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How to register a Kei truck in Pennsylvania

danwilkerson.com

391–400 of 409 posts

Re: How to register a Kei truck in Pennsylvania

#391

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think that’s why big shared fleets will never really take off. People don’t seem to mind spending a lot more on their vehicle than what they really need to. People spend $50k because they want that truck, not because they need it.

It's because, as the old saying goes, we fight wars with the army we have rather than the army we want. We buy cars that provide more than our needs so we aren't left needing in case we come across something that goes beyond our expectations. Always buying just what is necessary right now in a bid to be efficient leaves no margin for error and will end up being inefficient in the long run. I don't deny that driving a…

No, it's because trucks got marketed and sold as a symbol since the margins are much higher for automakers.

People got by just fine with sedans. Most folks who own a giant pickup drive it in the exact same way as a Honda Civic and have no actual need for a pickup. It's very apparent in how tall these vehicles are now. If you are actually hauling goods, you don't want clearance to be that high.

Re: How to register a Kei truck in Pennsylvania

#392
post #354

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One of the wildest examples of literal survivorship bias I’ve ever heard

It's not. Even with their lack of concern around safety the chances of dying in a motor vehicle wreck are almost nil. Like I said, in the West, people are so concerned about safety they loose all sense of relativeness. Saying that "wow, your car doesn't have airbags, you're as good as dead" is a ridiculous statement.

What are you talking about? Hitting your head really hard can permanently injure you, or kill you.

Re: How to register a Kei truck in Pennsylvania

#393
post #337

There is a strong push at the state level to disallow the registration of kei trucks, being lead by the AAMVA (American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators) [0] As others have noted, these are fantastic utility vehicles, which have an important place in many rural areas. They can come with many important features like 4x4, diff-lock, dump beds, etc, all with a very reasonable 660cc serviceable engine. I perso…

My province prohibited all right-hand drive vehicles, because there were so many kei trucks coming in. (1) https://www.princeedwardisland.ca/en/information/transportat...

One of the PEI exemptions is "manufactured 25 years ago or more", which sounds like the same situation as Pennsylvania, no?

(I assume the "and" in the list on that page is the conversational meaning, not the legal meaning, since there aren't very many 25-year-old street sweeping mail trucks out there.)

PEI feels like the perfect sized province for a kei truck!

Re: How to register a Kei truck in Pennsylvania

#394
post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not an expert on Oregonian law, but my theory is that Oregon's motor vehicle law references the federal NHTSA regulations, and Kei vehicles laughably don't meet them (exterior lighting, crash performance, theft resistance, emissions, and so on). An owner might be able to use it as an off-road vehicle only (no title, no tag, with maybe only comprehensive insurance), but that's not the point of buying one for a lot of…

That's such bullshit when motorcycles are allowed on the road.

It's funny you mention that. The other day I was out on mine on a coastal highway here, waving at a bunch of other people doing the same thing, and thinking "If someone invented these today there's no way they'd let them on the road."

They're a lot of fun though.

Re: How to register a Kei truck in Pennsylvania

#395
post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I would like to see a citation on this. E.g. [1] has a decent overview of the side impact saga for the Euro NCAP since 1997. I'm less familiar with how the American version has kept up. In any case most mass market American cars target the Euro NCAP's safety tests, so it affects car design across the pond too. > [...]mostly a bunch of new electronics. I can't think of any electronics in doors than weren't there in…

> I can't think of any electronics in doors than weren't there in 1995. Electronic locks, speakers, electronic bits of heated mirrors, airbags, etc. were absolutely not that common in the average 90s car. Also, car dimensions are generally larger because we ourselves have become larger and taller. This becomes exceedingly obvious when comparing European cars in the past 40 years. If we look at the last 15 years, the…

> ... were absolutely not that common in the average 90s car.

Yes, but we're not talking about what's more common, but about how recent regulatory changes affected car design.

You can look up luxury models of mid or late 90s cars, and they had all those features. Now look at the same models today.

> car dimensions are generally larger because we ourselves have become larger and taller.

This is mostly due to changed regulations. Look at e.g. a 1980 model of a Toyota Corolla:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Corolla_(E70)

If you wanted to make a car with the same outside dimensions today you could barely cram two people in it, due to all the mandatory crumple zones etc.

Of course consumer demand is also part of it, but in some cases car manufacturers are still making 1980s design cars today (e.g. the 79 series Toyota land cruiser), they're just outlawed in Europe due to safety, pollution etc. regulations.

> In fact, there are plenty of videos out there of crash tests between sedans and trucks.

I'm talking about official safety ratings, e.g. this in the Euro NCAP:

https://www.euroncap.com/en/vehicle-safety/the-ratings-expla...

Although as that page explains the particular bias I had in mind was "fixed" in 2020, now it's a 1400 kg mobile trolley, so heavier cars are tested somewhat more realistically.

Re: How to register a Kei truck in Pennsylvania

#396
post #185

This truck seems to have most of the desirable Kei truck qualities (besides price) but it’s an EV with modern features. https://www.telotrucks.com/

First price and second it's an Extended cab so you loose truck bed space. Not a kei truck replacement just because those 2 things. Unless you don't mind the price and never haul longer things.

Also most kei trucks the side of the truck bed folds down giving you more of a flat bed which for some things is super super handy.

Re: How to register a Kei truck in Pennsylvania

#397
post #354

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not. Even with their lack of concern around safety the chances of dying in a motor vehicle wreck are almost nil. Like I said, in the West, people are so concerned about safety they loose all sense of relativeness. Saying that "wow, your car doesn't have airbags, you're as good as dead" is a ridiculous statement.

What are you talking about? Hitting your head really hard can permanently injure you, or kill you.

Sure, but what are the chances of getting into a crash where an air bag would make a difference?

A million to one? Less?

It's not that airbags aren't more safe, it's that they protect you from a risk with a very low probability.

Yet people act like you're reckless for driving a vehicle without them. It's a lack of understanding of probabilities. Humans routinely focus on a small risk while ignoring larger risks.

Re: How to register a Kei truck in Pennsylvania

#398

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Home Depot rents a big truck for $20-$40 for the 2 hours I'd need it. I could rent this truck every weekend for 30 years for the same price as a giant truck. And I wouldn't have to worry about its maintenance either.

Depends on use case. I do more than what I originally posted. I do pull a trailer with a small tractor on it frequently and move a lot more stuff than normal people do. Renting a truck would be more of a hassle for this type of work than for me to just pay the premium and own the thing out right. > I could rent this truck every weekend for 30 years for the same price as a giant truck. That assumes the price never inc…

> > I could rent this truck every weekend for 30 years for the same price as a giant truck.

> That assumes the price never increases for 30 years.

While the average truck owner is paying interest, I'll be earning interest, so let's call it even.

Re: How to register a Kei truck in Pennsylvania

#399
post #238
post #151

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They’re not really manufactured for Japanese highways either. Though Japanese highways go marginally slower, 60mph is pushing the poor kei to it’s limits. Lets just say I don’t enjoy sitting in a kei truck that’s attempting to do maximum speed.

The whole point of the kei form factor is different parking rules in dense, sometimes cramped Japanese cities. Due to the small footprint, they are allowed to park in more places. These are urban vehicles, not intended for highways, except in a pinch.

[deleted]

Re: How to register a Kei truck in Pennsylvania

#400
post #337

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My province prohibited all right-hand drive vehicles, because there were so many kei trucks coming in. (1) https://www.princeedwardisland.ca/en/information/transportat...

One of the PEI exemptions is "manufactured 25 years ago or more", which sounds like the same situation as Pennsylvania, no? (I assume the "and" in the list on that page is the conversational meaning, not the legal meaning, since there aren't very many 25-year-old street sweeping mail trucks out there.) PEI feels like the perfect sized province for a kei truck!

I never noticed the "vintage" exemption!
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