Colorado is considering a bill that would allow people to drive adorable Japanese tiny-trucks on most of the state’s roads. US car manufacturers are fighting against the bill.
Want to legally drive a Japanese mini-truck in Colorado? You may soon be able to
So many conspiracy theories in these comments about why American manufacturers don't build smaller cars.
It's very simple, American Auto Companies are loan companies, not auto manufacturers.
Why would they produce a $10k go-kart with a useable bed when they can get people to finance a $110k SUV at 18% APR?
It's not about oil, or other resources, or even labor and tooling.
It's just much more profitable to put you into debt.
Especially because we are a captive market. Public transport is essentially non existent in most areas. You have to get a car, and you have to take a loan on it. Without a car, a lot of places won’t even hire you.
I've noticed that Americans do not consider using an armed rebellion against evil corporate practices but talk about 2A rights all the time.
This passed a couple days ago and will be signed by the Governor today! Takes effect July 2027.
I would kill for one of these trucks, its so fucking stupid that they are banned
I'd go for it with a slight caveat: They need to uprate the engines a bit so they can cruise on US highways at US highway speeds. While they can reach 75mph ungoverned, you generally don't want to run an ICE at close to its limit. That's why you aim for 85-100mph max speed for US highways; it means it'll be running efficiently cruising at 60-70mph.
Fortunately, this shouldn't be difficult. The engines would likely be capable of it with a little tuning or extra turbocharger boost. And going electric makes it all a non-issue.
I would even be happy with a small pickup like the old Datsuns or Mazdas. Instead my choices are Big-ass Toyota Truck or Ford Monster Truck or Dodge Monster Truck.
I have two Ford Rangers which are the US-branded Mazda B2000s. I am SO paranoid about anything going wrong with them because in my market I am FUCKED. I cannot work out of the trucks made after 2012.
ill give you a japanese truck if...
This is an echo back to the 70s, when gas prices were high and there were strict controls over Japanese economy cars. Why didn't American manufacturers make smaller cars? Well, "no one wanted them" was the line. Miraculously almost as soon as those same Japanese cars started to be allowed on our streets, suddenly Detroit figured out how to make them and dragged them kicking and screaming into the next eras.
Good companies innovate to keep their customers. Bad companies legislate to keep their customers.
Which one do you think is happening more today?
Detroit never made them; they bought them and rebranded them with trim packages.
Here's news: the US cannot make cars. They only know one style, and that's land yacht.
American cars were more fuel efficient and size efficient following the 70’s fuel crisis. It wasn’t until the Chicken Tax and Cafe Standards you see the shift from small work trucks to SUVs and large trucks.
This is COMMUNISM! TRUE FREEDOM is FORCING us to use OVERSIZED Cars that use a LOT of EXPENSIVE Gas! ANYTHING else is WOKE!
Maybe US car manufacturers could, y'know, make their own compact trucks? 😀
American Auto Manufacturers are run by ancient douche bags that are desperately holding on to the past.
No, they're run by ancient douche bags that are constantly finding loopholes in the current laws that allow (if not encourage) them to make bigger vehicles.
If they were desperately trying to hold onto the past, the new Ford Ranger reboot wouldn't be nearly the same size as an F-150.
that requires a shift in design and engineering, not to mention retooling the actual manufacturing process
less expensive to just keep selling shit in the status quo. change is effort, effort is waste, waste is less profit margins
they retool for every single model anyway. there's really no excuse
I spotted one in Bloomington, Indiana recently. It parked next to a superbig truck and I'm sorry I didn't get that photo.
I mean, it's probably not safe in a crash at highway speeds (if it can even reach those speeds), but then neither are motorbikes and we allow those...
It's got to be better for the environment and wallet than those stupid Ford monster trucks. Especially since these would only attract people who actually need to carry large amounts of stuff about, rather than those who once needed to transport a fridge four years ago.
They do ok against regular sized cars, just yours are insanely big.
At lower speeds perhaps. But at highway speeds probably not. Remember: You are the crumple zone in those Kei trucks. As an old and now retired Medic and Firefighter, I'm glad I will never need to cut a dead body out of one those things-- I bet it would be a messy and bloody affair. Because while cutting the first one or two wreaks is sort of fun and exciting, it quickly becomes depressing after that and leaves mark that ain't ever growing back. And I carry enough marks to take to the grave with me.
The acceleration is also poor due to the small low and powered engines. I would not want to try and merge onto a freeway in a metropolitan area in one. And you can bet long money that some suburban weekend warrior Bob Villa wanna be is going to try to do exactly that with the back end loaded with 10 sheets of plywood, 2 dozen 2x4's, a roll of outdoor carpeting and 8 bags of concrete. And then be super surprised when he becomes a hood ornament for a semi truck rolling along at 60mph or some SUV.
That said, I do think thing such small delivery vehicles have a place in the urban environment. Hell, even a Tuk Tuk, a cheap and popular 3rd world motorcycle taxi/cargo hauler hybrid would be even better yet. They would be excellent for operating on side streets and residential neighborhoods making small deliveries. Just keep them off of high speed roadways. And I'm not sure that's a solvable problem. Humans being what they are.
As a five foot tall person, I've been in love with Kei trucks since I frist saw one. I don't have one (I don't have any car), but I would if I could.
It's taller than my old mk4, and similar size to a standard 4 door sedan. I think I saw a video comparing the bed of a Kei truck to the bed of a new monster drive.tough.mydickisbig.I can't see children ahead of my bumber so they become projectiles, type trucks.. and the Kei truck holds more cargo.
Isn't there a sin against vanity? These giant trucks are more dangerous than these smaller ones, and they dont serve a purpose outside of vanity.
There is a reason the guy in the article bought a 1990. The US has a 25 year rule for importing vehicles that weren’t sold here. These became legal in Utah a few years ago because they made off road side by sides legal as long as you made some modifications (horn, turn signals, mirrors, etc). There’s a particular weight range they need to fall between. They also have to hold the same insurance requirements and registration as any other road vehicle. I don’t think they can be used on any road above 45.
And I think that's a good set of regulations for Kei trucks. Particularly the speed. It should keep them off of high speed roadways and more on urban side streets where the speeds are supposed to be slower. They can find a good use in those situations.
Utah’s goal to my knowledge was to get things like this to be road legal since everybody has them out here. I think the kei trucks was mostly a happy accident because of the way they wrote it. Still not use to seeing these at the grocery store just in a parking spot.
I don't know about other country, but this truck rider in my country (Indonesia) are relatively safe.
People usually using this for everything, like portable shop, human transportion on the back (only legal on small village or remote area), etc.
I still remember riding one on the back for scout activities :)
Suzuki Carry everywhere...
Yeah we have them, and similar vehicles, on the roads here in the UK. They are fine for carrying medium loads, they're great in busy cities, economical, easy to park.
We citizens need to change the laws to highly tax those oversized vehicles. And we should make them commercial use only. Average people don't need huge trucks. K-cars are quite cool.
Unfortunately taxes are kinda the reason why we see so many oversized trucks on the market and the reason you don't see any small trucks anymore. It's a result of manufacturers and lobbyists gamifying the EPA regulations that came out like 10-15 years ago.
Basically trucks under a certain weight have to meet a certain mpg standard otherwise they'd be taxed at a higher rate. However, there was a bypass for heavier "super-duty" trucks, so now most every truck being sold is classified as a super-duty which were originally meant to encompass "working" trucks meant to haul things like equipment.
It's really just another symptom of our government being a joke and the result of regulatory capture.
They're "light" trucks under CAFE standards as opposed to real trucks like semis and utility trucks. If they were smaller I think they would be lumped in with all the other normal passenger vehicles.
I feel like the gas and the monthly cost of the loan they took out against their mortgage is probably tax enough.
I genuinely believe most of these super-truck owners already have one foot in the financial grave and are just in denial about it.
The flip side of this is that people who actually want a small, practical truck for utility purposes cannot buy one in the US. Doesn't exist. Those supertrucks are all you get now, and yeah, the finances don't make sense for this utility use, either.
And for fucks sake, nobody point me to the Maverick. That is not any kind of small utility truck and you know it. The Maverick is "well, there's spam egg sausage and spam, that's not got much spam in it" except for trucks.
Clearly not, because these dickheads are out there driving vehicles that are way over-specced for their use cases, all because they have tiny penises and need to compensate! Some of these things are that tall that you can't see an average height adult standing in front of the grill from the drivers seat.
Hence the need for a higher level of licensure in order to operate one.
Japan basically takes those cars off circulation by taxing the ownership to the point that its better to get rid of them as they age. Its great for us who want them in their sub-par age. But we might also want to think about doing the same.
I live in Japan and drive a kei-car that's kinda like a van. 660cc engine (my motorbike is 400cc). I plan on probably eventually getting one of the trucks like in the thumbnail for my farm business. Ask me anything, I guess, if you have questions about them.
How common are the EVs versions over there?
I didn't know about this so I did some searching. Per https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/20250507/k10014798141000.html
昨年度、国内で最も売れたEVは日産と三菱自動車が共同開発した軽自動車で、会社はそれと同じ水準の260万円程度の販売価格を目指すとしています。
Last year, the most domestically-sold EV was a kei vehicle which I didn't know.
You're not allowed to drive those? Why not?
Edit: article touches on it. Low top speed and missing safety features. They aren't fit for highways but not all roads are highways, so outright bans are stupid.
The other thing to keep in mind is that a lot of US vehicles are missing the same safety features. Where's the seatbelt and airbag on a motorcycle, for example? A lot of semis also don't have airbags at all.
Even at 55mph they're actually not that unsafe in a sane country with sane cars- the driver is so high up that they're 'above' the crash (t's the same reason semis don't have air bags- they're not as needed)
... unless you're in the US and driving around a dick-measuring contest pavement princess that puts you eye level with a semi truck so you can murder small children easier, that weighs 8000lb.
Yes, they can't go 70mph, but that basically just limits them to not being able to go on highways and interstates, which is perfectly fine- frankly, we need to have less things being hauled that way, the highways will last longer and our microplastic issue will be largely solved if we stop shipping things in the single dumbest, least efficient manner.
Finally... modern kei trucks DO have a lot of those improvements. They have airbags, seatbelts, all the modern safety features, and can go 60mph. Keep in mind, in most cases semis have to go 5-10 under the speed limit anyway, which means they can basically hit the same speed limits as semis. We just aren't even currently allowed to import the modern kei trucks.
That's one of the laughable things in the article. They keep talking about the emissions and safety but they're talking about the older vehicles that are being used in the US because the older vehicles are the only ones that are allowed to be used in the US. They don't even come close to mentioning the new vehicles that are being made that have all those safety features and better emissions.
It's a plain and simple fact is that these vehicles threaten profit margins of the dealerships that sell the unnecessary monster trucks that are primarily sold in America.
P.S. The emissions thing is especially stupid since trucks tend to be exempt from a lot of emissions regulations anyhow.
Motorcycles are a bad example, because safety regulations for them are completely different due to the way they function. Moto gear with a helmet provides better overall protection than an air bag with seatbelts in a car. Also a seatbelt in a motorcycle would be a death sentence.
My electric golf cart goes up to 33 mph max. I had to put lights on it but I got it titled, insured, and plated. I have to keep it on 35 and under roads but I take it all over the place instead of driving my car. Seems silly these trucks couldn’t be approved for at minimum 45 and under roadways.
They banned fucking tuktuks?!
How the hell am I supposed to be Cruisin' USA without my Sardine Supreme?
Are you Parker Posey in White Lotus
@dwazou
I live in Japan and I have driven trucks like this a lot. They are common work trucks. I also rented one a few years ago when I moved. They are much safer than American vehicles. First thing is they are lighter and smaller. Getting hit by a pebble going 60mph or a bowling ball going 60mph is much different. The driver is all the way to the front which means if someone or something is in front of the truck, they can see it. They have big vehicles here too. Kei cars are fine. #FuckCars
Tell me, where's the crunch zone in a Smart car? How about on a motorcycle? Have you ever been in a minivan? Have you seen how small the "crunch zone" is on one of those?
Not to mention if you get into an accident with a fucking SUV in any car that is not another SUV you're fucked. It's the SUVs that should be fucking banned. Not the cars that would be completely destroyed by them.
why aren't they allowed now?
us auto industry has reletively higher crash saftey requirements. part of the reason why everythings so damn big.
the kei trucks are basically rear end death traps if you hit US sized vehicles.
its why the only ones you can legally drive in some states are the ones that pass the 25 year car import law.
some areas explicitly ban it (e.g NYC i believe)
EU: Your truck is unsafe because it is unusually large and has razor sharp edges at head height.
US: Your truck is unsafe because it is too small to withstand a direct hit from one of our super safe giant axe head shaped cars.
I understand now allowing them on the freeways, but they're perfect for cities with their smaller footprint and lower driving speeds. These aren't allowed in NYC, but Escalades are?
I don't understand how states can ban an otherwise legal vehicle
The Mini, Yaris, and many other modern cars pass crash -test standards. I do not consider them big.
If something goes max 5 kph, shouldn't it do fine on all the crash tests?
You don't have to make something bigger. Sometimes just making it slower works too.
Maybe they could tweak the design a little. Make it like a Chevy Spark with a rear bed.
Because they used emissions standards in the 80s to remove light trucks from the market. Which is why everything is bigger now, blowback: unintended consequences of shitty legislation.
They used the "Chicken Tax" to remove light trucks on the 80s, not emissions issues.
Ford used to skirt the law by having Transits made in Europe shipped to the US as passenger vehicles. Once in the states they would recycle the seats and replace the rear windows with panels.
They generally don’t meet safety requirements.
These are all over the place in Victoria. It's still idiots in big pickups that are smoking all the pedestrians. Weird huh?
This is what is so dumb. Safety is only ever considered for the people INSIDE the vehicle. It's insane.
Pedestrian fatalities have been increasing in the last few years, even as vehicle (i.e. inside the vehicle) fatalities have been trending down.
That's America for you. It's also the reason American cars can't be sold in Japan without modifications.
A lot of today's safety standards are based on pedestrian protection, that's why pop up headlights aren't a thing anymore for example.
These trucks work pretty great up here in Seattle and the surrounding areas. They hold very close to as much as a full size American 8ft truck, plus a lot of em have sides which fully fold down.
Is this common the the Seattle area? I see one dude driving one all the time near me. Always give him a wave and he waves back. Are they legal in King county only? Or whole state?
Thank you Colorado
How do they do in crash tests? Are there blind spots?
Cars a death machines. We need to regulate them.
Low speeds isnt a risk. But if it's a danger to its occupants or pedestrians/cyclists, it shouldn't be on the road
They do fine in crashes... Against normal sized cars. They get absolutely obliterated by trucks and SUVs.
Most of them don't go over 55, and aren't highway legal because of that.
My bicycle isn't highway legal, so its allowed on roads other than the highways with min speed requirements.
I don't think cars can be banned wholesale just because they can't drive on some highways
I am definitely going to die if I get hit by an SUV on my motorbike, but I'm free to drive that to work all the time. I fail to see how a mini-car is materially different while we allow other dangerous vehicles on the road by the same definition.
If you go look at most places where people regularly use trucks for actual work in the US like construction or agriculture, pretty much the only ones driving the newest and most luxurious new trucks are the bosses while the actual workers use older and more practical vehicles. And a lot of those fancy trucks have so little bed space that I can hold more shit my friends Subaru Outback. And I say give me the tiny truck that can parallel park.
Hatchbacks usually have more space than pickups..
Those are real trucks
If I could have a modern(within the past 10 years) make of a Kei truck in my little Appalachian town I'd be so goddamn happy.
I understand they make absolutely terrific farm vehicles that are only meant to see minimal road use. Local access only, so American highways and stroads would be right out. Something to pick up the mail in.
In WA we can get them licensed for road use you're just not allowed on the highway, which you would be silly to try. Mine gets up to 50 mph fine, have pushed it to ~60 but the engine's basically flat out at that point.
If most of your driving is under ~40 they're perfectly usable. Not super fast on the acceleration but personally think it's fun to have 30 mph be 4th gear. 30-40 mpg in and around town. Have had friends that borrowed it talk about how it's kind of zen to have people blow past you when you're doing the speed limit and then you both sit side-by-side at a stoplight for a while. And the next light and the next.
Tax subsidized parasite big mad they might have to compete
Someone is considering moving to Colorado
To be fair, they’re death traps at most American road speeds, especially if there’s an American vehicle involved. The smart was the only kei-grade car allowed in North America and it was not too popular (the price didn’t help).
But smaller cars is a great idea.
