With an eye-catching new interior and exterior, the all-new Hino 700 Series offers increased comfort and practicality for drivers.
With an eye-catching new interior and exterior, the all-new Hino 700 Series offers increased comfort and practicality for drivers.
“In designing the all-new 700 Series, there has been considerable focus on the needs of the driver, as the cab is their home away from home as well as their office,” said Daniel Petrovski, Manager of Product Strategy for Hino Australia.
Comfort and practicality features of new interior
Like its 500 Series Standard Cab stablemate, the all-new 700 Series continues the Hino trend towards a more functional and contemporary interior, with a balance of carbon, silver and earthy tones.
“The all-new 700 Series sets a new standard for the interior of heavy-duty Japanese-built trucks,” said Mr Petrovski.
“Feedback from drivers has been overwhelmingly positive since we first introduced the new-look interior on the 500 Series Standard Cab in 2019 – they report that it is a more comfortable and relaxing work environment.”
Further increasing the driver comfort is the UN ECE R29 compliant cab, which is remotely mounted on four-point air suspension, resulting in less vibration, road noise and driver fatigue.
Targeted squarely at the driver, the ergonomically-designed wraparound dash layout features all-new instrumentation with large, high contrast speedometer and tachometer, and a central 7” LCD Multi-Information Display, which contains important information such as the Hino SmartSafe settings, driving economy, gear selection and vehicle maintenance data.
“The wraparound dash creates a cockpit-like environment with all controls intuitively placed making them easy to reach and operate,” continued Mr Petrovski.
“Driver comfort is critical to good vehicle design and we have again delivered the next generation in seating comfort with the ISRI 6860 NTS2 driver’s seat."
It further improves driver comfort, courtesy of extra adjustability in rearward seat travel, seat depth and horizontal settings plus air lumbar supports and a myriad of adjustments.
The additional rearward adjustment of the ISRI 6860 NTS2 driver’s seat combined with the tilt and telescopic steering wheel, provides an ideal driving position for drivers of various shapes and sizes, and is suitable for drivers who are up to and over 6 feet tall.
New steering wheel-mounted controls allow for safe and easy operation of key functions such as making and receiving phone calls, using the Adaptive Cruise Control System, and controlling the 7” LCD Multi-Information Display.
The LED headlights now feature an auto setting, which senses low light conditions and switches on the LED headlights automatically.
“This is convenient for drivers and, when combined with LED headlamps, it reduces the likelihood of flat batteries which can occur when drivers leave headlights on after exiting a vehicle,” said Mr Petrovski.
A highly intelligent multimedia unit is standard fitment across the entire Hino range of light, medium and heavy-duty trucks – it features a large 6.5" high definition, capacitive touch screen capable of connecting up to four multi-position cameras and supports AM/FM and DAB+ digital radio, Bluetooth music streaming and mobile phone connectivity.
It also features an Android operating system with Wi-Fi connectivity and over-the-air software updates.
Cab temperature is now controlled by automatic climate control, while the rest bunk is ADR42 sleeper compliant, with interior light controls which can also be operated from the rest area.
Driver comfort and convenience are further improved by a series of small changes such as USB charging sockets, multiple new storage compartments, and LED interior lighting.
Ease of driving with two-pedal transmission
“Hino customers clearly prefer the convenience of two-pedal transmissions, which is why the expanded model range is available with either a true automatic or an automated manual transmission (AMT), matched to their respective engine power ratings,” said Mr Petrovski.
“The six-speed Allison 3200 and 4440 true automatic transmissions of the A09C engine models are highly desirable for their ease of operation.
“The push button gear selector is intuitively located on the left hand side of the driver, where a manual gear selector would traditionally be.”
The E13C 13 litre engines are matched to the latest generation of ZF’s 16-speed Automated Manual Transmission (AMT), the TraXon TX 2441TO.
“The TraXon was chosen for its application suitability and ease of operation for the driver with gear selection set by a dash-mounted dial selector which is a simple rotary knob on the dashboard and gears can also be manually selected via a sequential type shift lever,” continued Mr Petrovski.
“The steering column shifter allows the driver to switch the transmission mode between automatic and manual, and also manually select gears without having to take their hands off the steering wheel.”
New “face” and standard alloy wheels
The distinctive new bold “face” of the all-new 700 Series replicates that of the 2019 500 Series Standard Cab, with a new enlarged chrome grille and Hino marque, while Light Emitting Diode (LED) headlamps with Daytime Running Lamps are set in the bumper.
“The premium look of the all-new 700 Series range is further enhanced with polished Alcoa alloy wheels as standard, which also reduces the tare weight and increases payloads on all models,” said Mr Petrovski.
“Drivers benefit from near 360 degree vision courtesy of a reverse camera, generously sized windscreen and the aerodynamic, larger electronically adjustable heated mirrors and convex mirrors, plus curb and front observation spotter mirrors.”
Other upgrades include easier and safer ingress and egress via the generously-sized door openings, the staircase design steps and the conveniently-placed full length cab grab handles ensuring three points of contact at all times.
The all-new Hino 700 Series is available at Hino dealerships nationwide, with further information also available at https://www.hino.com.au/700/.