Hino Australia has announced it has made the decision to pause Bus sales due to a lack of suitable products being available to it at the moment, and for the foreseeable future.
Hino’s vice president of brand and franchise development said that it was a difficult decision as Hino has been selling buses in Australia since 1965.
“However, we will continue to monitor the Australian bus market against future product opportunities from our parent company, Hino Motors, Ltd in Japan,” said Emery.
“It is important to note that we will continue to provide our customers with parts, service, and technical support via our extensive dealership network and through our Product Support division,” he added.
“Our dedicated network of 60 dealerships and service centres across the country nationally will provide ongoing aftersales support to Hino bus customers,” he said.
The announcement of the pause in bus sales follows Hino’s decision in March 2023 to withdraw its Poncho buses from sale in Australia after they were voluntarily suspended from importation and sale in August 2022 due to concerns around Hino Motors processes in relation to vehicle homologation and certification results in Japan.
“While we continue to believe that the Poncho Bus meets the relevant regulatory requirements for the vehicle, the decision was made considering the regulatory processes that apply to the recommencement of sales for a small volume of vehicles,” Emery added.
Hino’s pause also follows a similar stance from Daimler earlier this year when it withdrew from new bus sales in Australia due in part to restrictive commercial vehicle width and weight rules in this country.
