Hino Australia remains confident despite a challenging 2026 truck market, courtesy of its new light-duty 300 Series and medium-duty 500 Series, and the growing momentum of its heavy-duty 700 Series.
President and CEO Richard Emery, speaking at a recent Hino Australia business briefing, says the Australian truck market remains under pressure, but the underlying fundamentals of the industry continue to provide a solid basis for future growth.
“It would be fair to say that 2026 has not gone to plan, with a combination of global events, higher fuel prices, consumer confidence and interest rates creating a more challenging environment than we anticipated at the beginning of the year,” he says.
“The market has contracted significantly over the past two years, and while we expect conditions to remain challenging in the short term, we continue to believe there is strong underlying demand for trucks in Australia and that the market will return to an upward trend.
“Whether that occurs in 2027 or 2028 is difficult to predict, but the fundamentals remain positive,” he adds.
In the medium term, Emery believes the Australian freight task will continue to grow, creating a need for operators to eventually replace and expand their truck fleets.
He says the age of the Australian truck fleet did not reduce significantly through the COVID period and subsequent market surge, as operators prioritised adding trucks to meet increased freight demand rather than refreshing existing fleets, he notes.
“The freight task continues to increase, so we will need more trucks,” Emery suggests.
Hino 700 Series Builds Momentum
Against this market backdrop, Hino’s 700 Series heavy-duty range is performing strongly, he says.
“The 700 Series is in a purple patch at the moment – since June, we have averaged around 100 retail sales per month, which is a record,” Emery says.
“It has been something of a sleeping giant since its launch, but with the additional models now available, it is going from strength to strength.”
While the overall heavy-duty market remains mixed, the heavy rigid segment has continued to demonstrate resilience, with Hino seeing strong potential for its expanded 700 Series offering.
“We believe we have the strongest offering in the heavy rigid segment in terms of specification, model line-up and value,” Emery says.
Hino expects the 700 Series to make a significant contribution to its 2026 result, with the company on track to record its strongest-ever annual volume for the model range.
Hino 300 Series Supply Strengthens
The light-duty truck market has also come under pressure, with Hino Australia’s 300 Series volumes affected by both softer demand and a supply gap while it transitioned to Euro 6 compliant vehicles.
With Euro 6 300 Series supply now returning, stock is reaching dealerships, strengthening availability across the model range.
Above: Hino has updated its 300 Series with increased torque, higher towing capacity and a GCM of up to 11,500kg on selected models
“We expect to be back in full swing with the 300 Series when the full line-up becomes available next year, including the new high horsepower and crew cab models.”
Hino has updated its 300 Series diesel trucks with increased torque, higher towing capacity of at least 3.5 tonnes across the range, and a Gross Combined Mass of up to 11,500kg on selected models.
Hino 500 Series Returns To The Market In 2027
The arrival of the Euro 6 compliant 500 Series medium-duty truck in 2027 has been welcomed by Hino Australia and its dealers.
“The 500 Series is our heartland, and we have been a major player in this segment for many years,” Emery says.
“We know there is strong customer demand for the product, and we believe the 500 Series line-up will give us the opportunity to return to the market strongly in 2027.”
More Balanced Product Portfolio Strengthens Hino
Emery says the changing contribution of the 300, 500 and 700 Series ranges is creating a more balanced and resilient Hino business.
Historically, the 300 Series has accounted for more than half of Hino Australia’s business, but the growing importance of the 500 and 700 Series is expected to reduce the company’s reliance on any single model range.
“Our model mix between 300, 500 and 700 Series is now more balanced than ever,” he says.
“We are already seeing customers increasingly view Hino as a preferred partner across multiple segments rather than for a single application or model.”
Building A Whole-Of-Fleet Partnership
The shift towards a broader product portfolio forms part of Hino Australia’s ongoing strategy to develop genuine whole-of-fleet partnerships with customers.
“Over recent years, we have continued to invest and innovate in the support we provide to customers including our Parts Distribution Centre, Capped Price Service program and expanded warranty offering,” Emery says.
“We are building a compelling business partnership proposition around a broad product offering, proven quality and reliability, investment in support infrastructure and a genuine desire for partnership ahead of volume.
“Our dealer network is also a critical part of that proposition, and we have a strong working relationship with our dealers.
“This relationship, combined with our product and aftersales offering has meant we have been able to maintain our position as Australia’s number-two truck brand despite a challenging year.
“We have a strong foundation to build on as our product availability improves and the market recovers,” he concludes.