October 21, 2026 Farhad Musazada

Kei Truck or Kei Van? How to Choose the Right Japanese Mini Work Vehicle

By Farhad Musazada, owner of Skyline Kei Trucks. Last updated: October 21, 2026. Based on Suzuki, Honda and Daihatsu catalog data for 1999–2001 kei trucks and vans, and Texas Senate Bill 1816; manufacturer spec sheets and the Texas statute checked October 2026; figures are Japanese catalog values (sources at the end). General information; figures come from the sources listed at the end.

Key facts

Same footprint, taller box: Both bodies are 3,395 mm long and 1,475 mm wide (133.7 by 58.1 in). A van stands 1,855–1,880 mm (73–74 in) tall; a truck 1,745–1,790 mm (68.7–70.5 in).
Rated load: Trucks: 350 kg (about 770 lb). Vans: the same 350 kg with two people aboard, 250 kg (about 550 lb) with four. Suzuki's 1999 Every spec sheet prints both figures.
Load floor: Truck bed: 1,940 by 1,410 mm (76.4 by 55.5 in), 660 mm (26 in) off the ground. Van floor (1999 Every): 1,695 by 1,340 mm (66.7 by 52.8 in) with two seats, 925 mm (36.4 in) long with four.
Seats: Trucks seat two. Vans came as two-seat cargo versions (Honda PRO-A and PRO-B, Daihatsu 2-seater) or four-seat versions with a fold-down bench (Honda SDX and TOWN, Daihatsu Deluxe, Suzuki Every).
4WD on both: Part-time 4WD on the Every, Carry and Hijet Cargo; Honda's real-time 4WD on the Acty truck and van; 4WD on every Subaru Sambar. Low range and diff locks are truck-only farm versions.
Texas paperwork: Identical. Senate Bill 1816 defines a miniature vehicle by its tires and federal compliance, not its body. See the Texas title and registration guide.

Truck or van: the one-minute answer

A kei truck and a kei van are built to the same Japanese rules and, at each maker, on the same running gear. The choice is the body. The truck gives you an open bed with three fold-down sides and two seats. The van gives you a lockable box with sliding doors, and either two seats with a long floor or four seats with a short one. The FAQ has the short version; this guide has the numbers.

	Kei truck	Kei van
Body	Open bed, three fold-down sides	Lockable box, sliding side doors, rear hatch
Seats	2	2 (cargo versions) or 4 (bench folds flat)
Rated load	350 kg (about 770 lb)	350 kg with two aboard; 250 kg (about 550 lb) with four
Load floor	Bed 1,940 by 1,410 mm (76.4 by 55.5 in)	1,695 by 1,340 mm (66.7 by 52.8 in) with two seats; 925 mm (36.4 in) long with four (1999 Every)
Height	1,745–1,790 mm (68.7–70.5 in)	1,855–1,880 mm (73–74 in)
Weather and theft	Tarp or bed cap for rain; nothing locks	Dry, out of sight, locks
Awkward loads	Tall, dirty, wet or bulky; forklift loading	Long flat loads inside (Acty Van: 2,640 mm, 104 in)
4WD	Yes; low range on some farm versions	Yes; no low range
Texas paperwork	Miniature vehicle under SB 1816	Same

Figures are Japanese catalog values for the 1999–2001 generation we import most, mainly from Suzuki's 1999 Every and Carry spec sheets and Honda's Acty data. Daihatsu's Hijet Cargo has the same length and width.

How much can a kei truck or kei van carry?

The weight rating comes from the kei class, not the body: 350 kg (about 770 lb) for a truck, and for a van 350 kg with two aboard or 250 kg (about 550 lb) with four, since passengers count against the load. What differs is the shape of the space.

The truck bed

The 1999 Carry and the 1999–2009 Acty share the same bed: 1,940 mm long by 1,410 mm wide (76.4 by 55.5 in) with 290 mm (11.4 in) sides, on a floor 660 mm (26 in) off the ground. Daihatsu stretched the 1999 Hijet bed to the same 1,940 mm. All three sides fold down, so the bed takes a pallet, a mower, gravel and anything taller than the sides. With the sides up you lift over about 950 mm (37 in); with a side down you slide things on at bed height.

The van floor

The 1999 Every's cargo floor is 1,695 mm long and 1,340 mm wide (66.7 by 52.8 in) with two seats in use, and 1,180–1,205 mm (46.5–47.4 in) tall. With four seated, the floor behind the bench is 925 mm (36.4 in) long. Honda's launch release for the 1999 Acty Van lists a fully flat floor 2,640 mm (104 in) long in the SDX and PRO-A versions.

Two seats or four?

Every kei truck seats two. Vans came two ways. Cargo versions have two seats and a flat floor behind them: Honda's PRO-A and PRO-B (the PRO-B adds a partition) and Daihatsu's "2-seater" Hijet Cargo. Four-seat versions add a fold-down rear bench: Honda's SDX and TOWN, Daihatsu's Deluxe, and the 1999 Every, whose sheet lists seating as two, or four with the bench up.

Four seats change the math. The rated load falls to 250 kg (about 550 lb) with all four filled, and the floor behind the bench shrinks to under a meter. A four-seat van is the only kei body that moves a crew and their tools; if the bench would stay folded, a two-seat cargo version gives you the longer, flatter floor.

Daihatsu also built the Atrai, the more passenger-minded version of the Hijet van, as a separate line from 1994; we list it with the kei vans. The rear bench in any 1999–2001 commercial van is a work bench, not a family-car seat; sit in one at our lot first.

Weather, security and loading

A van keeps cargo dry and out of sight, and it locks while you run into a store. A truck bed is open; a tarp or bed cap handles rain, not theft.

Loading is where the truck fights back. Its bed is a flat table with sides that drop, so a forklift or two people with a heavy box have straight access from either side. A van loads through a door opening, which rules out forklifts and turns bulky items into a puzzle. For dirt, manure, gravel or anything that leaks, the truck is the right tool, and a dump body tips it out for you.

How do they drive, and can you get 4WD?

At each maker the van uses the truck's engine and transmissions: Honda's 46 PS E07Z in the Acty truck and Acty Van, Suzuki's 657 cc F6A at 50 PS in the fuel-injected 1999 Carry and Every, and Daihatsu's 659 cc twin-cam at 48 PS in the 1999 Hijet truck and Hijet Cargo. Suzuki went one better in the van: the 1999 Every was also sold with a 60 PS intercooled turbo, against 56 PS for the Carry truck's turbo.

The van is heavier. Honda lists the Acty truck at 790–870 kg (about 1,740–1,920 lb) and the Acty Van TOWN at 910 kg (about 2,010 lb). With the same engine, expect a little less urgency when loaded and, in our experience, more sway in a crosswind. Fuel tanks are shared: 40 L (10.6 gal) at Suzuki, 37 L (9.8 gal) at Honda.

Four-wheel drive exists on both bodies. Suzuki's 1999 Every (DB52V) and Carry (DB52T) use part-time 4WD, with a two-speed high/low transfer on the truck only. Daihatsu's 4WD Hijet Cargo versions are part-time as well. Honda put its self-engaging "real-time" 4WD on both the Acty truck and van. Subaru offered 4WD on every Sambar, truck and van alike. Low-range and diff-lock farm versions are a truck specialty, so a van is the wrong pick for crawling across a muddy pasture in low gear. The systems are compared in our Hijet vs Carry vs Acty vs Sambar guide and the 4x4 FAQ.

Is the Texas paperwork different for a van?

No. Senate Bill 1816 (2025) defines a "miniature vehicle" by how it is built, not by body style: a motor vehicle that runs on four or more tires and complies with applicable federal law, and that is not a golf cart, neighborhood electric vehicle, off-highway vehicle or custom vehicle. A kei van meets that definition exactly as a kei truck does. Both count as motor vehicles for titling and registration, and both may be driven on public roads once titled, registered and able to operate within the traffic laws.

The steps are the same for either body. Every vehicle we sell comes with its Japanese export certificate and English translation, the U.S. Customs entry, DOT Form HS-7, EPA Form 3520-1 and a bill of sale from Wideway Motors LLC. You take those to your county tax office within 30 days, get the VTR-68-A VIN inspection, show proof of liability insurance and pay the 6.25 percent sales tax; we do not title or register vehicles ourselves. Texas ended annual safety inspections for non-commercial vehicles on January 1, 2025, so neither body needs one. The step-by-step, with fees, is in our Texas title and registration guide.

Which should you buy? Match the body to the job

Start from the load, not the looks. Tall, dirty, wet or forklift-fed loads are a truck job. Anything that must stay dry, locked or alive is a van job. If people ride along, count them.

The job	Pick	Why
Feed, fencing, hay, water tanks	Truck, 4WD	Side loading; low range and diff locks are truck-only
Deer lease and hunting camp	Truck	Coolers, feeders and game in an open bed; see the deer lease guide
Dirt, gravel, mulch, brush, manure	Dump truck	A kei dump truck tips it out
Parcel, food or flower delivery	Van, two-seat	Dry, lockable; sliding doors open at a tight curb
Mobile workshop: HVAC, plumbing, electrical	Van, two-seat	Tools stay locked and dry; shelving bolts to the floor
Dogs, grooming, pet transport	Van	The animal rides in the same cabin air as you
Camping for one or two	Van	Floors from 1,695 mm (5 ft 7 in) to 2,640 mm (8 ft 8 in)
A crew of four plus gear	Van, four-seat	The only kei body that seats four; load drops to 250 kg

Still torn? Bring the thing you plan to haul to the lot, where our kei trucks and kei vans sit side by side. Five minutes with a tape measure beats an hour of reading.

Frequently asked questions

Can a kei van carry as much as a kei truck?

By weight, yes. Both are rated for 350 kg (about 770 lb) in two-seat form; a four-seat van drops to 250 kg (about 550 lb) with four people aboard. By shape, the truck takes taller and bulkier loads over its drop sides, while the van protects what it carries.

Do kei vans come in 4WD?

Yes. The 1999 Suzuki Every and the Daihatsu Hijet Cargo were sold with part-time 4WD, Honda's Acty Van used real-time 4WD, and Subaru offered 4WD on every Sambar. What vans lack is the two-speed low range and diff lock of truck farm versions such as the Carry 4WD and the Acty ATTACK. For crawling in low gear, buy the truck.

Is a kei van titled differently from a kei truck in Texas?

No. Senate Bill 1816 defines a miniature vehicle by its four or more tires and its compliance with federal law, not by its body. A van and a truck bring the same documents to the same county tax office, get the same VTR-68-A VIN inspection and pay the same 6.25 percent sales tax. We supply the import paperwork; the buyer does the titling.

Can two people sleep in a kei van?

In the right one. Suzuki's 1999 Every sheet gives a two-seat cargo floor of 1,695 by 1,340 mm (5 ft 7 in by 4 ft 5 in), and Honda's 1999 release lists a 2,640 mm (8 ft 8 in) flat floor in the Acty Van SDX and PRO-A. Measure the specific van at the lot, because floor length changes with the seat layout.

Sources

Written by Farhad Musazada, owner of Skyline Kei Trucks

Farhad imports more than 300 kei trucks a year to Houston and meets buyers at the lot at 6100 Harvey Wilson Dr. He writes these guides from the paperwork our buyers take to the county tax office and the official sources listed on each page. Spotted something out of date? Email us and we will check it.

Ready to look? Browse kei trucks for sale in Houston, see what is in Houston now or arriving soon, or call or text (713) 385-9798.

All vehicles are sold by Wideway Motors LLC as is, with no warranty.