Mini imported Japanese vehicles may soon be banned on Massachusetts roads
1–10 of 88 posts
Re: Mini imported Japanese vehicles may soon be banned on Massachusetts roads
#2Given the reasoning for refusal is that the vehicles don't meet safety standards, I wonder if they will stop registering older American vehicles as well for lack of safety standards but also for emissions?
Re: Mini imported Japanese vehicles may soon be banned on Massachusetts roads
#3I really don't get the NA car market. There is a demand for small kei car/trucks as is natural with cities growing and parking dwindling.
Yet even compacts are disappearing. My kingdom for an EV compact that is compact. Even the Fiat 500s and Mini Coops feel like they get bigger each year.
Re: Mini imported Japanese vehicles may soon be banned on Massachusetts roads
#4I really don't get the NA car market. There is a demand for small kei car/trucks as is natural with cities growing and parking dwindling. Yet even compacts are disappearing. My kingdom for an EV compact that is compact. Even the Fiat 500s and Mini Coops feel like they get bigger each year.
Fuel economy standards, emissions standards, safety standards, & profit margins.
If you want to sell cars and make money, compacts are not where it is at.
Re: Mini imported Japanese vehicles may soon be banned on Massachusetts roads
#5Given the reasoning for refusal is that the vehicles don't meet safety standards, I wonder if they will stop registering older American vehicles as well for lack of safety standards but also for emissions?
Yes, that is the objective of the parties involved. From a manufacturer's standpoint, the worse thing that ever happened was the secondary market for vehicles.
Re: Mini imported Japanese vehicles may soon be banned on Massachusetts roads
#6I really don't get the NA car market. There is a demand for small kei car/trucks as is natural with cities growing and parking dwindling. Yet even compacts are disappearing. My kingdom for an EV compact that is compact. Even the Fiat 500s and Mini Coops feel like they get bigger each year.
Fuel economy standards, emissions standards, safety standards, & profit margins. If you want to sell cars and make money, compacts are not where it is at.
Compacts, subcompacts, and microcompacts are very popular in Europe. Is this because Europe has fewer and less restrictive standards for fuel economy, emissions, and safety? I am not an automotive policy expert, but I feel like Europe tends to regulate more than the US does.
Re: Mini imported Japanese vehicles may soon be banned on Massachusetts roads
#7Many Japanese vehicles are banned, especially light trucks, because they are too competitive. They are often banned for trumped up reasons, mostly to protect local competition.
Re: Mini imported Japanese vehicles may soon be banned on Massachusetts roads
#8The hypocrisy is that if safety was the overall concern, then motorcycles would have been banned a long time ago (and I say this as someone who enjoys riding my motorcycle).
I think the actual problem is that when compared to other cars in their category these kei trucks do have abysmal safety standards such as no airbags or crumple zones. Which is because there isn’t a mini truck category in the US. Basically all pick up trucks are the same category.
The point about older cars still on the road is a valid point though, cars made before 1998 didn’t require airbags so if they can still be registered then the kei trucks should too.
Re: Mini imported Japanese vehicles may soon be banned on Massachusetts roads
#9Given the reasoning for refusal is that the vehicles don't meet safety standards, I wonder if they will stop registering older American vehicles as well for lack of safety standards but also for emissions?
I find it funny that the safety standards are for the drivers, not everyone around them.
Small trucks = not safe
Massive modern trucks killing cyclists and pedestrians = very safe! (For the driver)
Re: Mini imported Japanese vehicles may soon be banned on Massachusetts roads
#10Earlier quoted context omitted.
Fuel economy standards, emissions standards, safety standards, & profit margins. If you want to sell cars and make money, compacts are not where it is at.
Compacts, subcompacts, and microcompacts are very popular in Europe. Is this because Europe has fewer and less restrictive standards for fuel economy, emissions, and safety? I am not an automotive policy expert, but I feel like Europe tends to regulate more than the US does.
No, it's because the US has a different set of regulations entirely.