Mini trucks doing 60 miles per gallon

[mary]

Hi all,
i recently talked to a car dealer in california who can take a japanese mini truck like a suzuki carry/pick up or dump truck and modify it to make it street legal in USA, give it vin number and title, give it the EPA sticker, then ship it over to hawaii. i like the idea of these trucks because they are 4 wheel drive, great for farming or going around town as they do super milage, some do as much as 60 miles per gallon, great savings on gas and still are a truck, they can haul 750lb or better, plus new they are about 12 grand in total. used are way cheaper like 5 grand.
i am wondering if anyone on this forum ever imported one and if so, were you able to pass safety check and get it registered as street legal on this island? the dealer did tell me he sold several of these to this island, but i haven't seen any on the road as of yet.

any info woudl be greatly appreciated.
mary

[dmbwest]

I've seen a couple but only around the airport.

Mary, would you post the link to Cali dealer ?

aloha,
pog

[csgray]

I wonder if a deal could be had if a group of people bought multiple vehicles at the same time? We need another vehicle and really want a little pickup like the mid 80s era Toyota extra cab we used to own, but no one makes anything even close.

Carol

[Bob Orts]

Word of caution. Kei class vehicles are governed by individual states laws. Each state can ask for and receive an exemption to allow these vehicles on public streets within that state. These exemptions usually come with stipulations for use such as not being allowed on streets with speed limits over X mph. Others allow them on 2 lane roads but not 4 lanes.

There are a few states that do mandate off-road or utility vehicle be licensed or titled, but they may still not allow them on public roads.

Hawaii has no regulations, laws or provisions for Kei Class vehicles to be used on public roads. They would be the same as an ATV or golf cart on Hawaii regardless of its compliance with registration, titling or environmental regulations elsewhere.

You can view the information here:
[urlhttp://www.iihs.org/laws/minitrucks.aspx][/url]

[Rob Tucker]

Forty years ago, while living in London, I bought an Austin FX4 taxi and shipped it home. It was 1971 and I was impressed with a car that could seat seven people, had a smaller turning radius than a Volkswagon and got 40 mpg (diesel). And it was cheap to buy. I figured if a British cabbie could make a living with it it had to be damn efficient. I was right. I drove it cross county twice.

My US diesel mechanic assured me that if I turbocharged it (a 4 cyl Perkins) I could get about 60 mpg. It had a large fuel tank and if I had done that I could have made it from NYC to LA on one tank of gas. Unfortunately I never got to test that out. The Austin's weakness was it's electrical system. Lucas Electrics. Lord Lucas was known humorously in England as the Lord of Darkness.

But I do have to wonder that if that capability was available forty years ago why can't we achieve this today? The Austin cab was not, and is not, a tiny lightweight vehicle. It was a simple practical design that is largely still in use.

[Royall]

I remember seeing the little Suzuki Samurai running around Kona in 1982 while there on vacation. Loved the looks and wanted one! Got back to the mainland and tried to buy one.... No luck, only available in Hawaii! Hopefully it will be the case with this little jewel? Unless all the existing dealers put the stop to it..... Might cut into their bottom line?

Royall

[mdd7000]

It is a combination of EPA and safety regs that keep one from importing vehicles if you want them to be legally driven on the road.

Plus, a 750 load isn't much at all. You have to add in the weight of driver and passenger and subtract from that amount.

[d96778]

Mary...Have you seen this listing on today's Cragslist?

PostingID: 2195816508

Would this be something like what you're looking for?

Dee

[Carey]

You may want to check in with Orchid Isle Ford. They sold "utility off road" small engine, low speed, high mpg trucks a few years ago, some were electrics.

[mary]

Thank you Carey,
will look into the Fords as you suggested.

To Dee,
thank you for that link on craigslist. yes thats a similar truck
that i would be interested in but that one does not
have a vin number, no EPA sticker and no title, so without and EPA sticker wich is federal safety standard sticker, it would not pass the safety check, so yes the truck is simular to what i want just not with the right papers. I did call the Hilo DMV today and they told me that if the truck has an EPA sticker, then it should pass safety check here in hawaii, and if anything passes the safety check then it could be registered and put on the road with plates. i am still leary about it, looking into it as i am not entirely sure if all of it is acutally true.

to Pog, i don't have the link to the dealership, but the guy i talked to was named Bob and he works with www.best-used-tractors.com, i am going to get his number from my husband, he wrote it down somewheres and will post it soon. if you call bestused and ask for bob to call you back in california, he will and talk to you about the trucks and paperwork.

and to someone who said 750lb aint much to carry, i agree but for short trips to hilo to get food, or go to work or load a few things at home depot or go to the beach off road, or move stuff on your farm, or haul some trees in buckets, ext, its ideal as oppose to taking a regular truck and getting a lousy 17 miles to a gallon. with gas going up and soon to hit 4 bucks and probably more, its something really to consider, a very small truck instead of a big monster you see being driven all over the place.