March 6, 2006

Hino Motors establishes truck plant in Ontario, Canada

- Truck assembly exclusively for North America set for launch in April 2006 -

Hino Motors Ltd. (“Hino”) has decided to establish a new plant in Ontario, Canada, for Hino Motors Sales Canada Ltd. (“HMSC”), a Hino overseas office, with the aim of realizing a full-scale expansion in its truck business. The plant will be its second base in North America for truck assembly following its earlier plant in California, USA.

Hino has thus far outsourced the assembly of trucks for the Canadian market, together with trucks for the U.S. market, to TABC, a local production business of Toyota Motor Corp. in California. However, it plans to shorten the delivery time to customers and reinforce its ability to respond to customer demands while also promoting a reduction in distribution costs by establishing the assembly base in Canada.

With the establishment of the plant in Canada, vehicle assembly will be added to HMSC business operations and the company will be renamed Hino Motors Canada, Ltd. (“HMC”).

Canadian plant – overview
- Location: Woodstock, Ontario
- Site area: Approx. 60,000m 2
- Total building floor space: Approx. 12,000m 2
- Start of production: April 2006
- Products: Trucks exclusively for North America
- Production capacity: 2,000 units/year
- Employees: 45 (at the start of production)
- Plant manager: Joe Beamson (Vice President)

Reference – HMC – Overview