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Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks

economist.com

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Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks

#261

Post by Dalewyn »

nostromo wrote: post #210
deelowe wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That rule ain't changing unfortunately. Regulatory capture is STRONG with automotive and the US sees it as a matter of national security (car makers would be pivoted to other ares in times of war).

This isn't necessarily regulatory capture or protectionism. Half of all cars sold in the US are imported. Toyota, a Japanese company, is the most popular brand of car sold in the US. So, yes, you can import cars all you want, they just need to follow US safety and emissions standards. These cars do not meet those requirements, so you can't import them. If you didn't block them as imports, we'd have lots of people jus…

>you can import cars all you want, they just need to follow US safety and emissions standards. These cars do not meet those requirements, so you can't import them.

This really is the crux of the issue, those kei cars simply do not meet US car regulations by the very nature of their small size and light weight.

Even in Japan, where they hail from, kei cars are a distinct category regulated separately from the rest of the car market with different build, safety, and emissions standards.

It's not some grand conspiracy to favor the domestic market or disenfranchise the used car market; the simple fact of the matter is those kei cars do not meet US regulations to be cars proper.

Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks

#262

Post by [deleted] »

nilespotter wrote: post #209
autophagian wrote: post #163

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why?

Basically because it's a high-mid-tier, nice modern car. Comparatively it has a quieter and smoother ride will allow me to make phone calls on my commute, using carplay to make the calls, read messages to me, and play music through the incredible sounding large badass speakers. The ride is much, much, much smoother. It'll be much more comfortable for a long road trip. There will be more room in the cab for stuff like…

[deleted]

Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks

#263

Post by aidog »

I moved my belongings in a kei trucks to my new place and I just bought a new kei car. I love them, easier to drive than big cars as well. Fun fact, they are more expensive used in Japan than regular cars since they are more desirable for tax reasons and cheaper on the highway.

Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks

#264

Post by paulsutter »

nostromo wrote: post #210
deelowe wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That rule ain't changing unfortunately. Regulatory capture is STRONG with automotive and the US sees it as a matter of national security (car makers would be pivoted to other ares in times of war).

This isn't necessarily regulatory capture or protectionism. Half of all cars sold in the US are imported. Toyota, a Japanese company, is the most popular brand of car sold in the US. So, yes, you can import cars all you want, they just need to follow US safety and emissions standards. These cars do not meet those requirements, so you can't import them. If you didn't block them as imports, we'd have lots of people jus…

If emissions were the concern they’d just require the cars to pass emissions.

Although I strongly favor allowing import of recent foreign cars, safety features are a much better practical objection for folks who love objecting to good things. Non-US cars would lack many many mandated features and there’s no workaround

Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks

#265

Post by aaronblohowiak »

codalan wrote: post #190
pwthornton wrote: post #185

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are some smaller options these days. The Honda Ridgeline has led the way here as a very livable, smaller (although not small) truck. The Ford Maverick is even smaller. It is a bit more barebones but it might work for you.

The problem with the Maverick (as others have mentioned) is that they squander valuable bed space by adding a cab to the design. To me, a pickup truck is a pretty utilitarian thing. I don't need a cab. I have other vehicles if I need to take passengers. I remember pricing out a pickup a few years ago, and it was hard to find one that wasn't already configured with a cab. I guess the market demand is larger for people…

used Cargo van

Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks

#266

Post by quadrifoliate »

echelon wrote: post #187
porphyra wrote: post #37

One of the most highly upvoted Reddit posts on /r/fuckcars mocks large pickups compared to the utility of a kei truck. https://reddit.com/r/fuckcars/comments/sdrgv3/japanese_truck... A kei truck has about 90% the bed length of a pickup while being a lot more nimble. The lower bed is more ergonomic to load and unload too.

The /r/fuckcars folks are being a little dishonest here. As another commenter mentioned, this is like asking a vegan for steak recommendations at a restaurant. Subaru Sambar (kei truck) towing capacity: 1,300 lbs Ford F-150 towing capacity: 5,000 to 11,300 lbs Ford F-250 Shelby edition towing capacity: 24,200 pounds And that's just one additional dimension where these vehicles significantly differ. These vehicles are…

> The /r/fuckcars folks are being a little dishonest here. As another commenter mentioned, this is like asking a vegan for steak recommendations at a restaurant.

The subreddit is specifically named 'fuck cars'. How exactly are they being dishonest? This is more like r/vegan showing how a vegan meal is better than a steak meal along some dimension, say, environmental impact.

> I live in an urban area close enough to the forest, lakes, and pastures to see all of these uses frequently.

In fact I would say that you are the one being somewhat dishonest by (implicitly) claiming both the benefits of being able to use it as a utilitarian workhorse, and in an urban area. If the trucks have the majority of their utility as contracting, construction, or towing, they should require being licensed as a commercial driver, and potentially be banned from being operated on city roads due to the danger they pose to smaller vehicles and pedestrians.

Think of the argument from that subreddit (and me) this way -- if you are driving a huge farm tractor, you cannot also bring said tractor into the city center. Not all heavy machinery needs to be allowed everywhere. Obviously you might not agree, but I think the argument is fundamentally honest.

Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks

#268

Post by cptskippy »

asveikau wrote: post #176
__MatrixMan__ wrote: post #120

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How easily could they retool for an event like that? I think I've just hatched a conspiracy theory for why all our vehicles are absurdly sized...

I thought the standard conspiracy theory was that they started making them larger to avoid environmental regulation (which is pretty ironic). Here's the first google result for "large cars regulation loophole", looks like an interesting read: https://www.wired.com/story/the-us-wants-to-close-the-suv-lo... Edit: prior HN discussion here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35609521

> I thought the standard conspiracy theory was that they started making them larger to avoid environmental regulation (which is pretty ironic).

Why is it a conspiracy theory?

I'd love to cite GA's Clean Air Act as an example but the rule around qualified vehicles has been amended 11 times since it was enacted in 1996 and I can't figure out how to see previous versions of the rule.

https://rules.sos.ga.gov/gac/391-3-20-.03

Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks

#269

Post by pastacacioepepe »

echelon wrote: post #187
porphyra wrote: post #37

One of the most highly upvoted Reddit posts on /r/fuckcars mocks large pickups compared to the utility of a kei truck. https://reddit.com/r/fuckcars/comments/sdrgv3/japanese_truck... A kei truck has about 90% the bed length of a pickup while being a lot more nimble. The lower bed is more ergonomic to load and unload too.

The /r/fuckcars folks are being a little dishonest here. As another commenter mentioned, this is like asking a vegan for steak recommendations at a restaurant. Subaru Sambar (kei truck) towing capacity: 1,300 lbs Ford F-150 towing capacity: 5,000 to 11,300 lbs Ford F-250 Shelby edition towing capacity: 24,200 pounds And that's just one additional dimension where these vehicles significantly differ. These vehicles are…

Still don't need such a tall and long front bumper for any of those uses.

Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks

#270

Post by 0xbadcafebee »

elboru wrote: post #184
voisin wrote: post #92

I wish the actual story was “US manufacturers announce line of small, Japanese style pickup trucks” Importing adds friction both up front and for ongoing sourcing of parts and maintenance. Just give us some options for local pickup trucks utilizing existing repair facilities! Instead everyone bitches about truck drivers having such large vehicles, when that’s all that’s on offer here!

RAM sells a small truck in Mexico called RAM 700 and it’s getting popular for work purposes (specially in urban areas). I have no idea why it’s not being sold in the US market. https://www.motor1.com/news/447996/2021-ram-700-debut/

The US market never carries vehicles that executives don't think will sell well in the US market, or that may lower their brand's perceived value, or take money away from a hot-selling model... We always get the shit cars with the shit mileage and less functionality. Some of that is due to regulatory or trade issues, but mostly they just think it will cut into their sales of a more expensive car they already have here. Also, dealerships are bastards.
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