I literally did a double take on this one. Not like OMG, but nonetheless something that at first sight seems rather ordinary and predictable but in fact has some very cool characteristics (and bear in mind I have only pictures, the real thing is destined for the big bauma show in April).
Hinowa is displaying its American available mini transporter (water-cooled Kubota engine) at bauma in April, and the Italian company has taken a basic functional, predictable ho-hum product and given it some, well, flair. It’s a motorized bucket and scoop.
It has a zero-turn radius so it’s something you use on job sites (especially interior jobs or really tight spots), to load and dispose/clear junk, but it also feels like a very small wheel loader. There are three models: a basic one you load yourself, a self-loader (using a front blade/scoop) and a slf-loader with an extra lift capacity of 6 feet so you can use it to load trucks.
It’s a one metric ton tracked vehicle, but the tracks can be spread, together or alone, with hydraulic pistons in the undercarriage so you can create a wider, safer footprint for work. A relatively long wheelbase adds to its job site stability and lift capacity. The company touts it easy-access maintain door, and also concedes that the rental market is it probable US destination. –John Latta, Editor-in-Chief, Better Roads, reporting live from Munich, Germany , where it’s warm (relatively) and windy now.
