Owner Driver – August 2019

92 AUGUST 201 9 ownerdriver.com.au

trucktechnology

SMART TRUCK

SETS HIGH

STANDARD

W

ITH SIX MONTH’S sales of Hino’s

new 500 Series Standard Cab

under its belt, signs are of an

ever-so-slight narrowing of the

gap between Hino Trucks and

perennial market leader Isuzu

in the Australian medium duty

truck range. Of course Hino’s 500

Series Wide Cab, released a couple

of years ago, may also be a factor in this modest but

significant sales boost in that segment. But it’s most

likely at the expense of Isuzu.

Hino has strategically slowly but surely

accelerated the exposure of its new 500 Series

Standard Cab since its November 2018 media

launch in Tokyo. Drive days over a few months

around Canberra followed where the vehicles

were put to the test around the national capital,

Queanbeyan and the rolling hills towards

Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve.

First off was the Sutton Road Training Centre in

the Canberra suburb of Majura where nine Hino 500

Series Standard Cab medium duty trucks were lined

up and ready to hit the road.

Before that, however, came a few demonstrations

of the Standard Cab’s capabilities, although one was

merely to show-off Hino’s manoeuvrability. A course

dotted with witches’ hats was set up, not only to

test out driver skill but to also to illustrate the Hino

500’s capability in tight turning situations.

Top prize for the adrenalin rush came from the

Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) exercise,

although it was a representative from Hino behind

the wheel, with spectators safely ensconced in

either the passenger seat, or in the back seat of

the crew cab.

The AEB is part of Hino’s standard safety

package; its primary aim is to avoid rear-end

collisions at moderate speeds. In the first instance

audible alarms and a visual dashboard warning

alerts the driver of an impending collision. Then,

after all that and no manual action is taken,

the truck will apply the brakes, bringing it to a

complete, and sudden, halt.

And that’s exactly what happened. You know it’s

coming, and the “car” is front is not much more than

a cardboard cut-out. Still, it’s an impressive feature

that doesn’t need to be tested out on a normal traffic

situation. But at least you know it’s there.

Vehicle Stability Control (VSC), along with the Anti-

Lock Braking System (ABS), was another impressive

attribute of the new Hino 500 Series Standard

Cab. The Suttons Centre had a skid pan available,

and we were able to determine the differences

Regarded as the best

medium duty truck

Hino has released

onto the Australian

market, Hino’s 500

Series Standard Cab

‘smart truck’ gets

taken for a test run

around Canberra

and beyond. Greg

Bush writes