Hino announced that it plans to produce a new line of Class 7 and 8 trucks at a new truck assembly plant in West Virginia, starting in 2019.

The new larger trucks will be powered by Hino’s A09 9-liter engine that is already sold in other markets globally. The engine will produce from 300-360 horsepower. The truck is scheduled to be publicly revealed at the NTEA Work Truck Show next March.

“These are truly exciting times for Hino in the U.S.,” said Yoshinori Noguchi, CEO of Hino North America. “Our growth and customer acceptance in the Class 4-7 market are enabling us to introduce a wider variety of products.”

The new vehicles and facilities are part of a $100 million investment plan to strengthen its U.S. operations. Hino is purchasing the former Cold Water Creek distribution center and converting it into its new truck assembly plant in Mineral Wells, West Virginia. The new plant is expected to be operational by 2019 and will also house cab assembly, an operation currently conducted in Japan.

As part of Hino’s growth plan, the company broke ground on a new corporate office in Novi, Michigan, and is consolidating all operations into its new corporate headquarters. including sales, marketing, service, engineering, purchasing, and manufacturing. Hino’s Insight Diagnostic Center, which monitors vehicle performance and uptime for all Hino trucks equipped with Insight, will also operate out of the Novi headquarters.

Hino Motors currently produces Class 6 and 7 conventional body style trucks in the 245,000-square-foot former Walker Systems building in Williamstown, West Virginia. The Williamstown facility was the first transportation equipment assembly plant for Hino in the United States. Hino began rolling out its first trucks in November 2007, and last month celebrated its 10-year anniversary there.