this post was submitted on 12 Jun 2024
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Probably because it's not safe to drive them around giant pickups who can't see over their hoods
But then it's these giant pickups which are unfit and should not be road legal.
Ban anything bigger than a Kei?
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How's that different from driving a car roughly the same size?
Just noting as a reference these trucks are 11ft long, a Miata is roughly 20% longer at 13ft.
Doing comparisons like these don’t make sense when motorcycles and trikes exist.
I didn't really intend for it to be a comparison or supporting the narrative these trucks are 'too small for America', I just find many people hear small truck and imagine "like a ford ranger but a little less", as their starting reference point. Gotta go smaller, scale is tough.
Just for reference a Fiat 500 is roughly 9.75 feet long.
Maybe in the 70s, a modern 500 is listed at 11.6 ft
And yet Smart cars are legal.
Smart cars had to pass US crash test standards and have the appropriate safety equipment. The kei trucks that you can currently import and use are 25+ years old and wouldn't have even passed US standards back then. Your legs are the crumple zone in these things.
I assume that new ones would have a chance, but it'd be expensive for a manufacturer to modify and certify for the US market. Small cars haven't sold well here, and the profit margins are slim.
Maybe with the recent size and price increases in autos here, well see some movement. I'd love a modern Honda kei to go with my element.
The crumple zone thing is a bit grey as the USA sells and allows trucks like the Isuzu NPR/Chevy Cab Over.
Europe and Japan all have freight trucks driving around, so I don't buy that. The fact that many states won't allow these is American truck manufacturing protectionism, nothing more. It's the same reason you can only get a 3/4 or 1 ton truck from Ford, Chevy, or Ram (chicken tax).
Cab over engine freight trucks with excellent visibility, not jacked up chevys where your view of the ground starts 20 feet in front of you
The front view from a freight truck is better than that of a f150.