Hino’s “Little Truck that Could” has done it again on the World’s toughest annual motorsport event, the Dakar Rally, through the wilds of the vast Saudi Arabian deserts.
The Japanese-0based Team Sugawara Hino recorded its 35th consecutive finish in the gruelling Dakar finishing 15th in the truck category.
Bby completing this event, team director and driver Teruhito Sugawara extended his record of consecutive finishes to 21, surpassing the previous record of 20 held by his father, Yoshimasa Sugawara, who retired from competition in 2019.
Teruhito Sugawara was accompanied in the Hino 600 Series by navigator Hirokazu Somemiya and navigator/mechanic Yuji Mochizuki, with additional support from a team of Hino mechanics.
The truck ran smoothly in the first half of the rally raid without any major issues, maintaining eighth in the truck category.
A variety of challenges struck in the second half including a crash in the dune stage, issues with the intercom system, which impacted the internal communication in the cab, damage to the transfer case, and a burst tyre 15 kilometres from the end on the final day, were all part of the hurdles the event through at the team.
“Once again, the team’s ability to overcome issues to record yet another consecutive finish is a testament to the quality, durability and reliability that Hino is renowned for,” said Hino Australia, president and CEO Richard Emery.
“As a sponsor of Hino Team Sugawara for the last 13 years, we would like to congratulate the team on their result with a particular commendation to Teruhito Sugawara’s record of consecutive finishes,” he said.
Held over 15 days, the 2026 Dakar consisted of 13 stages covering a total of almost 8,000 kilometres with 5,000 of those kilometres being special or competitive stages against the clock.
This year the traditional Marathon and 48-Chrono stages were replaced by two Marathon-Refuge stages, which provided an extreme challenge as any assistance could only be provided by fellow competitors.
The Hino Dakar Rally 600 Series is a Hino that is only sold in North America and the Sugawara competion version isequipped with full-time four-wheel drive and powered by a nine-litre, direct-injection Hino A09C turbocharged and intercooled engine .
The Hino competition nine-litre produces an impressive 588kW at 2,800rpm and peak torque of 2,430Nm at 1,600rpm,.
