Do you think K-cars are the next revolution in the automotive industry? If so what companies do you see bringing them over?

I mean Scion's aren't the first and I don't think they will be the last of the "big little car" revolution. What do you guys think will be next car aside from the Honda Fit coming out.

Also if you can post pics of nice K-Cars that you have seen.

Stuff like this?
http://www.tokachi.org/speedway/smile01/2003report/1109k5h/031109k-smilepit03goal.jpg
Or
http://www2s.biglobe.ne.jp/~madhouse/fisco9.jpeg

i vite WTH is a K car
care to explan

Dang, look at this one!
http://www.ayu.ne.jp/user/ishikun/image2111.jpg
I dunno even know if this is what u mean, but I did an image search on google and came up with those. tiny ___ cars!

I dunno. Toyota brought over the xB and the xA, then they introduced a NEW model. SO what gives?

WAS Scion just one man dream, then taking away by corporate america?

I think as K car enthusiast, we should be outrage at Corporate Toyota introducing the TC to the scion line up?

But back to your question... AS TOYOTA RE INTRODUCE THE K CAR TREND, THEY ALSO DEMENISHED IT BY INTRODUCING THE TC. SO I ASK WHY WOULD ANY OTHER COMPANY SEE SUCESS IN BRINGING MORE K CARS OVER, IF EVEN TOYOTA DOES NOT SEE A FUTURE IN THEM?

I think Toyota wants the tC to be a kick ___ coupe, and I don't think you can have a K car be a sweet coupe without making look like it came out of some cheesy 80s cartoon. I think they wanted the tC to be a somewhat normal coupe.

every time I hear k-car I thing of the chitty cars crysler came out with in the 70's and 80's that had a plastic K emblem stuck at the end of the model name ... i.e. Reliant K ..

HotBox Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2004 12:07 am Post subject:

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i vite WTH is a K car
care to explan


a K-car is any car with 150cc or smaller motor

If ya put 20's on them....then they would be used in rap video's....i wanna see one in the flesh

http://classiccarfair.com/dodgearies_f34_400x200.jpg

a K-car is any car with 150cc or smaller motor

They are actually 660ccs or less. :wink:

I think they're too underpowered for the majority of U.S. buyers. Also, they'd have a hard time meeting U.S. emissions specs. Even though they are über small, the high-revving turbo engines produce more of a certain pollutant (because of high engine temps) than a gas-guzzluing V-8. (I can't remember exactly what pollutant it is).

Plus, I think they're too small to be widely accepted in the U.S. When you have monsterous Hummer H2s being driven around by soccer moms on their cell phones trying to drink coffee and smoke a cigarettes, I think that thought alone would deter many people from buying cars as small as the Kei cars. :P

Too bad, though. I love 'em. A turbo 660cc engine would be fun IMHO.

http://classiccarfair.com/dodgearies_f34_400x200.jpg
nice fog lights yo.

i dont think k car are going to be that big here in the us all the older people like the big ___ tahos and stuff like that and when u tell them it only has 100 or so hp the will tell u with out driveing it that it is way to slow

K cars will, no doubt, gain popularity and availibility in the US.

True true but it seems that people are kind of reverting back to smaller cars with big space with better fuel economy or at least opting to Hybrids now.

In all respect I would call our Scions (not counting the tC of course) the K-cars of the US since there presently isn't any other smaller displacement cars. I mean even the supposed small class cars are coming out with huge engines now (Suzuki Aerio, Mazda 3)

Anyway just wondering and yes I know the K-car is the ugly bastard child of Lee Iacocca but I'm talking in regards to the Japanese K-Car movement.

Would a Mini Cooper be considered a K-car...they are pretty tiny

No, a Kei Car like someone has already mentioned must have an engine smaller than 660cc--which in my opinion would never catch on nor fly here in the states. Why you ask?

Well, our highways and streets are much more elaborate and allow higher speeds of travel then the overseas counterparts, making K class cars almost "too slow" to be on US roads.

Also, people are going towards more fuel effieciency, but this is one step that most aren't likely to take. The xB isn't really a Kcar...it's a tad too big to be considered one actually, but it is the closest thing we have to resembling a J spec Kcar.

Also, with our govt crash testing system, I seriously have my doubts about whether the new Gen of Kcar's will pass or not...

As a country...we aren't poised to have these types of vehicles available as a mainstream form of transportation just yet.

Leave it up to J to put it in perspective.

Well put, bro. I know school has got that brain of yours going because that's some articulated writing.

So I guess our cars are K-cars prodigies or vice versa.

Here's a better article to sorta explain the Kei Car and it's relation to our Scions.

http://www.latimes.com/classified/automotive/highway1/la-hy-scion5nov05,0,5224879.story?coll=la-class-autos-highway1

ford pondering Youth Oriented cars :lol: :shock: :roll: i think the engines are classified as 660cc

Autoweek article:

http://www.autoweek.com/cat_content.mv?port_code=autoweek&cat_code=carnews&loc_code=index&content_code=05186603

Possible Ford/Mazda "boxes":
Spiano SS, http://www.spiano.mazda.co.jp/ss.html
http://www.spiano.mazda.co.jp/img/ss_ttl.jpg

AZ-Wagon, http://www.az-w.mazda.co.jp/
http://www.az-w.mazda.co.jp/img/top_main.jpg

"Pure Pricing Policy" with ford too? :?:

http://classiccarfair.com/dodgearies_f34_400x200.jpg

i like that mitsubishi badge on the grill too, looks so JDM. Maybe he has a 4G63 under the hood of that thing.

i think if gas prices go up then yes.

I thought K-Cars were lil cars that were cheap to buy and would "break down" so you'd hafta junk them after liek 6 years. I guess i was wrong :oops:

Yah i voted yes, because the US always likes something fresh.. and going small could very well be the next trend.

Or not...

No, a Kei Car like someone has already mentioned must have an engine smaller than 660cc--which in my opinion would never catch on nor fly here in the states. Why you ask?

Well, our highways and streets are much more elaborate and allow higher speeds of travel then the overseas counterparts, making K class cars almost "too slow" to be on US roads.

Also, people are going towards more fuel effieciency, but this is one step that most aren't likely to take. The xB isn't really a Kcar...it's a tad too big to be considered one actually, but it is the closest thing we have to resembling a J spec Kcar.

Also, with our govt crash testing system, I seriously have my doubts about whether the new Gen of Kcar's will pass or not...

As a country...we aren't poised to have these types of vehicles available as a mainstream form of transportation just yet.

great point. the US will begin its own trend with cars that are larger than K cars but smaller than the average american compact. the engine will have a larger output. they will be up to US crash testing standards. ..just a thought.

I would of thought that the U.S. was getting ready, especially since the Honda Fit looked like it was gonna make its way over, then the Nissan Cube, but then after seeing neither of them at the auto show... I'm starting to think that maybe its a little too soon to say...

From what I understand, the Fit could make it's way over as a 2005 or 2006 – I think they're doing a redesign of it, first. Car and Driver reported that is was coming over, but not within a year.

To the person that made that remark that K-cars would increase if gas went up: I couldn't agree more. Good point.

http://classiccarfair.com/dodgearies_f34_400x200.jpg

I'm glad that someone would remember that Chrysler had K-cars way back when! :)

George

I think it would be fun to one day have a Kei Car race or in the US....a Scion race. Think that would be pretty fun to watch or even participate in it.

Love the Mitsu badge on the Aires K-car!!

As many of you know, Chrysler offered two motors for the K's.... a 2.2ltr ripoff of the VW Rabbit mill ,.... and the 2.6 MCA Jet Mitsubishi four. To think those cars actually looked halfway decent when they were rolled out in late 1980 shows just how AWFUL :x the late 70's domestic cars were. Yuckkk!!!! :shock: :x

Hmm are K cars the next big thing here in the US/North America? umm I have to say yes and no. First you have to understand why the K cars are big in Japan. It's a small country, which everyone knows, and the taxes on the larger cars. In Japan they have higher taxes on the larger cars and also higher taxes due to the fuel efficiancy and emissions. Plus with the majority of the market in Japan owned by the Japanese car makers, their markets aren't as open to our cars as most people assume. It's more expensive for our companies to market there due to importation and other red tape. Plus the majority of our cars do not cater to the Japanese culture, a few exceptions, the Jeep, Chevy Astro and few sports car collectibles. Will the K cars make it big here in North America, I say this so not to offend our Canadian brothers and sisters, I answer no. If we consider that the K cars are very tiny and low hp I say no they wouldn't make it into the North American market, if they did they'd fail, due to lack of power and safety issues. We seem to be a culture obsessed with power and size. Long ingrained into our minds by the automobile ads of the 40's and 50's. Why settle for a small car when you can have a grand tourer?! That's how it's been until the UK, Italian, Fiat/Alfa, and Japanese started selling on our shores. Sure we had small cars but they lacked style and flash as we like it. With the lack of reliability on the older European cars they eventually died out or only appealed to the loyalists and hobbyists. When the Japanese entered our market they sold well during the 70's gas crunch and also won people over for their reliablility. The Japanese mind set for company loyalty and pride can account for this. We'll never have a true K car market here in North America, but I think the current small cars, Mini, Kia Rio, Aveo, Scions Xa and Xb and if the Honda Jazz makes it here then that will be our K car market. I think they will do well. Many people want a good inexpensive first car, and with gas prices fluctuating this also makes influences on peoples purchases. I think the power ratio compared to the Japanese K car will not make it feasible for a dip below the 80 hp range. Frugal mileage is great but if you go at a snails pace it'll fail. The current Jazz has 83 hp and around 50 mpg. It got rave reviews in UK magazines, again a different market than ours due to culture, taxes and emissions. The current crop of small cars are good for city commutes and great first buys, especially for younger people on a budget and who are looking for reliablilty and a trustworthy name on their car. I think the Aveo has an uphill battle because small American cars have a stigma attached to them, plus the Geo name is still haunting them. I think we will have our version of the K car market but entirely different from the Japanese market. I say support the companies that offer you what you need and can afford. I think this can spur more cars in this segment of the market and hopefully more companies will give us more choices. Listening Nissan? Bring us the Nissan Micra/March! So in summation, no we won't have a K car market if you use Japanese standards but we'll have one entirely built to our tastes if things go well, and they seem to be moving into that direction. The more they sell, the more visibility they gain in the North American culture, who knows it might open more doors for even smaller cars... if your a fan of the K cars then you can hope.

Ah.....DarkMercury-san........I see you have yet to master the ancient art of the paragraph. :shock:

I wanna see one of those K-cars on 20's with spinners.......and 16 switches, hopping down the street like a bunny rabbit................and subsequently falling to pieces. Then I'd laugh.......then I'd scratch my nuts a little...........then I'd laugh again...............then I'd go inside and take a nap, my day complete.

Anyway......if I wanted to drive around in a coffin.........I'd slap some wheels on a pine box.

KiL

I think the Aveo has an uphill battle because small American cars have a stigma attached to them, plus the Geo name is still haunting them.

a couple quick things

Aveo will have an uphill battle because its the size of my shoe and barely gets 25mpg-Wheres the economy behind that? I was going to purchase one before looking into the scion but decided not to when I found out it was designed by daewoo and saw the epa estimated mpg.

As far as "geo haunting gm" you must be crazy. geo prizm = toyota corrolla. and the 3 cylinder metro was almost impossible to kill, got over 40 mpg and was 10 times more reliable than any other american built compact. The only reason I bought a scion was because it was a toyota- similar to my first car which was a used geo that had gone through 3 previous owners then myself, and still runs to this day, it never gave me a problem and anyone that has owned a geo will tell you they were the shizot. sorry i'll go home now :roll:

I'll protest the Geo Metro testimonial.. my g/f had hers all of 2 months before it died on her, and I don't just mean broke down an alternator, but everything broke down... either way, maybe others have had better luck with them, but Ashley didn't...

Just wanted to bring this up cause i think these will be a bigger hit when gas is 2.50 a gallon in Cali and 2 bucks a gallon every where else, yeah you have a big SUV but it takes 7.50 to get to work.
I kniow my girl and I are buying an xB cause of the gas milage, cool factor and the room it has. i would buy other cars if they came out here like they do in japan with AWD and or a turbo.

Do "SmartCars" qualify as K-Cars (european versions, at least?) This site sez theyre coming to the us in 2004 -

http://www.smartstore.uk.com/images/black-cabriolet.jpg

It says they get an average of 60mpg (but they only have around a 4 gallon tank!) Crazy little cars...

http://www.smartstore.uk.com/index.html

I can't wait for those to hit the market over here too, maybe now with gas so high people will trade in their SUV's for a smart car or two...

how much????????

on that website, they have different models from like $11,650 US dollars to over $18k US - seems kinda pricey, but who knows. I dunno how fast they go, but it says that they a "60 bhp turbo charged engine" , and it also has the shifters behind the steering wheel like someone was talking about in another thread today. gotta be easy to park these things!

http://www.smartstore.uk.com/images/smartbus-pic-5.jpg

bB's and Ist's definitely aren't Kei Cars, *BUT* Kei Cars are RAD. I'm actually looking for a Daihatsu HiJet similar to the one featured in MTV's Pimp My Ride. So if anyone knows where I can score one domestically, let me know!

http://www.mattguillory.com/HiJet/HiJet.gif


Peace,
m@

I think K cars rock!....I agree with scionic (Mark) that we need to have a scion race, maybe at Willow Springs?!...damn i'd wanna participate in that fa sho!... :D :D

http://www.smartstore.uk.com/images/black-cabriolet.jpg

http://www.smartstore.uk.com/index.html

I could have swore that I saw 3 these little cars on a rig heading east on the 10 about 2 weeks ago.

Bah, I was at the website for the car, http://www.smart.com and it says it wont hit the US till 2006, and it will be some new SUV model! Thats weak. There's no specs on it yet, but COMEON! Stop with the suvs already, PLEASE.

They sell it in mexico tho, and look at this cool little flash of it:

http://www.smart.com/-snm-0135155096-1078129646-0000025286-0000011684-1078794038-enm-smart/content/mx/es/smart/modelle/smartcitycoupe

I want that ish!

Do "SmartCars" qualify as K-Cars (european versions, at least?) This site sez theyre coming to the us in 2004 -

http://www.smartstore.uk.com/images/black-cabriolet.jpg

It says they get an average of 60mpg (but they only have around a 4 gallon tank!) Crazy little cars...

http://www.smartstore.uk.com/index.html

They already have them in San Francisco, I've seen several of them driving around. They would be great for urban driving, but I don't think they are really meant for cross country hauls. Also I have seen several of the Chrystler GEM electric cars (souped up golf carts- hehe) driving around here in LA.

Bah, I was at the website for the car, http://www.smart.com and it says it wont hit the US till 2006,

Yeah it may not be for sale until then but they might be bringing them out in test markets or prototyping. Now that I think about it, they were probably taking them either to Ontario or to the SD area because I know that they have some testing facilities around that area.

The one thing America has never run out of is ROOM.
If we run out of room we build a parking garage, and most of our cities are designed with automobiles in mind.
In Japan they have to BUY a parking spot, and the price is based upon the car's actual exterior dimensions (thus fold up mirrors, super compact people movers,Etc)

Their streets are very crowded and Narrow, as it is an OLD city.

England and other Euorpean countries also have narrow streets, and really expensive gas. They generally don't have long distant commuting either.

K cars are URban only vehicles. They would only be good in NY LA or some other major metropolis, and most folks would rather take a subway or bus instead of owning a car that wouldn't be good for a long drive at 75-80 miles per hour.

Our markets and needs are very different.

Well stated.

Well stated.


Thank you!

:D