Big Things in Small Packages: The Charm of Japan’s Kei Truck
Kei trucks (light trucks) equipped with a two-person seating area and a large cargo bed in the rear are used as business vehicles for a variety of industries, including agriculture, fishing, landscaping, construction, liquor stores, and motorcycle shops. While the trucks have a minimum size that allow them to maneuver easily on smaller roads, the rear cargo beds are surprisingly spacious, making these perfectly serviceable working vehicles.
The Daihatsu Hijet Truck is a representative kei truck model, boasting a maximum load capacity of 350 kg. (© Daihatsu)
The kei vehicle category is defined as having engine displacement of 660 cc or less. Despite this pint-sized power profile, though, kei trucks, affectionately called keitora in Japanese, are ready to carry boxed items, such as agricultural containers and beer cases, as well as longer items like timber and boards, and even bulky cargo like motorcycles. Since kei trucks are a light vehicle standard, running costs for taxes, insurance, expressway tolls, and so forth are lower than for standard vehicles, and they have great economic benefits as well as practicality.
Let’s give an example that shows the high practicality level of kei these little trucks. The Toyota Hilux is currently a representative pickup truck sold domestically in Japan, but kei trucks actually have a wider cargo bed than the Hilux, despite its much larger body.
