The Hino 338

[Badmunky]

First let me say hello to every one as I am new here.

I have been driving for almost 8 years and have been driving straight trucks for the last 1.5 of that. Be for that I was driving semis.

Now on to my post.

I have been driving Hino 338s sins I started driving straight trucks.
The truck I have now has a 6 speed and pulls 1900 Rpm at 60mph. Its an 08 2 axle with a dry weight of about 19k.
It has a 96" AA sleeper and a 22' box.
It currently has about 92k miles on it.
It is speed limited to 65mph and we normally only go 60mph.

The question I have is dose every one have the same problems I keep having?

List of things that keep braking or are not right:
1 Turbos keep failing. (On 3rd one)
2 Truck will not hold alignment to save its life!
3 Steer axle keeps blowing shocks. (On 2nd set and there blown)
4 Truck can not pull hill to save its life!
5 For not having any pull power it still only gets 8.5mpg MAX!
6 Burns oil. (About 1/2 gallon every oil change)
7 A/C water drain in dash plugs and water runs out from under dash when A/C has been running for a long time. (Done this 5 times now)
8 Do to alignment problems truck kills steer tires every 90-100k.
9 Shifter feels lose and cheap. Can make it hard to change gears.
10 Truck has to be forced in to 1st gear after a stop some times. (Clutch to the floor)
11 Brakes suck! They do not seam to have the stopping power needed.
12 Dash has lots of rattles in it.
13 Wind shield "Creaks" in seal when you go over uneven pavement.
14 Wind shield leaks at bottom. Water pushes under it at speed.
15 Power steering is inconsistent in its level of assist. (Some times almost none, others my cat can turn the wheel!)

Is it just me or are these truck crap?

Thanks

 

[moose]

First let me say hello to every one as I am new here.

I have been driving for almost 8 years and have been driving straight trucks for the last 1.5 of that. Be for that I was driving semis.

Now on to my post.

I have been driving Hino 338s sins I started driving straight trucks.
The truck I have now has a 6 speed and pulls 1900 Rpm at 60mph. Its an 08 2 axle with a dry weight of about 19k.
It has a 96" AA sleeper and a 22' box.
It currently has about 92k miles on it.
It is speed limited to 65mph and we normally only go 60mph.

The question I have is dose every one have the same problems I keep having?

List of things that keep braking or are not right:
1 Turbos keep failing. (On 3rd one)
2 Truck will not hold alignment to save its life!
3 Steer axle keeps blowing shocks. (On 2nd set and there blown)
4 Truck can not pull hill to save its life!
5 For not having any pull power it still only gets 8.5mpg MAX!
6 Burns oil. (About 1/2 gallon every oil change)
7 A/C water drain in dash plugs and water runs out from under dash when A/C has been running for a long time. (Done this 5 times now)
8 Do to alignment problems truck kills steer tires every 90-100k.
9 Shifter feels lose and cheap. Can make it hard to change gears.
10 Truck has to be forced in to 1st gear after a stop some times. (Clutch to the floor)
11 Brakes suck! They do not seam to have the stopping power needed.
12 Dash has lots of rattles in it.
13 Wind shield "Creaks" in seal when you go over uneven pavement.
14 Wind shield leaks at bottom. Water pushes under it at speed.
15 Power steering is inconsistent in its level of assist. (Some times almost none, others my cat can turn the wheel!)

Is it just me or are these truck crap?

Thanks

Good morning Badmunky, and welcome aboard .
I have being a trucker for 7 years now , my truck is a Hino 338 ,96 AA with a shower , 22' box , 3.88 rears .(1900 at 60).
I will try to answer some of your points and hope others will pitch in as well .
1 - turbo fialier is normally do to 2 rezones : lubrication !!! , or uneven prashor ,(do you have jack-brakes ?, if so an jake brakes alignments is needed ,look on it ).
2 - truck alignment is an expected problem ,as the front ends are mounted here in the us , then the frame is modified at an aftermarket locations , chances are both do not use the best technology to keep it strait , you might need to use the Box warranty to fix this problem.
3 - steer shocks sposed to hold about 110K , and normally break do to a side moment ,or over load , you can use a more heavy duty shocks , or to add the Hendrickson after market air ride suspension.
4 - up an hill is not loosing money. more info. is needed ,how slow at what speed . my Hiny will do just about 40 up to gross.
and im very happy with this speed.it is just like any other 18 wheeler.not over powered. no need to feed more horses.
5 - my truck have an Allison Auto. trans, we are doing just about 58 MPH and getting just about 9.4 MPG.
you spoosed to get about 10 MPG or more,
at 110k/Y , and 4.2 $/G you are loosing 8,100 $/Y,
6 - my truck don't burn any oil, you might want to look at an filtration solution ,so you can run synthetic oil.
7 - should be an easy fix at any AC shop , just follow the lines and find where its licking from.
8 - i had the same with my new Columbia , nothing i Did could fix it ,its an alignment issue. Good luck !,might be fixing it self with an upgrade suspensions.
9 - this is also an EZ fix , probably just a loose clamp along the way , better fix it before it will brake you down on the side of the road. if it is internal , you most insist on a new transmition, not a rebuild one , it can costs you a lot of money down the road , normally just as you ron out of warranty.
10 - an EZ clutch adjustment . not fixing it night lead to clutch/transmission problem down the road.
11 - this is a safety issue . stop the truck now and get it fix , it will be match more expensive if a level 3 inspection fined it.
12 , 13 ,14 ,15- strange , ammmm . the whole cab is build in Japan(or somwhere) , and then ship to the us for assemble .
this is a warranty issue as well , good luck ,
15 - a safety problem , see # 11 !
might be a swallow hydraulic line, a bad seal , or a wear out steer liquid.
I dont know how you can sleep well at the back ,as your Co driver is driving an unsafe truck.
nor how you can risk his life , as you drive it.
Good luck .



Moose.

 

[Badmunky]

Ok I'm going to try to give you more info.


List of things that keep braking or are not right:

1 Turbos keep failing. (On 3rd one) First turbo was a bearing fail, 2nd was the vane system jammed. Yes it has an exhaust brake. And it was checked when last turbo was done.
2 Truck will not hold alignment to save its life! The frame was lengthened at the dealer. And I'm sure it is not straight! but there's nothing I can do about it.
3 Steer axle keeps blowing shocks. (On 2nd set and there blown) The oil seal blows out and the shock loses pressure.
4 Truck can not pull hill to save its life! I get down to 30mph with less then 4k in the box! Have not tried with a full load on this truck yet as I just got this one 12k back. Last one did a bit better but not much.
5 For not having any pull power it still only gets 8.5mpg MAX! I run about 58-60mph most of the time. I run 55 any where that the speed limit is 55 and almost never run over 60. I have a gen and never idle the truck.
6 Burns oil. (About 1/2 gallon every oil change) I am running synthetic. I'm using the synthetic oil that the dealer told us to run from hino. My last truck did the same for over 70k that I drove the truck.
7 A/C water drain in dash plugs and water runs out from under dash when A/C has been running for a long time. (Done this 5 times now) Every time dealer uses air gun to clear drain line and sends me on my way.
8 Do to alignment problems truck kills steer tires every 90-100k.
9 Shifter feels lose and cheap. Can make it hard to change gears. Dealer has looked at it 2 times now. sees theres nothing wrong with it.
10 Truck has to be forced in to 1st gear after a stop some times. (Clutch to the floor) Clutch was adjusted by dealer and then by shop by my house. Still dose it.
11 Brakes suck! They do not seam to have the stopping power needed. They just passed a level 3 in CA last week. There is nothing wrong with them other then a week feel and lack of stopping power under hard braking. Such as a panic stop. No mater how hard I push on the peddle I can not bring the ABS on or lock the tires up. Last Hino seamed to stop much faster under same conditions.
12 Dash has lots of rattles in it. Yeah its a cheap truck!
13 Wind shield "Creaks" in seal when you go over uneven pavement. Again cheap truck.
14 Wind shield leaks at bottom. Water pushes under it at speed. Dealer resealed it but it still dose it, CHEAP TRUCK!
15 Power steering is inconsistent in its level of assist. (Some times almost none, others my cat can turn the wheel!) Can not replicate on demand. So according to dealer there is no problem!
Also co driver is my wife and she complains when ever this happens as she dos not have the power to turn the wheel in parking lots.

Don't you just love dealers!

Now I don't own this truck. I wouldn't. so I have limited control over what gets done to it at the dealer.

I cant tell you this, the fleet owner I work for has 6 of these and every single one has the same problems.

Was just wondering if any one els was having these problems and what they had done to fix them if they where.

I am vary unimpressed with this truck. Dealer has been vary nice about every thing, so has the sales man. But they have failed to fix most every thing I have listed to a level that I expect and would except.

Moose what year is your truck?

Thanks!

 

[arkjarhead]

When talking about the Hinos it all boils down to one thing. People are using a city truck in an OTR application. You can slap a sleeper on any city truck, but it is still a city truck. Plus what people pay for those Hinos with the big, fancy, decked out sleepers gets me. You could get a Class 8 straight truck brand new for a little more at first but save a lot on repairs, downtime, and headaches. That's my observation from what I've read about them here. I have no first hand experience with them, thank God.

 

[moose]

my truck is an 2007 ,its have about 29K
we have absolutely no problems with it !
it run great and quit . keep strait in line , gets over 9 mpg (for an auto 5 speed tranny ! ),and we got the tripack APU.

if i would have the same problems as you do .
i would park the truck at the Dealer that sold it to me , and flip him the finger !@!.
there is no way i will drive an unsafe truck !!!



Moose.

 

[ThibodeauxBayou]

Badmunky, do you own this vehicle ?

Ark has nailed the problem right on the head. Class 7 vehicles in a Class 8 working environment just don't work. They may be just fine if you're delivering "little debbies" in Dallas. But, arn't much of a workin mans truck if you're interested in crossing the Rockies with anything much over 10-12 thousand pounds. I got bit real bad at auction, when we purchased a couple of M2's years ago. I got such a bad back ache on my first run, I required a visit to a Chiropractor only days into a cross country trip. The dang class sevens have no suspension for the cab or sleeper. We bit the bullet and sold both for a mild loss. Since we now own class 8 FL'ers, we now travel pretty much in comfort and can legally haul 22-23,500 spread out properly. There is NOT that huge a price difference between 7-8's. Yeah, wev'e had our share of minor problems with the FL'ers but nothing like some of the nightmare stories i've heard about class 7's

 

[arkjarhead]

Thibodeaux I don't know about your Class 8 Freightliners but the ones I drove in a straight truck configuration got the same and some times a little better fuel milage than what they are reporting out of those Hinos. Plus it is good for about a million miles maybe longer depending on how well it has been taken care of.

 

[ThibodeauxBayou]

some times a little better fuel milage

That Benz MBE 250'ish HP, 6 speed = 7.5 to 8.5 loaded 9-10 empty

The C15 Caterpillar 435 HP, 9 Spd = 8.5 to 9.5 loaded 10.5 to 11.5 empty

 

[piper1]

Ark and Thib are both right, you can't use a truck meant for city delivery in expedite and expect it to work well for any length of time. Even the lil ole M2 has been engineered to take it (there is a severe service 112 model that uses that cab).

The list of problems presented above also point to a truck that is being driven perhaps a bit aggressively. In those environments, big truck parts and engineering will always win.

If you own a Hino and it works, good deal! You are likely a good driver and don't abuse things. I still wouldn't keep it past 300 k.

 

[ThibodeauxBayou]

A bad sign for Hino owners ?

I was just looking around in the "trucks for sale" area, and noticed
a not so good indicator. There's a used truck dealer called Ellenbaum out of Michigan. For the most part, I always thought these folks dealt in pretty junked out trucks [with a few exceptions]
If you look at their listings of available trucks, you'll see that Hino's
dominate the top of the list. Very disproportional when compared to all other manufacturers. I believe that "list" is a strong indicator of how bad Hino's position is in the trucking industry.

 

[moose]

Good stuff ,
Just because i drive one , dose not say i need to defend it .
to date its look like the best investment i can make in to the business.
to date the Hiny is working just fine.
no way i will buy a used one.
its need to be treated with WG from day one.
and yes it can used the hendrickson front end suspension.
the sleeper is air ride.

as to the class 7 or 8 trucks.
i have yet to see how its pay off for a solo driver.
nor to a team not lease to Elite/WG.
the extra available loads will never pay for the extra 60K+ in investment. in a new truck.
now as to used trucks ... that's a different story.
you pay less = you drive less , life is great.
only one of the benefits of Expediting.



Moose

 

[moose]

A bad sign for Hino owners ?

I was just looking around in the "trucks for sale" area, and noticed
a not so good indicator. There's a used truck dealer called Ellenbaum out of Michigan. For the most part, I always thought these folks dealt in pretty junked out trucks [with a few exceptions]
If you look at their listings of available trucks, you'll see that Hino's
dominate the top of the list. Very disproportional when compared to all other manufacturers. I believe that "list" is a strong indicator of how bad Hino's position is in the trucking industry.

no hard feeling Thi....
Yet am sorry to blow your bubble .
i have being at Elenbaum as i was shopping for a truck.
they are good to do business with .
they have cut a good deal with an auction yard .and are getting those Hino regularly .
most's of the inventory are from auctions.



Moose.

 

[piper1]

The fact that there are a dis-proportionate amount of Hino's tells me a lot of people are buying them and then turning them in fairly quick. They haven't been around long enough for there to be a lot of high mile used stuff at the auction. Auction trucks can also be problem children, dealers dump them there because they don't want to have to stand behind it if they sell it themselves.

Hard to counter Moose's argument, pay less = being able to run less, just hope it keeps running when you need to run.

 

[davekc]

While both go from A to B
It is hard to get the Yugo to do the job of a Cadillac.

 

[x06col]

The only class 7 that worked for me well wuz a pete 330. But, ya gotta understand I "worked" em. As a rule multiple loads that generally approached 50K gross. if you are gonna do it out there then, jes DO IT! Again i'll type, if'n ya wanna see the country, get a camping machine.

 

[davekc]

I will agree. If one is to use a class 7, the KW300 or a Pete 330 are the only ones that can hold up. They are the only ones you will see that are a class 7 being used on construction sites.
Why? Because they don't fall apart and are pretty much manufactured with class eight components.

 

[arkjarhead]

col,
you mean the total vehicle load and all grossed out at 50k right?

 

[Badmunky]

When talking about the Hinos it all boils down to one thing. People are using a city truck in an OTR application. You can slap a sleeper on any city truck, but it is still a city truck. Plus what people pay for those Hinos with the big, fancy, decked out sleepers gets me. You could get a Class 8 straight truck brand new for a little more at first but save a lot on repairs, downtime, and headaches. That's my observation from what I've read about them here. I have no first hand experience with them, thank God.

I was told the owner spent $119K for this truck. He was quoted $168K for a freightliner class 8 with the same set up.

my truck is an 2007 ,its have about 29K
we have absolutely no problems with it !
it run great and quit . keep strait in line , gets over 9 mpg (for an auto 5 speed tranny ! ),and we got the tripack APU.

if i would have the same problems as you do .
i would park the truck at the Dealer that sold it to me , and flip him the finger !@!.
there is no way i will drive an unsafe truck !!!



Moose.

At 29k mine was fine to! I never had any problems with them till they get up around 50k.

Badmunky, do you own this vehicle ?

Ark has nailed the problem right on the head. Class 7 vehicles in a Class 8 working environment just don't work. They may be just fine if you're delivering "little debbies" in Dallas. But, arn't much of a workin mans truck if you're interested in crossing the Rockies with anything much over 10-12 thousand pounds. I got bit real bad at auction, when we purchased a couple of M2's years ago. I got such a bad back ache on my first run, I required a visit to a Chiropractor only days into a cross country trip. The dang class sevens have no suspension for the cab or sleeper. We bit the bullet and sold both for a mild loss. Since we now own class 8 FL'ers, we now travel pretty much in comfort and can legally haul 22-23,500 spread out properly. There is NOT that huge a price difference between 7-8's. Yeah, wev'e had our share of minor problems with the FL'ers but nothing like some of the nightmare stories i've heard about class 7's

No I dont. Thank god!
It can only haul 12K total.
The cab and sleeper are air ride and the truck dose ride better then most semis I have driven.
But its still a POS.

Thibodeaux I don't know about your Class 8 Freightliners but the ones I drove in a straight truck configuration got the same and some times a little better fuel milage than what they are reporting out of those Hinos. Plus it is good for about a million miles maybe longer depending on how well it has been taken care of.

A friend of mine has freifgtliner class 8 with the same sleeper my truck has and sees he gets about 9 loaded and 11 empty.
Thats much better then I get.

That Benz MBE 250'ish HP, 6 speed = 7.5 to 8.5 loaded 9-10 empty

The C15 Caterpillar 435 HP, 9 Spd = 8.5 to 9.5 loaded 10.5 to 11.5 empty

Friend has a DD13 450 hp, 12 speed auto and gets about the same as the C15 in a straight truck.

Ark and Thib are both right, you can't use a truck meant for city delivery in expedite and expect it to work well for any length of time. Even the lil ole M2 has been engineered to take it (there is a severe service 112 model that uses that cab).

The list of problems presented above also point to a truck that is being driven perhaps a bit aggressively. In those environments, big truck parts and engineering will always win.

If you own a Hino and it works, good deal! You are likely a good driver and don't abuse things. I still wouldn't keep it past 300 k.

The owner wants us to run truck till it hits 3 years old.
Right now its 9 months old and has over 92K on it.

A bad sign for Hino owners ?

I was just looking around in the "trucks for sale" area, and noticed
a not so good indicator. There's a used truck dealer called Ellenbaum out of Michigan. For the most part, I always thought these folks dealt in pretty junked out trucks [with a few exceptions]
If you look at their listings of available trucks, you'll see that Hino's
dominate the top of the list. Very disproportional when compared to all other manufacturers. I believe that "list" is a strong indicator of how bad Hino's position is in the trucking industry.

Never herd of that dealer.

Good stuff ,
Just because i drive one , dose not say i need to defend it .
to date its look like the best investment i can make in to the business.
to date the Hiny is working just fine.
no way i will buy a used one.
its need to be treated with WG from day one.
and yes it can used the hendrickson front end suspension.
the sleeper is air ride.

as to the class 7 or 8 trucks.
i have yet to see how its pay off for a solo driver.
nor to a team not lease to Elite/WG.
the extra available loads will never pay for the extra 60K+ in investment. in a new truck.
now as to used trucks ... that's a different story.
you pay less = you drive less , life is great.
only one of the benefits of Expediting.



Moose

Im a team.
And run to hard for this truck.

Hard to counter Moose's argument, pay less = being able to run less, just hope it keeps running when you need to run.

It usualy dosnt.

While both go from A to B
It is hard to get the Yugo to do the job of a Cadillac.

Could not have said it better my self!

The only class 7 that worked for me well wuz a pete 330. But, ya gotta understand I "worked" em. As a rule multiple loads that generally approached 50K gross. if you are gonna do it out there then, jes DO IT! Again i'll type, if'n ya wanna see the country, get a camping machine.

Never drove one of them. Ill look in to it,

I will agree. If one is to use a class 7, the KW300 or a Pete 330 are the only ones that can hold up. They are the only ones you will see that are a class 7 being used on construction sites.
Why? Because they don't fall apart and are pretty much manufactured with class eight components.

I have talked with truck owner and he is looking for another truck to buy. He is no longer buying Hinos. He is going to look at both of thous trucks next week as well as look at buying a semi.

Later

 

[rooster21]

I have a 2008 Hino 338 with a 96" sleeper, sitting again in a Hino dealer waiting for the damages.

I have to say, I have never dealt with so many stupid issues in my life when it comes to repairs or something else happening.

I HATE Hinos; unfortuantely, I own three and cannot wait to sell them. We have done everything to keep them running clean and did the maintenace etc. But as the bad seed goes and as you all noted; these trucks are not worth the effort. Yes, you might think you are getting a great deal when it comes to the cost up front and if you are plan to sell before everything goes to he**. If you really think about it in a long run, you pay out the gas and with the repairs along with the tows and the loss of frieght and time...I could go on with all the expense but I will just scare you to death.

Again, I agree with you all regarding Hino's. Only buy them if you are going to keep them for a short period but before the warranty had expired!

 

[golfournut]

I have a 2008 Hino 338 with a 96" sleeper, sitting again in a Hino dealer waiting for the damages.

I have to say, I have never dealt with so many stupid issues in my life when it comes to repairs or something else happening.

I HATE Hinos; unfortuantely, I own three and cannot wait to sell them. We have done everything to keep them running clean and did the maintenace etc. But as the bad seed goes and as you all noted; these trucks are not worth the effort. Yes, you might think you are getting a great deal when it comes to the cost up front and if you are plan to sell before everything goes to he**. If you really think about it in a long run, you pay out the gas and with the repairs along with the tows and the loss of frieght and time...I could go on with all the expense but I will just scare you to death.

Again, I agree with you all regarding Hino's. Only buy them if you are going to keep them for a short period but before the warranty had expired!

What's the problem?

Your best bet, hire a vet! Please.