2011 Time Bomb?

[natsys]

I'm sorry to see the thread on Hino Trucks come to an end, but its nice to know there's a great resource here to turn to.

I asked Greasy T a couple times about a couple of trucks we were looking at, first a couple of 185's (sorry--never saw your follow up asking if we got the truck. No we didn't--it went for stupid money at auction) and finally a 258lp. Well, we did get the 258 and what a fantastic truck it is! Brought it home in October of last year with 1,268 miles on the odometer. That's not a typo. It still smells new. It is red with a Knapheide service body and tons of strobes. (NO, it was NOT ever going to be an ambulance) We did have the DEF system drained, flushed, and refilled as recommended as well as both fuel filters replaced. It never fails to get lots of attention.

This made the whole Hino thread mandatory reading. While I'm probably still a ways off from any of the major problems that may pop up, one has caught my attention. In one post Greasy mentioned that a 2011 truck "lost a wrist pin bushing. A narrow serial number range had improperly sized bushings from the factory". Since this is a 2011 truck I'm curious, has Hino ever revealed what range those serial numbers are? It would be nice to know if my new pride and joy was just waiting to grenade and leave me holding a huge repair bill. And if it could be proven that it did have out of spec parts from the factory maybe it should be something I pursue now, rather than wait for a failure.

I still haven't been through the whole new forum on Hino trucks, but I plan to go through it next. Much thanks to all for the hard work and advice provided.

 

[greasytshirt]

I'm sorry to see the thread on Hino Trucks come to an end, but its nice to know there's a great resource here to turn to.

I asked Greasy T a couple times about a couple of trucks we were looking at, first a couple of 185's (sorry--never saw your follow up asking if we got the truck. No we didn't--it went for stupid money at auction) and finally a 258lp. Well, we did get the 258 and what a fantastic truck it is! Brought it home in October of last year with 1,268 miles on the odometer. That's not a typo. It still smells new. It is red with a Knapheide service body and tons of strobes. (NO, it was NOT ever going to be an ambulance) We did have the DEF system drained, flushed, and refilled as recommended as well as both fuel filters replaced. It never fails to get lots of attention.

This made the whole Hino thread mandatory reading. While I'm probably still a ways off from any of the major problems that may pop up, one has caught my attention. In one post Greasy mentioned that a 2011 truck "lost a wrist pin bushing. A narrow serial number range had improperly sized bushings from the factory". Since this is a 2011 truck I'm curious, has Hino ever revealed what range those serial numbers are? It would be nice to know if my new pride and joy was just waiting to grenade and leave me holding a huge repair bill. And if it could be proven that it did have out of spec parts from the factory maybe it should be something I pursue now, rather than wait for a failure.

I still haven't been through the whole new forum on Hino trucks, but I plan to go through it next. Much thanks to all for the hard work and advice provided.

No, I don't know what the serial number range is. Look at the sticker on the door. Was the build date in late 2010? Like July through October of 2010? These are the ones to watch out for. (give or take, like I said, it hasn't been advertised) The truck will run with no problems for 100,000-150,000 miles and then one day you'll hear a knocking. Take the oil pan off and look up to the top of each rod. If you can see the upper rod bushings sticking out, you need a partial inframe.

So, my totally OCD recommendation is to drive the truck, set some money aside, and when you start nearing 100k miles, shorten your oil change interval to about 5k and do oil analysis at every oil change with a focus on yellow metals. The minute you see it, take the head off of the truck, pop the pistons out, toss all of the rods, wristpins, wrist pin clips and rod bearings in the trash, install new rods onto the old pistons, and put it all back together. Problem solved.

If you make it past 150k without an increase in yellow metal wear, then you're probably fine.
You can also do what everyone else does and just drive the truck until it starts knocking and then address it. But you do not have much of a cushion when it comes to time. Don't keep driving, it gets worse very quickly.

For an idea on how many 2011s do this, I saw one in a year, then maybe three, then one last year. Not super common, but it's ok to be a bit wary.

 

[natsys]

Thanks, GreasyT. I checked the manufacture date and it's 02/2011. Perhaps this truck is ok, but I'll still follow the more frequent oil change/analysis recommendation. Sounds like the knocking would be pretty obvious. Given that I only drive about 10,000 miles per year that should take a while. Doesn't sound like the kind of problem one could drive from Boston to VA with--too bad. Guess I'll get to know my local Hino Dealer in the meantime. Any idea how many hours this ought to take?

On an unrelated issue, but common to the truck, I find the spring suspension a little rough. Everything behind the rear axle gets tossed pretty good. I see Hendrickson makes an air suspension as a direct fit. I've heard some people who love air over springs and others who say not much difference. Have an opinion?

Gotta say, This is an incredible resource for Hino owners. I can't thank you enough for sharing your vast knowledge with us.

Here's the truck:

 

[greasytshirt]

With those dates, I think you're in the clear.
I'm guessing between 12 and 16 hours. I don't keep track of how long it takes for me to do most stuff (because I'm slow!)

The air ride suspension is much, much smoother. If the two air bags are segregated and given their own leveling valves, the box sways a lot less, too.

That's a pretty truck.

 

[natsys]

Thanks. The original owner did a great job designing the Knapheide body and overlooking no detail to make it perfect.

I can't believe you're that slow-but its good to have an idea of the scope of this project even though I may never need it.

There are 2 things I want to do to this truck, so air ride will probably be first. I remember the thread on separate leveling for air so I'll go back and review it. I'm tempted to do it myself-a lot more so than changing the connecting rods. My only concern would be making sure the driveshaft angle is right. I seem to recall reading that it has to be within a narrow range or bad things can happen. The other is I'd like to raise the box roof about 6" in the center, and make it translucent. For now though, it's more than enough truck for me.

I've learned a ton on fuel filters, batteries, air dryers, leaky radiator hoses, and a lot more from your posts. The day I brought it home it started leaking coolant, but I just got a 7mm socket and 1/4" ratchet and tightened up a radiator clamp knowing that it could take the additional torque-problem solved. I bought the Nickel spray lube for the VNT linkage, and I know where and how to check for good grounds. There's a lot more, but I think I speak for many when I express how much we need this. Shoot me a PM sometime so you can have one on me.

 

[natsys]

Looks like I won't have to worry about this problem after all.

30 Hours to repair--wow!

 

[greasytshirt]

Looks like I won't have to worry about this problem after all.

30 Hours to repair--wow!

Oh snap. That's going to keep us busy.

You may have hit the jackpot.

Edit: My time estimation was 100% wrong, like always.

Sent from my XT1585 using EO Forums mobile app

 

[Hino123]

Sweet.