Anyone use a mini truck?

You know the kind - the ones that are street legal in Japan. They are about the size of a Gator and are made by the major auto manufacturers. I have found a Suzuki that is nice and seems to be a good deal. It would be nice to be able to do chores in the cold, rain, snow, etc with a nice heated cab. My pickups are too big to go some places and I get tired of freezing on the 4 wheeler and old Gator. It is also something I could beat up when chasing cattle or fencing. I was just wondering if anyone found them as useful as I think it will be.

Several are 'here'. Purchacers all seem very satisfied.The ones here all are 4x4.For some reason they cannot be liscenced-title issues I think.

I got a neighbor that has a Suzuki and beats the he77 out of it. In AR they are legal on state highways but not federal highways as long as they have all road lights and insurance. The only thing I don't like about it is the right hand drive and it's hard for me at 6'2" to get in and out. He has had a little trouble finding what few parts he has needed but seems to eventually find them. Personally I have a little Nissan hard body 4x4 rust bucket that I like just as well.

DR Real issues are they do not pass US epa regulations to be road legal now you are seeing a few show up here and there . We have had a couple here on the farm and in less the guy is less that normal size you just cannot get in and out of the things. The cab is cramped. Several sites offering bootleg parts but ever now and then have trouble getting drive line or things like door latch parts. Somewhat low to the ground in wet mud also.

A daily driver for me is a D21 hard body with a extended cab. rust is rampant. Purchased for $50.00. Jim

It would be a nice little chore vehicle for a small framed person. I've driven one one time. I'm 6'2" and after I got myself shoehorned into it I had a hard time getting my foot on the clutch because my knee hit the underside of the steering wheel. Then my size 13 shoe was hitting two pedals at once. Once I got it going I had a blast with it.

What is "a good deal"? There is one for sale that looks to be in real good shape for $5k. Not sure if 4wd or not.

My son has wanted one for some time and we finally bought one this spring. Really like it. Much better than our Rhino. Goes just as well in mud, but has heat and air. Sides drop so putting heavy items in bed is easy. Bed is long enough so items don't fall out. Parts seem easy to get. Would recommend one if you are less than 200 lbs and 6 feet tall. That is about as big as you want to be to comfortably get in and out.

Godfather had one, licensed and registered for road use. Put quad tires on it. Worked great got a laugh the first time he drove it to coffee, everyone laughing cause his black Labrador was driving.
Bought in Kansas, imported to Saskatchewan, then after he bought a ranger and had a few issues with it (didn't start well in the cold) he sold it in the states again. He would buy another one if a dealer was close by

They can be street legal in OK, just not fed highways. The good thing about them is you can pound them around in the pasture and still drive to town if needed. If keeping on the farm you can put aggressive ATV tires on them too. Some or maybe most of the 4x4's have selectable diff lockers too, something too look for.

I've been looking at them too. 4x4 with a dump bed sure looks useful. Seem to be less money than the high dollar modern UTVs. Cabs look a bit tight (for us westerners), but at least they have a cab! Manual transmissions are not quite as simple to drive as the autos in the UTVs, but if you're older (over 50?), that not an issue... Driving from the right side might take some getting used to. I'm thinking with the devaluation of the Yen, these things might get pretty cheap in the coming years... Please keep us posted on what you find.

You can generally buy a used small 4WD truck for about 1/2 the price of the mini trucks so why mess with the mini?

Driving from the right takes about 1/2 an hour to get used to, after that it's no different. Now, driving int he left lane...that took some getting used to!

I'd love to have one of the mini trucks. NY won't let them on the roads. They make a lot of sense to me and I'd probably fit okay at 5 10 and pudgy. But, like most things economical and common sense, the Gov't says we can't do it.

A neighbor of mine has a Mitsubishi. He put Farm Use on the doors and drives it everywhere(within 25 miles) of his place. He loves it. I put a receiver hitch on it for him. He pulls a wood splitter and a small utility trailer with it. He told me he gave 3 grand for it and it's been bullet proof.

No US company ever made a true mini-truck in the past 40 years. I've been using a diesel Isuzu 4WD PUP for years. 1985. Beats any four-wheeler I've ever used and has heat which is a plus in the winter. Nice thing about an older diesel 4WD mini-truck over some new Asian rig is cheap price and parts availability. Also - you can put plates on it and drive on the road if wanted.

They are seen in Canada semi regularly. When 15+ years old they are licensed as some sort of curiosity collector's vehicle. In japan they are registered as a motor cycle due to dimensions and engine size. I almost drove over one in Sault Ste Marie . It was between the tailights and behind a similar coloured full sized truck.
For people who just have to have a diesel run about. There may possibly, could be a chance to drop in a Kubota or Yanmar diesel. Top speed would be limited.

I wonder if you could reposition the seat for more leg room if you got a extended cab.

article about these trucks in latest Farm Show magazine, says the extended cab works better for larger fellows. I see a few of them in this area.
Dick in ND

Neighbor has a Honda mini truck, he loves it when it is not broke down. First year or so was great, then started having trouble, lots of cv joint problems, something went wrong with engine but I forgot what.

Around here,(no.KY.),guys put a SMV sign on and no license plate.They probably only drive a few miles on hiway.Mark

Kei vehicle class in Japan is about 660cc engine size max, 10 foot log between bumpers, sort of lumped in with motorcycles. safety equipment , bumper standards not up to full size car code. emissions standards different- no OBD2/3 computer so can't test to us standards most places. Up to mid 1980s some state would let them in as a standard vehicle but hassle registering started in 1970s for most- Jeep dealer I worked for in 1970s also handled the 'new' Subaru's and the few 360 Subaru's in N.Chicago area showed up at the shop- fun getting parts for a 2 stroke rear engined aircooled twin- but got to read the K class rules and US interpretation for DOT use, registration. Wisconsin let some on road as 'Farm implement', had transfer case locked in low range so top speed was less than 20 mph which was in federal transport code as rough dividing line for federal highway authority- if it did less than 20 the federals didn't want to deal with it as a 'road' vehicle and lumped it into 'farm/forestry/construction/ class for state to deal with as they saw fit. Some states seem to be lumping them in with the utility ATVs like the Rhino's- no interstate access but local roads OK with specialty or farm plates or SMV and a light on top- varies by state quite a bit. About only road licensable vehicle loopholed into US is a Bajaj 3 wheeler that can by licensed in California and most other states- since it is a trike, gets motorcycle plate, treated like motorcycle with sidecar or the newer CanAm Spyder, Dihatsu Midget 3 wheeler was another loophole in US- 1/4 ton cargo capacity in box or better but single front wheel made it like a Harley trike used by police into 1970s and a bit later- vehicle codes written ingeneral terms to allow police trikes without specificly saying police use only let other 3 wheelers on the roads. Illinois had a special class called a 'truckster' written into vehicle code 1970s when they also made motorcycle drivers license class required. A truckster didn't require a motorcycle operators license and helmet--so police officers didn't have to be retested and the old riot helmets that didn't meet DOT standards for motorcycle still legal for the police--and other truckster drivers- to use. Seems like the Daihatsu midget or a Mitsubishi copy current made is being sold in some places- and some cities are using them as traffic patrol, utility parks and street dept use. Fat tired version is seen in catalogs for farm supplys at times- that is where the Mitsubishi name seems to be applied to them as maker. RN

I work at an ethanol plant in South Dakota and we have a Mitsubushi single cab. Every employee has mercilessly beat on that poor thing but it just keeps going! Repairs to date have only been a couple of CV shafts on the front. Got the parts through our local CARQUEST store. I would take one in a minute after getting to compare their price and durability to some of the ATV side by sides that we have been through in the same amount of time. That list includes 2 Yahama 450 Rhinos (both of them had the engines go due to a poorly designed air filter setup.) One Kawasaki 4010 mule that has 3000 hrs on it but has been in the shop more than its been used due to bad u joints, drive belts going out, and all kinds of fuel injection issues. and a newly added Bobcat 3400 that was built by Polaris. Nobody is very inpressed with it. All of those Side by side ATVs cost (with cab enclosures, heaters, and windshield wipers) over double what we paid for the Mitsubushi Minicab, that was used when we got it!