Toyota has begun production of the 2018 Camry at its Georgetown, Ky., assembly plant, as the top-selling car in the U.S. enters its eighth generation with more powerful and efficient engines and other upgrades, the company announced.

Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Kentucky, Inc. hired more than 700 people to support the launch of the vehicle. Earlier this year, Toyota announced it would invest $1.33 billion in the plant to modernize the production process.

In 2016, the plant's workers built 500,000 vehicles, including Camry, Camry Hybrid, Avalon, Avalon Hybrid, and Lexus ES350 nameplates. The plant has produced more than 8 million Camrys in its 31 years of building vehicles.

The vehicle is scheduled to arrive at dealer lots later this summer.