honda life
The
Honda Life, one of the oldest minicars, dating back to the 1970s, is getting an upgrade. As a Kei car, the Life is limited to a 660 cc inline three-cylinder normally aspirated or turbocharged engine mated to a four-speed automatic transmission. Both AWD and FWD versions abound, including the base-model Life G-Type, sporty Life Diva and premium-level Life Pastel. In addition to being the first Kei car offered with a backup camera, the Life can also be outfitted with a motorized front seat that can lift passengers with special mobility needs out of the car. As with most Japanese minicars, you'll have to wait ten years and move to Canada to get one of your own. In the meantime, enjoy a nice
Pontiac G3 Wave. Press release below the jump.
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Suzuki Wagon R Stingray
Suzuki has launched a new
Wagon R for the Japanese domestic market: the
Wagon R Stingray. Built on a new platform that increases the wheelbase for enhanced stability, the Stingray retains the same 660cc turbocharged engine in order to comply with Kei-class regulations. The Wagon R has historically been the best-selling vehicle in that class, so now with more stability and a claimed decrease in interior noise levels, its sales should be boosted even further. The biggest change looks to be the aggressive new styling, which adapts a Scion xB-style front clip and impossibly huge air dam.
[via
NihonCar]
retro
Tiny Japanese cars from the '70s and '80s are awesome, but can you really fit anything more than a small suitcase or a couple bento boxes in the back? Actually, yes. In fact, back in the '80s, Honda sold the City with a
motorcycle in the rear hatch. How did it fit? It
transformed!
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chery van
We just came across a set of new spy shots of what appears to be an as-of-yet-unknown new Chery van which to us looks a whole lot like a plus-size kei-type van. Aside from noting the dude smoking a cigarette in the drivers seat and — is that toilet paper on the dash? Whatever, we've got nothing on this one. As you may already know, we kind of dig the style of
kei cars but the size? Eh, not so much. Maybe this is a nice compromise. Looks fairly roomy to us and probably seats something like seven passengers. Heck, maybe there's a porta-potty on board. And there ya go, that would explain the tissue, wouldn't it?
[
ChinaCarTimes]
down on the street bonus edition
We have no idea what this is, but after the Peel Trident, this is probably the smallest street legal vehicle we've ever seen. And despite our best deciphering and sleuthing efforts, it remains unidentified. F-gobble-de-gook Tech was the best we could get out of it. How can someone get into this thing and feel fine about it? We'd rather take our chances on a regular scoot, at least there you can jump away from a wreck. But hey, this is a convertible and has those fancy, new fangled canvas doors.
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