Hino’s dino

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Once upon a time, many moons ago, when dinosaurs had only just died out and when the Toyota name didn’t ring a bell with any European road user, Hino Motors of Japan decided to broaden their scope towards the old continent. The truck manufacturer chose their brand new Contessa passenger vehicle to take Europe by storm. Why not? The car was based on updated Renault mechanicals but its body came in fashionable ‘Stile Torinese’ by Giovanni Michelotti, hinting towards several other Michelotti designs which did rather well over here.

Remarkably, the Contessa was even meant to be built under a licence at a former ship yard in The Netherlands. We’re not sure if that really ever happened, though, since Hino Motors was taken over by Toyota in 1967 and the Contessa disappeared into oblivion. Just before that happened this promotional picture was taken in – we think – a park in Rotterdam with a Dutch lady waving enthusiastically towards new customers. Did they ever find her? We don't know. We’ve never seen a survivor of the Contessa in the flesh - not the sedan nor the coupe. And can only dream of the Sprint concept car…

(Text Jeroen Booij) 
 

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