In Oregon, Kei cars are specifically illegal, they cannot be titled or registered. Other states are following a similar path so definitely make sure you can title it before you buy it.
That's what the OR DMV suggests, but this is their own made-up policy, not law. They didn't even bother putting it in writing until relatively recently. So far they've failed to put their actively enforced kei policy into Oregon law [0]. They simply decided to stonewall a subset of 80's and 90's Japanese cars.
It's not about safety, or emissions, or top speed, or size. Titling and registering underpowered microcars from not-Japan is quick and painless. Pre-80's kei is fine too. Multiple pre-'80's Subaru 360 and Mazda R360 literally-kei cars sport current Oregon license plates, also relatively more common eventually-kei pre-'80's examples like Honda N600/Z600/S600. Also kit cars, street rods, from-scratch homebuilt cars, and literal golf carts the DMV is explicitly happy to title and register [1]. All they're unilaterally regulating is the taint of one specific Japanese initiative that they don't like.
Just for fun, kei trucks now get a vaguely worded exception. So if you feel like a gamble it could be possible to buy one and legally drive it to your mailbox or tow behind your RV. Or you'll draw an uncooperative DMV employee, and depending on where you live, zoning or your HOA might force you to destroy it if they catch you keeping it quietly locked up in your garage. The DMV can create an illegal situation that you are liable for by refusing to title a car, even though the car itself isn't illegal by law.
Oregon DMV's policies have long been inconsistent, arbitrary, capricious, and some other things besides.
[0] https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors801.html
[1] https://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/DMV/Pages/vehicle/vehicletypes.a...
Dammit. Even with his money he barely managed to scratch his own itch.
I certainly would, if the license plate would offend my aesthetics.
People do import <25 year old kei type vehicles for use exclusively on private property on large ranches and such.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Motor_Vehicle_Safety_S...
google "usa 25 year import car rule".
https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=USA+25+ye...
Whether categorically blocking kei car registrations is consistent with the laws of some of the states doing it is a question in some ongoing lawsuits, though.
Marijuana regulations and firearms (and limitations of different types of firearms) are two obvious examples. Other things like per-state family leave laws for employees, employment law, landlord tenant law as well.
Definitely! Especially here on HN. A lot of the questions & criticisms I see from people outside the US likely stem from ignorance about how the government of US is constructed. The states really are very powerful, even ~250 years into the experiment.
“Do non-americans realize that the United States is literally just a bunch of countries in a trench coat that agreed to be semi-nice to each other in order to sneak into the Big Boy Club? Because let’s be honest that’s just what the USA is”
Well the US was hardly the first to take that approach!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Countries_of_the_United_Kingdo...
However, I would point that here in the UK I suspect most people are actually completely unaware of the fact that there are multiple legal and education systems in our "country of countries".
And in fact, the states hold absolute power over the federal government because the Constitution can be amended by a two-thirds majority of the states. Absolutely noone in the federal government, including Congress and the Supreme Court, can get in their way because the federal government derives their power from the states.
The only entity that the states answer to is the people, from whom the states derive their powers.
Or 2/3 majority of both houses to propose and 3/4 of state legislatures to ratify amendments.
Your examples are actually different state laws, not different “unique” interpretations of laws, which is a pretty big mistake for someone who talks about needing to explain the situation to others.
IIRC some federal countries like Canada or India have even greater variance between states.
A different example would be emissions testing. Good ol' Michigan doesn't do it, so if you are moving to another state that does do it, it pays to think about whether your vehicle is going to pass.
In the UK you basically just need it to have some form of braking system and nothing likely to slice open or skewer pedestrians as you drive past, and be able to insure it.
Or, maybe just Scotland and NI, and Wales and England can become independent.
Yes, sorry I did not mean to give the impression that that was a major thing, just one more item that I've seen people use in creative ways. But obviously it's just a tiny footnote in a much, much larger tragedy.
> but one upside is that it gives us room to rejoin as a proper member, using the Euro, in Schengen, etc.
Can't wait.
> Or, maybe just Scotland and NI, and Wales and England can become independent.
England will put up a ton of resistance before allowing that to happen.
Though Japanese highways go marginally slower, 60mph is pushing the poor kei to it’s limits.
Lets just say I don’t enjoy sitting in a kei truck that’s attempting to do maximum speed.
These are urban vehicles, not intended for highways, except in a pinch.
The real reason is because everything is small in Japan due to a lack of absolute space. Remember, the place is a god damn island nation with mountains for its interior.
Roads are narrow, particularly in the countryside and especially if we're talking about roads crisscrossing between farms and rice paddies. Normal sized cars quite literally don't fit, much less normal sized trucks.
Consequently, out in the towns and cities you see far more normal sized cars because the roads are wider.
> In most rural areas they are also exempted from the requirement to certify that adequate parking is available for the vehicle
Kei cars have a number of prescribed limitations (yes, because space is at a premium, but so is / was fuel, metal, etc), and even have special number plates.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kei_car
Also, there are designated parking spots for them where other cars won't fit:
> Some places in the parking lots are smaller than others and usually painted with the character “軽自動車” or just “軽”. These spaces are reserved for the small “kei” cars
An owner might be able to use it as an off-road vehicle only (no title, no tag, with maybe only comprehensive insurance), but that's not the point of buying one for a lot of owners.
If you’re crushed in a Kei car they probably won’t be able to salvage much.
https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/01/health/organ-donation-motorcy...
Also motorcycles are a part of Americana history (there's no "Easy Rider" where two guys ride a Kei truck cross-country). I'm not at all sure motorcycles would be allowed if they just started popping up 10 years ago in the US, we've gotten risk averse in recent times.
They're a lot of fun though.
A pet project of @FilmThePoliceLA is filming & posting videos of cops’ personal vehicles with illegal modifications. He calls them out directly if he sees them, they never have any reasonable response.
A lot of state RMVs are starting to refuse to register these vehicles, and that's why you often see them being sold for very cheap.