I spotted one in Bloomington, Indiana recently. It parked next to a superbig truck and I'm sorry I didn't get that photo.
this post was submitted on 08 May 2025
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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.
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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.
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ill give you a japanese truck if...
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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? 😀
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
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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.
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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?
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.
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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.
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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.
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Those huge trucks are also not save in any crash. At least for the other person.
Any crash involving an "american sized" car will be worse than two of these small trucks coliding
Getting hit by one of those trucks at 30 MPH has as much force as a Honda civic at 55 MPH.
Fuck modern pickups.
A Honda civic weights ~1100kg. The kinetic energy of a vehicle is proportional to v^2^. Therefore, a vehicle going at 30MPH delivering the same kinetic energy as a Honda civic at 130MPH needs to weigh in at 130^2^/30^2^*1100kg or 20tons. Modern American trucks are too big and heavy but not that big and heavy I think
He said force, not kinetic energy. They're probably treating the acceleration term in F=ma as proportional velocity, which strikes me as naive, but it makes the math easier and it's correct if the error bars are big enough... Functionally you're comparing momentum at that point, but I imagine you can find some American truck built to evade CAFE standards that has a 4-1/3:1 weight ratio with some version of the Civic.
Either my source is wrong or memory. What's the equivalent speed for a civic going 60? Or the speed of a fully loaded truck vs a 30 civic?
48 MPH for a 3.5k vehicle vs a 9k vehicle going 30mph. The math is simple. The 1/2 goes away and it's v_2 = ((m_1*v_1^2^)/m_2)^.5. Big trucks are dangerous but don't believe everything you read.
Edit: fixed formatting
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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.
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