These are 8 of Japan's best Kei Cars
They may be small, but never underestimate the might of a Kei car
So that Japan's automotive industry could grow after World War 2, and with families needing cheap means of transportation, the Kei car began its legacy. Over time, engine sizes increased to allow more manufacturers to be involved with the segment, but these little machines never lost their lovable charm. Let's have a look at some of the best cars from the Kei class...
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Autozam AZ-1
Probably one of the most unique cars of its time, the little AZ-1 was a proper sports car, despite its size. With a turbocharged 3-cylinder engine sat in the middle and a hardly significant mass of 720 kilograms, 60 horsepower was more than enough. Although it was punching quite a bit above its weight (quite literally), being almost as costly as the less cramped and significantly more powerful Eunos Roadster, this sporty Kei car deserves to be recognised as one of the best.
Credit: RAC
Daihatsu Copen
Daihatsu are one of the most well-known Kei car manufacturers, building many excellent small vehicles, but perhaps their greatest achievement was the Copen, which, in its first generation, was sold for ten years before being succeeded by the current model. It was a convertible just like the Honda Beat and Suzuki Cappuccino, but a motorised roof made it unique. Easily one of the cutest cars you will find, this incredible Daihatsu will always be one of the greatest Kei cars.
Credit: Retro Motor
Daihatsu Cuore Avanzato TR-XX R4
Often one of the lesser-known Kei vehicles, the Cuore was just a simple hatchback. However, soon Daihatsu's tiny car took a giant step with plenty of sporting improvements. The 4-cylinder engine had the same displacement as the 3-cylinder motor, but with smaller pistons the RPM limit was able to raise. When the Cuore Avanzato TR-XX R4 was introduced with this inline-4, it took advantage of this benefit, giving the once basic car a burst of character that it deserved.
Credit: SODO-MOTO
Daihatsu Midget II
The Midget was never intended to go fast, but when it was transporting light cargo around the narrow streets of Japanese towns this Daihatsu was truly in its element; the best of its class. The frog-like headlights and spare wheel actually made it very visually appealing, despite the simplicity of the design. It was able to carry out many basic tasks with ease and became one of the most popular vehicles in all of Japan due to its reliability, low price and irresistible charm.
Credit: AutoEvolution
Honda Beat
Upon its release in 1991, many people were amazed by this compact sports car, which felt just like a miniature supercar. With a naturally aspirated mid-mounted 3-cylinder climbing all the way to 9,000 RPM, a low weight, manual transmission only and excellent handling capabilities, the Honda Beat was definitely the finest of its sporting rivals from Daihatsu and Suzuki, and I would say it was of the greatest 90s sports cars. The best Kei car of all time? Quite possibly.
Credit: Secret Classics
Subaru 360
As the company's first mass-produced vehicle, as well as the first popular Kei car, the Subaru 360 remains in the minds of many as one of the greatest automotive endeavours of all time. When Subaru introduced it, engine capacity was limited to 360cc (hence the name). It was a brilliant passenger vehicle: just over 400kg and tiny proportions meant that it was easy to drive in the congested cities of Japan. The 360 is a true legend to lots of car fans around the world.
Credit: Motorpasion Mexico
Suzuki Cappuccino
A rival to the Beat and Copen, Suzuki's cute Cappuccino was a wonderful little car, no doubt about it. The dinky inline-3 engine, in front of the driver rather than behind, was equipped with a turbocharger - the power limit for Kei cars was 63hp, but the Cappuccino had about 20 more torques than the Beat. This statistic, along with a similar mass, convertible roof and an amazing weight distribution made this a fun and formidable opponent to its two worthiest adversaries.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
Suzuki Jimny (LJ10)
The first global automotive success of Suzuki was with the original Jimny, marketed as a vehicle that was both off-road capable and compact. The original model, LJ10, used a 359cc 2-cylinder engine - this, plus its diminutive stature, meant that it classed as a Kei car. With low weight and 4-wheel drive, the LJ10 was an incredibly popular off-road car all around the world and proved that less power did not mean less capability - the Jimny was certainly a very capable machine.
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Comments (15)
I owned a Cappuccino way back when. Not from new, but they were still fairly modern and common (were they ever common?). I bought mine by accident, from our local Suzuki Dealership where it was for sale in the showroom. After getting a test drive, the salesman took my details and I fully expected my finance application to be turned down. It was not, and I thought, "why not just get the thing?" For all of you who have yearned for one of these, let me try to tell you what they're like. OK, you know all about the folding hardtop, but to be practical, you need to take the component parts with you in case the weather turns nasty, or the sun gets too hot. This means the boot/trunk is full until you attach all the bits, even then it's only really one medium suitcase in total. I am 5' 10" (178cm) and I'm pretty much the tallest one can be to fit inside the car. If you enjoy your food, you won't fit it either. It is tiny. It comes with air-con as standard, because there's no room for window winders. Mind you, when you want to use air-con, plus full heat, to defrost and dry off your windows in the winter, I've never come across a car that does it so quickly. It takes about 200yards (about 200mtrs) and you've got hot, dry air blowing out strongly and in less than a minute the windows are clear... from a cold start! They are electronically limited to 86mph (about 140kph), which is rather irritating as there is what one might call a 'hard' limiter. It kicks in and out on the limit and makes for a jerky progress. Some early buyers could get a defeat-box to fool the limiter and see over 100mph (160kph), but by the time I got mine, the source had dried up. The limiter was only there as a Japanese KEI CAR compliance feature, but the few officially sold here in the UK still had it fitted. Mine was an official UK import, so had special UK gauges, no limited slip differential and no LEDs in the high level stop light! Performance from there 660cc turbo-intercooled triple was similar to a 2 litre of the day... or a modern small hatchback I suppose? They weren't blisteringly fast, but were astonishingly good for what they were. You could drive them like a go-kart and if you could afford original spec soft compound tyres, they were (almost) unstickable. The thing is though, they wore out rather quickly and cost a lot to replace. As some of you may know, grip and handling are not the same thing, and when you exceeded the limits of adhesion, it was a bastard to catch before going into a spin. I think I spun it three times on public roads, but I wasn't hanging about, rather wringing its neck... as you do. Burnouts and doughnuts kill such a delicate machine as this, so you treated it with mechanical sympathy until you were underway... and then just floor it and overtake EVERYTHING. I chose to replace the original tyres with two different, but cheaper types. I had regular tyres for the front and a slightly harder compound for the rear. This 'loosened up' the handling and you could now get it to break away more progressively and steer it on the throttle in a long series of four wheel drifts (you had to know the road of course). Something you forget about when you dream of owning a supercar, is how wide they are. Unless you're on a track, you have no room to set them up for cornering or any of the fun stuff, you've just about got room to fit between the verge and the white line, like a truck. Tiny cars, on the other hand, have far more room to play with. This makes driving them such an enormous joy. I've driven many hundreds of different cars in my life and a good proportion I've owned as well. The Cappuccino stands out head and shoulders as the most fun you can have on four wheels, even just commuting to work. Prices are climbing fast at the moment and restoration is very expensive as parts are scarce and are so tiny that even rebuilding a turbo (which sits in the palm of your hand) costs several thousand. Buy the best!
I test drive one shortly after they came here. I loved it! It was just such a fun car to drive and I thought the performance was actually quite incredible considering my friend's lawnmower had a bigger engine.
I wanted a Beat or Cappuccino in the 90s but they were nigh-on impossible to import. Now you can get them quite easily: carfromjapan.com/cheap-used-suzuki-cappuccino-for-sale
I would LOVE to have one of them for a first car. Any ideas on what the insurance is like?
Probably depends on your age and where you live. I guess the import status adds a bit to the cost.
I am biased as we have a copen in our garage. It's a spectacular and fun little car. Also, it's impossible to be in a bad mood when driving it.
my fav kei car is prolly the cappucino
I love kei cars. I kind of want one but I'm worried about not being able to fit in them. I think they are probably my favourite type of Japanese cars
They may look small, but as an example, 6’ 5” Jeremy Clarkson fits quite easily into a Beat, as seen on 90s Top Gear
Yeah, from my research about them some won't fit people anywhere near 6 foot and others can fit really tall people