In the event you assume trendy vehicles have gotten manner too massive, Vehicles & Bids has simply what the physician ordered. It is auctioning off a 1996 Daihatsu Midget II, which — as its identify implies — is without doubt one of the smallest pickups you should purchase with out going to your native grocery store’s toy part.
Unveiled in 1996, the Midget II is small even by Japan’s famously strict kei requirements. It stretches roughly 113 inches lengthy, 51 inches vast, and 65 inches tall in its smallest configuration. There’s area for 2 passengers when you get a instance with an automated transmission, however you may be driving alone if you’d like a handbook: stick-shifted fashions like the instance listed on Vehicles & Bids had been solely accessible with one seat.
You do not want a Hemi V8 or a twin-turbocharged V8 to maneuver a trucklet that suggestions the size at below 1,300 kilos. Energy for the Midget II comes from a 659-cubic-centimeter three-cylinder engine that is mounted below the seat (or seats, relying on whether or not you shift your self or let the transmission do it for you) and tuned to develop about 30 horsepower at 4,900 rpm and 37 pound-feet of torque at 3,200 rpm. That is for the sooner, carbureted fashions; later variants received an digital gas injection system that delivered the smallest of energy bumps.
We’ve not even began speaking concerning the design but — simply have a look at it! It is type of retro as a result of it is loosely impressed by an evolution of the unique Midget, which was a three-wheeler launched in Japan in 1957 and dropped at our shores in tiny numbers. Above all, it is simply plain bizarre — bizarre in the very best manner. The headlights stand proud of the physique, the entrance bumper is a chromed tube, and the spare wheel is mounted virtually vertically on the entrance finish. Is it simply me, or does it type of give off Citroën 2CV vibes if you have a look at it from the fitting angle?
Vehicles & Bids notes that this Midget II is sitting on aftermarket 10-inch wheels and outfitted with a Nardi steering wheel, however all advised it is largely inventory. Bidding at the moment stands at $5,000 with two days left within the public sale, and there is no reserve so the very best bidder is taking it dwelling.