DINA S-Series Truck (7400 / 7800 / 9400) History

In 1981, DINA signed a technology-cooperation agreement with International Harvester (later Navistar International) to manufacture three heavy truck models using U.S. components; the resulting lineup carried S-series designations including the 7400, 7800, and 9400. Navistar formalized the alliance in 1987 by acquiring a five percent stake in Dina Camiones.

By the late 1980s, DINA's S-series trucks commanded roughly 75 percent of Mexico's semi-heavy and heavy-duty truck market, aided by a 1984 government decree requiring diesel powertrains for vehicles over 11 tons. A 1991 engine transition introduced Navistar's DTA-360 and DTA-466 units; by 1996 DINA switched to Caterpillar CAT engines ahead of the HTQ program.

The S-series era coincided with Mexico's 1994 peso crisis, which caused truck sales to collapse from 30,644 units in 1994 to 5,219 in 1995 — devastating DINA's finances and accelerating the company's pivot to the HTQ platform as its recovery vehicle.