Hino has won its 11th straight Dakar Rally in the Under 10-litre class, in the 2020 Dakar Rally
Hino has won its 11th straight Dakar Rally in the Under 10-litre class, further extending its remarkable record of class victories in the 2020 Dakar Rally, which was held in Saudi Arabia from 2 to 17 January 2020.
New team director Teruhito Sugawara alongside Hirokazu Somemiya and Yuji Mochizuki piloted Truck 1 (which is based on the Hino 500 Series) to 10th place overall, defeating many larger rivals to the finish line.
Meanwhile Truck 2 driver Ikuo Hanawa, who replaced retired Dakar Rally legend Yoshimasa Sugawara in the team, was an unfortunate non-finisher after early body work damage to the new bonnet-type truck, which is based on the 600 Series sold in North America.
"We came up against tough and punishing situations in taking on this challenge on new terrain in Saudi Arabia," said Teruhito Sugawara.
"Although we had difficulties such as the trouble on Truck 2, I'm happy with the results that we were able to deliver."
For the first time this year, both vehicles were converted from two-seaters to three-seaters to allow an experienced mechanic to ride along with the driver and navigator.
Both of the Hino Dakar Rally vehicles used an enhanced version of the Hino A09C 6 cylinder engine, the production version of which is available in the 500 Series Wide Cab trucks in Australia.
Key specifications of the two 2020 Dakar Rally Hino trucks include full-time four-wheel drive (4WD) and a direct injection turbocharged and intercooled engine, which is matched to a six speed manual transmission in Truck 1 and six speed automatic transmission in Truck 2.
Hino Australia’s Head of Customer and Brand, Dimitri Andreatidis congratulated the team on its success:
“Once again, it was stellar performance from Teruhito Sugawara and the “Little Monster” truck, not only capturing its 11th straight class win but finishing inside the top 10."
