57 Articles
Official
Daihatsu FC凸DECK concept gives everyone the finger

Japanese kei cars may be defined by their small size, but we know and love them more for their wacky shapes and names. And the all-new Daihatsu FC凸DECK nails all three. Heading for a debut in a few weeks at the Tokyo Motor Show, this diminutive concept grabbed our attention not only with its quasi cab-over semi-truck styling but also its snicker-worthy name, which includes a symbol

Video
Honda N Box + has incredible versatility as oddly humorous JDM video shows

We want the Honda N Box +. Strangely enough, this video spot, shot in Japanese and gushing with production values that are a bit foreign to us, makes us want the little Honda even more. You see, we don't need to know Japanese to see that the kei car's 'universal bridge' feature isn't a gimmick - it actually looks extremely convenient - and that the car's multi-space system takes interi

Rumormill
Suzuki considering Cappuccino revival?

It's not a secret that a few of us here at Autoblog have a crush on Japanese Kei cars. The diminutive sizes and cheeky looks of most of the segment are certainly endearing factors, but it was the sporting Kei cars of the 1990s that made for the most delicious forbidden fruit.

Official
Daihatsu D-R concept looks like a Copen successor

Daihatsu, everyone's seventh-favorite Japanese automaker, is making big waves at the Indonesian Motor Show this year. Typically writing a sentence like that one would preclude such news to follow from, well, being newsworthy here in the U.S., but we've always been such fans of Daihatsu's cheeky Copen convertible Kei car that we couldn't r

Official
Honda's versatile little N Box+ hits the scene

Last November, Honda introduced the N Box, an all-new kei car, and it has been a great success to date. Less than a year on and with nearly 100,000 sold, the automaker has introduced the N Box+, an evolution showcasing the additional possibilities of the microvan.

Report
Honda N600-derived retro city car revealed?

A spate of images depicting what looks like a new kei car from Honda have jumped online. The diminutive five-door looks to have borrowed its lines from the N Concept 4 the Japanese automaker first showed off at the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show. That funky little machine

Official
New Mazda Flairwagon offers nothing of the sort

Joining the AZ-Wagon, AZ-Offroad, Carol and delightfully named Scrum Wagon, Mazda has completed its micro-mini line-up with this, the Flairwagon. Underneath the badging this is actually a Suzuki Palette, a five-door, four-seater kei car introduced in Japan in 2008.

Report
Daihatsu Copen, Japan's last kei convertible, ending production

You may not have ever heard of a car called the Daihatsu Copen, but it's ending production and we're sad to report it. The Copen is (or was) made by the budget Toyota brand and stands as the only convertible kei car – those being the whimsical little cars that zip around Japan – still on the market.

Report
No longer o-kei, Subaru steps away from minicar production

Subaru is walking away from minicars. According to Just-Auto.com, parent company Fuji Heavy Industries is looking to concentrate its efforts small and mid-sized vehicles moving forward. While Japan still enjoys a thriving kei car market, the vehicles aren't as profitable as their larger counterparts and require the same level of engine

Report
Honda to cut Japanese production in half over next decade

Last year, 34 percent of all Honda vehicles sold around the globe were produced in Japan, but that number could change drastically over the next decade. Reuters reports that Honda CEO Takanobu Ito told Japan's Asahi newspaper that the automaker will drop its exports to 10-20 percent over the next 10 years.

Nissan, Mitsubishi establish minicar joint venture

On Friday, Nissan and Mitsubishi announced the official establishment of a 50:50 joint venture related to their minicars sold in the Japanese market. The establishment of this joint venture builds upon an earlier agreement, signed in December of 2010, to expand the scope of cooperatio

/ 3