If each cartoon circus clown that came out of a small car would have had its own model, then this is what a drag race between them would look like. Of course, there would be more flowers spraying oil and banana peels on the tarmac, but the overall picture wouldn't be that much different. All kidding aside, though, these petit vehicles are called Japanese kei cars, and there are very good reasons why they're made for passengers slightly larger than a cat.
After the Second World War, the countries that were actually involved in the worldwide conflict were resource-starved. Especially when it comes to the steel and fuel that went into manufacturing tanks, airplanes, motorcycles, military vehicles, weaponry, ammunition, and basically everything else used in the war effort.
After surrendering, Japan was one of the countries that felt the sting of financial collapse the most. Out of this, the need for smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles was born.
The first time these "little engines that could" saw the light of day was in 1949. At first, they were severely lacking power, having 150cc four-stroke or 100cc two-stroke engines. Through the years, the manufacturers kept increasing their performance output bit by bit, and by 1990, they ended up having 660cc mills.
This brings us to today's race, with all our contestants having 660cc 3-cylinder turbocharged engines capped at 63 hp (64 ps). While the ponies are equally "stabled" across the board, the differences come from the torque, weight, and drivetrain variations.
The Daihatsu Copen has 80 lb-ft (108 Nm) of torque, but the others, like the Autozam AZ-1, Suzuki Alto Works, and Suzuki Cappuccino, have just 63 lb-ft (85 Nm). Lastly, the Mitsubishi Minica Dangan has the least amount of torque, rated at 55 lb-ft (75 Nm).
Before we get started, there are a couple of interesting things I'd like to point out about the fanciest out of them all, the Autozam AZ-1. The original version of this little red "winged warrior" was inspired by the two-tone color scheme of the Ferrari 512BB, while also rocking the side strakes design borrowed from the Ferrari Testarossa. But the coolest feature is the DeLorean DMC-12-inspired gullwing doors.
Less than 4,400 units were ever built in just over three years, and you can clearly see that a lot of passion was put into the 1980s Japanese Kei car. It's no wonder, seeing that the development was led by Toshihiko Hirai, creator of the original Mazda MX-5, also known to all the Need for Speed: Underground players as the Miata.
Now back to our race, at the starting line, the Autozam AZ-1 took off with all of its might, leaving the others to fight among themselves. It crossed the 1/4-mile finish line first in "just" 18 seconds flat. The Daihatsu Copen came in second at 19.4 seconds, the Mitsubishi Minica Dangan was third at 19.8 seconds, the Suzuki Alto Works was fourth at 20.4 seconds, and finally, the poor Suzuki Cappuccino completed the 1/4-mile in 22.2 seconds.
A couple of 1/2-mile roll races followed soon after, but aside from small variations, nothing much changed in terms of positions occupied. The AZ-1 came in first during these events as well, but it also won the entire day, by beating everyone else at the final brake test. This race was set up by Mat Watson from the UK-based "carwow" YouTube channel.
Codrin just loves American classics, from the 1940s and ‘50s, all the way to the muscle cars of the '60s and '70s. In his perfect world, we'll still see Hudsons and Road Runners roaming the streets for years to come (even in EV form, if that's what it takes to keep the aesthetic alive). Full profile
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