range with a swathe of new and highly functional features which include enhanced eight and nine litre engines, expanded manual and automatic transmission options, numerous drivetrain developments, and safety advances headed by the standard fitment of a Wabco vehicle stability control (VSC) system in all models.

The standard inclusion of VSC across the new range is "an Australian-first for this class," says Hino product strategy manager, Daniel Petrovski.

Yet with a standard safety list also containing ABS anti-lock, ASR skid control, a driver’s side airbag, reversing camera, an ‘Easy Start’ hill-hold function for manual models, and a cab meeting European crash test standards, Hino boasts it has the most comprehensive active safety package of any Japanese truck in the medium-duty category.

Available in two and three-axle configurations, the new trucks offer gross vehicle mass (GVM) ranging from 16 to 18 and 26 tonnes, and gross combination mass (GCM) ratings from 32 to 45 tonnes.

For Hino Motor Sales Australia chairman and chief executive officer Steve Lotter, the latest 500-series wide cab models are an overdue and hugely welcome addition to a brand which has struggled to maintain medium-duty sales momentum and stay relatively close to market leader Isuzu over recent years.

In fact, the importance of the new models to Hino’s Australian operation and the significance placed on their success by Japan was highlighted by the presence of one of Hino’s most high-ranking executives, Kenji Nagakubo, at the recent launch of the trucks. Nowadays the managing officer of Hino Motors Ltd, Kenji-san was previously the head engineer on the new 500-series project and left no doubt that he will take a major interest in its performance on the Australian market.

"These trucks are a game-changer for us," Steve Lotter commented, "and we now offer the broadest range of trucks in these important market segments that straddle Australia’s competitive medium and heavy-duty markets.

"By increasing the model range, it provides us with an opportunity to engage in different applications which previously hasn’t been possible."

The new trucks are easily distinguished from the previous wide cab models and likewise, from the FC, FD and FE medium-duty specialists sporting Hino’s narrower ‘standard cab’.

The most notable external change is in a bold, dark grille but there are also relatively subtle changes in areas such as cab steps. On the inside, the changes are less apparent with a new radio and redesigned digital dash being the most obvious.

However, it’s underneath where the greatest changes have been made, led by further development of Hino’s 7.7 litre J08E engine and its 8.9 litre stablemate, the A09C.

In the case of the six cylinder J08E, maximum governed engine speed and compression ratio have been raised to deliver peak outputs of 206 kW (280 hp) at 2500 rpm and top torque of 883 Nm (651 lb ft) at 1500 rpm. Depending on the model, transmission choices are an Allison six-speed auto, Hino six-speed manual or an Eaton nine-speed direct-drive manual.

As for the A09C, also a six cylinder layout, Hino says there’s a new turbocharger, revised water pump and cooling fan, and a swap from Bosch to Denso common-rail fuel injection.

This engine offers two performance ratings starting with a 235 kW (320 hp) and 1275 Nm (940 lb ft) setting coupled to an Allison automatic transmission, and a lively 257 kW (350 hp) unit supported by a potent 1422 Nm (1049 lb ft) of torque stirring through a Hino nine-speed overdrive synchromesh transmission.

Critically, says Hino, both engines greatly benefit from the adoption of an SCR emissions system instead of the previous EGR and diesel particulate filter combination to achieve Euro 5 emissions compliance.

Several of the models provided for drives during the launch of the new trucks were equipped with the Hino nine-speed synchromesh manual shifter. Operating on a double-H (H-over-H) shift pattern, the Hino box wisely comes with an electronic control unit which won’t allow shifts into low range if road speed is above 30 km/h, and a beeper which sounds when the range change button is used. As a Hino operative explained, it’s all about protecting the engine from over-speeding in the event of an accidental downshift through the synchro box.

Like their light-duty Dutro counterparts, manual versions of the new 500-series trucks are also equipped with an engine stop/start system to enhance fuel efficiency by switching the engine off when it would be otherwise idling. The stop/start system is only activated when the dash-mounted control switch is ‘on’, the truck stationary, the transmission in neutral and the park brake engaged. Likewise, the engine automatically restarts when the clutch pedal is depressed.

Meantime, GH and FM models are now also equipped with cross diff locks as standard equipment.

Importantly, the new models also have a wider front axle with a tighter wheel cut angle while at the back end, electronically controlled air suspension (ECAS) is available on models with Hendrickson’s HAS airbag rear suspension.

We’ll have a full drive report on the new models in upcoming issues of ATN and Owner//Driver magazines but in the interim, here’s a quick run-down on Hino’s new 500-series wide cab range:

FG 1628 4x2 – 280 hp. Six-speed manual or six-speed Allison auto.

    GVM 16 tonnes. GCM 32 tonnes.

FL 2628 6x2 – 280 hp. Six-speed Allison auto.

                       GVM 26 tonnes. GCM 38 tonnes.          

FM 2628 6x4 – 280 hp. Eaton nine-speed manual or six-speed Allison auto.

                       GVM 26 tonnes. GCM 33 tonnes (auto) 38 tonnes (manual).

FM 2632 6x4 – 320 hp. Six-speed Allison auto.

                       GVM 26 tonnes. GCM 36.5 tonnes.

FM 2635 6x4 – 350 hp. Hino nine-speed manual.

                       GVM 26 tonnes. GCM 45 tonnes.

GH 1828 4x2 – 280 hp. Eaton nine-speed manual or six-speed Allison auto.

                       GVM 16 tonnes (std) 18 tonnes (opt). GCM 38 tonnes.

GH 1832 4x2 – 320 hp. Six-speed Allison auto.

                        GVM 16 tonnes (std) 18 tonnes (opt). GCM 38 tonnes.

GH 1835 4x2 – 350 hp. Hino nine-speed manual.

                        GVM 16 tonnes (std) 18 tonnes (opt). GCM 38 tonnes.

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Road Test: Hino's new FM 2632

Bruce Honeywill, Big Rigs  /  May 22, 2017

We pick up the Hino FM 2632 for a day on the road to evaluate the new 500 series wide cab.

I had driven a selection of these newly released Hinos out of Sydney a month or two ago, this was a chance to get to know one of the variety just a little better.

The configuration is a 6x4, curtain-sided flat top. A configuration with a 26 tonne GVM, and with a load of bulk bags of sand we are grossing around 20 tonnes.

An easy day is planned, just a run from Brisbane out through the hinterland of coastal Queensland, up the range to Toowoomba, take a few pics, grab a bite and back down the range and home.

The FM 2632 nomenclature translates to you and I as a truck with a 26 tonne gross vehicle mass and a 320 hp engine.

The FM badge of the 500 series tells you this is at the heavy end of the line-up, working up in categories from the FG through the GH and FL to the FM.

The engine in the FM 2632 is a nine litre (just under) in-line six cylinder block with power peaking at 320 hp at 1800 rpm. Maximum torque is 1275Nm that peaks at 1100rpm and plateaus through to 1600rpm.

The transmission is fully automatic with a six-speed Allison 3200 series. I chose the climb and descent of the Toowoomba Range as a reasonable challenge to ascertain the viability of a six-speed auto handling decent climbs with a 320hp engine and a 20 tonne truck.

Hell, there are plenty of passenger cars and four wheel drives with six speed transmissions, but a truck? We'll see.

On the road

Three easy steps pull me into the driver's seat, easy and comfortable access for a truck specced for distribution work with likely plenty of getting in-and-out for the driver. Suspension seats for both driver and passenger bring a nice touch, and would be appreciated when an off-sider is used for transport of such commodities as furniture and irregular bulky items when two operators are required.

The layout from the driver's point of view is efficient with all gauges and controls within easy reach.

You ride tall in the FM, with real truck's eye view of the world. Push D-for-drive, touch the throttle and you are away.

Like most Japanese manufactured trucks in this range, the FM is very easy to come to terms with, an expectation in a market where truck driving is perhaps not always the first vocation of the driver.

Many automatic and AMT transmissions use the erectile gear lever metaphor as an operational interface, however the Hinos have a push button R-N-D set up on a console extending back from the dash.

The truck handles the traffic comfortably and easily, visibility through the huge windscreen is beyond any normal expectation.

With Brisbane behind us, the first hill is at Minden and the auto transmission came back one click into fifth and pulled the truck over the crest without any unexpected dropping of road speed. But the big one was yet to come.

The Toowoomba Range is the real test on which I wanted to try this six-speed Allison transmission, and I soon found out that the 1275Nm of torque, stretched across a broad plateau, had lot of staying power.

In the first pull out of Withcott, the Allison comes back only one gear as we head for the first saddle. Then the real climb begins.

With six gears and 20 tonnes, of course the transmission is a little gappy.

But this is a transmission and engine combination that works intelligently and selects gear shifts after hanging on to around 1000rpm. It certainly does not have that old clunk and scream of Allison transmissions of yesteryear.

On up the hill, the transmission works back through five, four, three, back up to four, and on the last pinch to the crest of the range comes back to second gear but is still holding a road speed around 30kmh. And we are in Toowoomba.  

Time to check out the manual override of the transmission. Just double click the main control and the gears are now controlled by up and down arrows. No worries, I am now mentally ready to come down the Range.

A little lunch and a few photographs and once more we drive along the top of the range, around the big right-hander and pull out around the big boys as we come down.

After working out the manual system of the Allison I reckoned stuff it, I'll see what this truck can do using its own brains, and in full automatic we drop into the steep descents.

I was surprised. A slight touch of the foot brake and the engine / transmission combo held road speed at 60kmh, coming back to fourth and third gears of its own volition.

And that's how we did it, down the range swinging around B-doubles and pocket road trains, the Allison and the engine brake working together to make the descent safe and easy.

Hino FM 2632

Engine: AO9C-US six cylinder in-line, turbocharged and intercooled

Capacity: 8.866 litres

Power: 320hp @ 1800rpm

Torque: 1275Nm 1100 to 1750rpm

Transmission: Allison 3200 series 6-speed double overdrive with electronic control

GVM: 26 tonnes

Emission Management: Euro V, Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR / AdBlue)

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Built-in Flexibility

Diesel News AU  /  June 2017

The modern truck has a lot of built-in flexibility, and the Hino 500 range is no exception. The models available range from the lighter end of medium-duty up to some serious heavy-duty rigid trucks. This means the trucks are going to experience very different working lives and need to be capable, no matter what the task.

Hino has looked at what they have on offer in the 500 Series and made a number of changes to increase the breadth and depth of its offering to the market. This means new chassis, new engines and new combinations of existing components.

“Our previous range offered 33 models and we have now expanded that to 51, so when it comes to choice of engine capacity, transmissions, suspensions, and wheel bases, customers have a myriad of options,” says Daniel Petrovski, Hino Manager Product Strategy. “The new FG, GH, FL and FM offer a broader range of applications than ever before.

“The all-new 500 Series has taken a long time to get here. The last release of an all-new model range was in 2011. In commercial vehicle terms, the wait is just about right on time. The basic DNA from design and manufacturing on any Hino truck is ‘QDR’ – quality durability and reliability. The new 500 Series project began in 2009, when Hino carried out back-to-back testing and benchmarking against our competitors on Australian roads over a number of weeks.

“Some of the changes from that testing were put into place on upgrades in 2010 and 2013, like SRS airbags, Isri driver’s seat and electric heated mirrors. But the work on delivering the results of the 2009 testing didn’t stop there.

“Australia is not the first to get these new models, they were released in Thailand and Indonesia in 2015. Australia is the first advanced market to receive this new model. It is a major new model for us – there are new engines, new exhaust emissions, new exterior, new staircase for entry and exit, new manual transmissions, Allisons across the range, new chassis and chassis layouts, diffs, drives steering axles, suspensions and new levels of safety.”

At the heavier end of the range, Hino is now using the chassis design and concept it is currently using on the Hino 700 heavy-duty truck. This is a more flexible design with predrilled holes on the web of the chassis members and with a rivet-less flange.

The holes are 50mm apart along the length of the chassis, enabling both Hino and body builders to place components like fuel tanks and body mounts anywhere along the chassis. The name of the game in this segment of the market is to ensure the truck buyer can build whatever kind of truck they like from a generic base model, without having to resort to major vehicle modifications.

“We call the new chassis, ‘body-builder friendly’,” says Daniel. “It is an 840mm-wide, grid-hole chassis. It features a vaulted frame structure and a clean top flange, eliminating the need for a space between the chassis and a subframe. This is already showing real efficiency for body builders.

“They are high tensile 620MPa steel now, the same as the 700 Series. It is electro plated, which helps with rust resistance. The modular chassis pattern means things like batteries, exhausts and air dryers are now all modular components. We have spent a lot of time talking to Australian body builders about where different components need to go in certain applications.”

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Road test report: Hino's 500 series FM2635 truck

Steve Brooks, Trade Trucks AU  /  July 31, 2017

In a six-wheeler rigid market saturated with good trucks, the flagship FM2635 model in Hino’s revamped 500-series wide-cab range ranks with the best of them.

·        Hino is now better placed in this category than any time in its Australian history with the FM2635

·        The Hino FM2635 range cover two and three-axle configurations with GVM from 16-18 and 26 tonnes, and GCM ratings from 32-45 tonnes

·        The Hino FM2635 is a model more suited to longer regional runs than ‘round-town rambles

·        The manual Hino FM2635 is also equipped with the fuel-saving attribute of an engine stop/start system

·        Hino’s A09C engine has been considerably reworked with among other things, a new turbocharger and a swap from Bosch to Denso common-rail fuel injection

Not often, but every now and then a new truck comes along that takes you by surprise.

Whether the surprise is good or not … well, that’s something else.

Like, if for any reason you expect a new model to be a stunningly good thing only to be left with a yawning sense of ‘so what’ after the first stretch behind the wheel, then the surprise is obviously in the disappointment rather than the delight.

On the other hand, if you’re not expecting anything particularly inspiring but in short time find yourself admiring unforeseen attributes, then perhaps surprise is the greatest indicator of a new model’s true potential.

Definitely falling into the latter category is Hino’s FM2635, one of a batch of new models released a few months back at Hino’s high-hype launch of the long-awaited and vastly rejuvenated 500-series wide-cab range.

From the get-go there was a lot to like about the new line-up and it was blatantly obvious Hino had done its homework well. Very well!

And to be blunt, it needed to.

Hino for many years now has struggled to maintain sales momentum in key market segments, allowing industry leader Isuzu to keep its principal protagonist at a giant arm’s length and in the process, notch a record of market domination unlikely to be ever equalled, let alone bettered.

Meantime, and for reasons rooted in Japan rather than Australia, Hino has been unable to offer the model diversity which sees Isuzu effectively offering something for everyone in the Australian market.

Simply put, Hino needed something new, and something good, if it was to have any hope of reining in the market leader’s momentum, most notably in the medium-duty and lighter end of the heavy-duty classes.

That something arrived in a substantially reworked 500-series wide-cab range equipped with a swathe of new and highly functional features.

Most notable among many notables are significantly enhanced eight and nine litre engines, expanded manual and automatic transmission options, numerous drivetrain developments, and safety advances headed by the standard fitment of a Wabco vehicle stability control (VSC) system in all models.

Obviously relieved to finally have these long overdue newcomers in the stable, Hino Motor Sales Australia chairman and chief executive officer Steve Lotter excitedly remarked, "These trucks are a game-changer for us," and took every opportunity to remind anyone in earshot that Hino could now, "… engage in different applications which previously hasn’t been possible."

To recap the broad details, the trucks cover two and three-axle configurations with gross vehicle mass (GVM) ranging from 16 to 18 and 26 tonnes, and gross combination mass (GCM) ratings from 32 to 45 tonnes.

They’re easily distinguished from the previous wide cab range and from their narrower ‘standard cab’ siblings by a bold, dark grille and less obviously by relatively subtle changes in areas such as cab steps.

On the inside, the changes are less apparent but nonetheless noteworthy with a new radio and information system, and redesigned digital dash being the most obvious.

However, as we reported some months back, it’s underneath where the greatest changes have been made, led by further development of Hino’s 7.7 litre J08E engine and its 8.9 litre stablemate, the A09C.

Critically, says Hino, both engines benefit greatly from the adoption of an SCR emissions system to achieve Euro 5 emissions compliance, replacing the previous EGR and diesel particulate filter combination.

Obviously enough, it’s the bigger of these two six cylinder displacements which punches the two top-weight 6x4 models, the FM2632 auto and the FM2635 manual.

Equipped with a new turbocharger, revised water pump and cooling fan, and a swap from Bosch to Denso common-rail fuel injection, the A09C offers two performance ratings starting with a 235 kW (320 hp) and 1275 Nm (940 lb ft) setting coupled to an Allison automatic transmission.

The top toiler is a lively 257 kW (350 hp) rating supported by a potent 1422 Nm (1049 lb ft) of torque stirring through a Hino nine-speed overdrive synchromesh transmission.

As is the way of new model launches these days, technical presentations were followed by short stints behind the wheel of various models in everything from suburban crawls to fast freeways.

Typically though, these drive programs are little more than a snapshot of each model’s potential and occasionally, some trucks leave you wanting more time at the helm to verify whether it’s really as good as first impressions suggest.

Such a truck was the FM2635.

Good Spec

Again, Hino appears to have done its development work well in tailoring the new range to specific market segments and nowhere is this more evident than in the two tandem-drive FM models.

While both share a GVM of 26 tonnes, the FM2632 is logically targeted at metro applications where the Allison automatic is right at home in stop/start suburban slogs.

Its bigger brother can obviously cope with the same work but with a nine-speed overdrive manual box working behind a more potent version of the same engine, the FM2635 is a model more suited to longer regional runs than ‘round-town rambles.

Of course, the long-term durability of manual synchromesh transmissions is not a particularly positive feature for some fleet operators but in Hino’s favour, theirs is at least a shifter designed to cope with the outrageously heavy rigid loads and harsh conditions of some Asian countries.

It’s worth noting, too, that the ’35 comes with a substantially higher GCM rating of 45 tonnes compared to the 2632’s 36.5 tonnes.

Anyway, Hino’s offer to take the FM2635 for another run was grabbed with both hands for the simple reason that the only stint behind the wheel of this model on the launch drive program was extremely brief and on a part of the route with few challenges for such a well-endowed workhorse.

A longer, tougher run was called for and fortunately, you don’t have to travel too far from Hino headquarters on Sydney’s southern rim to find a good mix of suburban streets, fast freeways, long pulls and sharp descents.

Indeed, the run down to industrial Wollongong comes with a couple of classics – the deep drop down Bulli Pass and the long slog up Mt Ousley.

But first, a few details: Built on the model’s longest ‘XXLong’ wheelbase of 6.4 metres and fitted with a 14-pallet Alltruck curtain-sided body, the test truck had almost 4500 km on the clock and loaded with around nine tonnes of bulk bags of sand, weighed in a tad over 19 tonnes.

Sure, a few more tonnes would’ve been preferred for a more demanding assessment but given the varying loads of most distribution trucks, 19 tonnes was probably close to a realistic weight anyway.

Besides, as the truck’s lively performance would quickly suggest, another two or three tonnes probably wouldn’t have made much difference at all.

The standard driveline spec of the demo model had the nine-speed shifter feeding into a typically solid Hino drive tandem running a 4.875:1 diff ratio, mounted on Hendrickson’s all-purpose HAS 400 airbag assembly with electronic height control as a standard item.

Other wheelbase lengths are 4.1 and 5.2 metres but only the 5.2 and 6.4 metre versions come with a standard 390 litre aluminium fuel tank. The shorter sibling gets a 200 litre steel tank.

As the freeway section of the run down to Wollongong would show, it’s a spec which notches 80 km/h around 1400 rpm and according to the truck’s tacho, 100 km/h at 1750 rpm.

On the contrary, Hino’s spec sheet says 100 km/h is at 1850 rpm. Whatever!

It is, however, a specification that goes way beyond driveline details.

Apart from the standard inclusion of a vehicle stability control system, the FM models also come standard with cruise control, an engine brake rather than the usual exhaust brake, reversing camera, driver’s airbag, heated and electronically operated mirrors, cross diff locks and polished aluminium wheels.

Meanwhile, the manual FM2635 is also equipped with the fuel-saving attribute of an engine stop/start system and best of all in this mind’s opinion, a hill-hold function which Hino calls ‘Easy Start Take-off Assist’.

Making hill starts gentle on both driver and driveline, particularly with a hefty load on board, hill-hold is arguably one of the most practical innovations in modern truck technology; an opinion further verified by a smooth, stress-free lift-off at a notoriously awkward set of traffic lights in Sydney’s southern suburbs.

The generous package of standard items is partnered by an options list which among other things includes a GPS sat/nav system, ‘Hino Traq’ telematics and a smartly styled and relatively unobtrusive bullbar available in two heights – with either one or two horizontal bars – and designed specifically for the new 500-series.

The bullbar is, of course, compliant with the standard FUPS under-run bar.

Yet other than the restyled grille, the cab structure of the new range has changed little.

The FM, for example, retains a reasonably tall floor height but well-placed steps and grab handles make it a simple climb to an Isri suspension seat.

With a plethora of adjustments on the seat and a steering wheel adjustable for rake and reach, finding the right driving position is both quick and easy.

Behind the seats is a space capable of nursing 40 winks but it’d certainly  be a stretch to refer to it as anything more than a parcel shelf.

The redesigned dash comes with the standard speedo and tacho surrounded by LCD gauges for air pressure, fuel and AdBlue, engine temperature and odometer.

There’s also a digital multi-information display showing current and trip fuel figures along with service reminders and fault warnings.

Main switches and control wands are generally well placed but typically, familiarisation with the placement of all functions takes a little time.

Road Work

In practice though, it takes next to no time to be completely at ease with Hino’s top-shelf six-wheeler.

For starters, all-round vision is predictably good but it’s in actual operation where the truck really stands out.

The cable-operated gearlever, for instance, is ideally placed and provides reasonably light, smooth movements through the double-H (H-over-H) shift pattern, though the ‘beep’ accompanying every range-change can be a tad annoying.

According to Hino, the beep is all about protecting the engine from over-speeding if there’s an accidental shift into low range, just as an electronic control unit won’t allow shifts into low range if road speed is above 30 km/h.

There’s no question though that the nine-speed shifter is a highlight of the FM2635 because not only is it a sweet shift, the ratio spread from a deep first gear of more than 10:1 to a tall overdrive ratio of 0.724:1 (and importantly, a deep reverse ratio of almost 9.9:1) provides the model with a gear spread for a multitude of conditions.

But as the first 10 kilometres or so of the test run in suburban traffic demonstrated, the combination of an engine with generous torque and a transmission with even steps through the ratio range allows for plenty of smooth, shudder-free skip-shifts.

It was not, for instance, uncommon to lift off in 2^nd gear, jump to 4^th, then straight into high range.

Or, with the truck pointing down even a slight grade, take off in 3^rd, push engine speed out to around 1800 or 1900 revs, then swap straight into high range. Easy!

The end result is a truck that gets up to speed quickly and with very little apparent effort.

At the other end of the spectrum is an impressively effective and quiet engine brake that made the long, sharp drop down Bulli Pass an absolute dawdle, easily holding to the signposted truck limit of 20 km/h in 3^rd gear.

In fact, the only time the service brakes were applied, albeit briefly, was after a swap up to 4^th gear just to see how the engine brake would cope with the taller cog.

For the most part it held the truck well but on the steepest sections, 3^rd was ideal.

Either way, the engine brake is a far more effective retarder than the exhaust brake normally found in Japanese trucks of this size.

Meandering through Wollongong’s northern suburbs, the digital readout was showing a fuel figure of 2.8 km/litre (7.9 mpg) for the run south.

Ahead lay the long climb up Mt Ousley and after a short-lived drop down to 6^th gear at 1400 rpm on the sharpest lip, the Hino literally hammered the second half of the haul in 7^th gear.

By any measure it was a strong, determined performance soon repeated on the long slogs leading to the freeway for the northbound run back to Hino headquarters.

Fuel consumption on the return leg from the base of Mt Ousley to Hino headquarters was fractionally better at 2.9 km/litre, or 8.2 mpg in the old measure.

At the end of the day, the only conclusion was that this re-run in Hino’s FM2635 simply verified first impressions of an exceptional contender for six-wheeler rigid work, especially in regional roles.

No question, it’s a tough and congested market but with surprisingly tenacious pulling power, smooth ride quality, good steering and road manners, and a generous standard specification, Hino is now better placed in this category than any time in its Australian history.

It’ll be more than a tad interesting to watch over the remainder of this year and beyond if the broader market finds not only this model but the full range of Hino 500-series wide-cab trucks as impressive and perhaps surprising as some of us already have.

Maybe, just maybe, Hino could even surprise itself.

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