“Keep On Moving” was Suzuki’s message at the time this Kei car was produced in 1991. If you like little cars that scream you’ll like this one! It’s listed for sale here on eBay and is located in Holiday, Florida. Currently 30 bids have pushed it to $3,000 but it has not met reserve as I write. Perhaps yours will be the bid that meets the reserve!
Kei cars are uniquely Japanese with their tiny 660 cc engines, right hand drive and space-efficient layouts. Suzuki went for the performance look (and as much as 660 cc can provide, the go to match the show) with this little box. The seller tells us there is some rust, and that’s evident in the nice closeup pictures in the auction listing.
Suzuki was proud of that twin overhead camshaft turbo three-cylinder engine! As previously noted there is some rust, but nothing terminal. It looks like it might be time for a repaint anyway. I wonder if paint shops give discounts for the reduced surface area of this small car?
The seats look pretty nice inside but possibly are not original. Amazingly, the seller tells us that the R12 air conditioning still blows cold air. Some maintenance records are included, but I should warn you that they are in Japanese!
I think this car has a lot of character. Our friends at the Lane Motor Museum even have a 1990 version in their collection although it’s not the twin cam version.
Does this Works work for you? If so, be sure and share it with us in the comments!
Oh man, these are cool, Jamie! I almost bought one in Seattle a couple of years ago but on the final inspection they found that the shock towers had heavy flaking rust and it would have been quite an ordeal to remedy that. These are great little cars if a person can get a rust-free one.
I figured this was right up your alley, Scotty!
Right up my alley as well, and in my state! I wonder…
I take that “Keep on moving” saying a different way, as in, keep on moving, nothing to see here,,,sorry, Scotty knows how I feel about cars like this, but wouldn’t be seen in it without a paper bag over my head. Suzuki wrote the book on dynamite crotch rockets, but coming from the land of 454 Chevelles and Super Cobra Jet Mustangs, I just can’t get interested in any 4 wheeler they made, although, my nephew had great luck with their XL7 SUV. I’ve never seen one of these, so apparently, I’m not alone.
Needs dual fart- can exhaust tips… and a park bench rear spoiler.😁 Have a good weekend!!!
Sad but true I love the big block 4spd of the old days but the new generation is building big power out of turboed 4 bangers.
It’s sad but true but it’s a different generation with different cars that made a impact when they were kids, the evos, supras and Subaru’s are our hemis gt500 and 454s
But look on the bright side I’m not 50 yet so hopefully I can grab the muscle cars when the boomers are gone and the market is flooded.
I can’t wait for the crash because the true enthusiast will be able to buy their dream car ,not the money hungry flippers or relatives of the collector who has passed on.
My dad has friends with half a dozen big money cars in his garage and they have friends with more ,they’re all over 70 ,what do you think will happen when they’re gone?
The market will be flooded and prices will drop
At least we can look forward to the true enthusiast can afford their dream car but no disrespect to the boomers that bought their cars because they love them..
Obviously those who come from the land of Antique Iron should take note there are other vehicles in the world other then what they grew up with. I for one don’t like seeing the same thing over and over. Thanks for showing those that appreciate an automobile for what it is….no matter who stamped and cast the metal. Different is good.
The reason people do not know about Kei cars most likely that they still rely on newspapers for their news and their computers to chime in on forums instead of looking around and noting there is a bigger world outside of North America.
The truth in a nutshell is that this little Kei car has been a forbidden fruit to anyone in America. Uncle Sam wouldn’t permit you to have one…..until it was 25 years old. Now the flood gates are open. There will be more.
This car would offer quite a bit of fun for the money. Plus unbelievable fuel economy. Think of a turbo GEO Metro/Firefly but with AWD! Too cool.
Laugh at it now. When gas gets back up to $4-$5 a gal. this will be pretty attractive to everyone in their pickups and SUV’s.
Well said @AMCFAN – I have seen a number of vehicles here on BF that I’ve never seen or heard of before, and I appreciate that enlightenment. The auto industry developed from innovation and competition, much of which comes from beyond our borders…so why not explore it?
In Finland we have 1litre of fuel about 5 dollars.
1 Gal price is then 15-16 $
Sick Government ripoff of you citizens. $2.75.9 in Central Florida, and that’s up about 40 cents/gal. since earlier this year.
What AMCFAN said……The eighties and nineties mindset and budgeting of Japanese car companies was a thing to behold-so many innovative designs-like in postwar America until about 1965 or so. These kei cars are interesting to anyone who understands that innovative engineering in a small package is an elegant thing. Count me in that group with love and peace to all.
I don’t have anything nice to say about this Barn Find so I will keep quite.
Oh, IDK, Jimmy, I feel that’s what the comment section is all about, as long as you don’t use expletives, or rip on someone that does like it, you don’t have to like this car, I don’t. Maybe in a land where everybody drives these, be ok, but I want more than an inch of metal between me and that Ram 3500 barreling down my back, and I haven’t ridden in an Asian vehicle that rode nice, or had decent seats yet, the smaller the worse it gets. They are promoting the engine, and I’m sure it’s a powerhouse for what it is, but you can’t possibly compare this to some of our cars. A ’91 Grand Prix was still a nice car.And what about parts? Everybody forgets that when admiring these cars. I can hear it now, a ’91 WHAT? ( click) or, yeah, I’ve got a rf strut, gonna cost you $2,000 American dollars( plus shipping from Taiwan) Have fun with that.
There is NO comparison to anything on the American market that is the real allure here. What this consists of : A turbo dual overhead cam three cylinder in an attractive hatchback body that looks like a mini first gen Scion xB with a little twist of AWD that will propel this rocket ship. For something so small has it all. The only thing it shares with a 91 Grand Prix is the fact it has/had four wheels. (Not too many 91 GPs on the road anymore)
With the internet sourcing parts might be a challenge for some yes but the person who buys this car will already have a good idea Auto Zone won’t be their first stop. They will also have a daily driver and can afford to wait on parts and have the time to locate them. There is no 800 build a car parts catalogs available if there was be assured your car is like an as_hole as everyone would have one. The person who wants this wants exclusive.
I recently had a Toyota Sera another JDM beauty (not a nubie on the subject) and one google search netted page after page of sources of parts and info. Actually found what I needed with a price I could live with in the UK of all places not the home land and shipping was quick.
In comparison.Several years ago I needed a new old stock grille for a one year only 1970 AMX and the cash price one person wanted was $3500. So as long as a car has any value and someone has parts especially if it’s rare it is what the market will bear. You fix what you have or keep looking or succumb to paying Ceaser his due. Doesn’t matter the origin or brand.
Ok, I don’t mean to upstage you, not the purpose of BF’s, and I can appreciate your passion for these cars, heck, there’s a Merkur club, for heaven sake, but this is just one example, that will suck the little 3 cylinder through the air intake and it’s not a box ( never cared for the Scion either) and this is a cushy ride to boot, not pogo sticking down the highway. Enjoy, I’ll take this GP any day. https://barnfinds.com/turbocharged-mclaren-1990-pontiac-grand-prix/
Probably no room for an Accord Vtec V6…… Maybe a Busa? That would be hilarious.
Look! A baby Edsel.