Kei Trucks and U.S. Regulation: Opportunities and Obstacles Ahead

Kei trucks, also known as microtrucks, have long had a cult following in the United States, but regulatory barriers have impeded mass production and sales.[1] Recent supportive comments by President Trump have raised the possibility of increased availability of new Kei trucks and similar vehicles in the U.S. Notwithstanding the President’s statements, barriers remain, and additional regulatory steps are required before these trucks could be manufactured or sold in the U.S. for on-road purposes. This article outlines the barriers and identifies ways interested companies might address them in light of potential policy reform.

What Did the President Say?

During a December 3 press conference with automotive executives, President Trump announced that he had “authorized [Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy] to immediately approve the production of” Kei trucks and cars in the U.S. During the same press conference, Secretary Duffy stated that the Department of Transportation had “cleared the deck” of regulations prohibiting the production of Kei trucks. Days later, President Donald Trump announced via social media that he had “just approved TINY CARS to be built in America.”

What Barriers Remain?

Despite these executive branch pronouncements, legal barriers limit the sale and use of Kei trucks in the U.S. Due to their smaller-than-typical dimensions, Kei trucks would struggle to comply with numerous Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) relating to crash safety. Kei trucks currently operating on U.S. roads are permitted under a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) regulation that allows importers not to certify compliance with FMVSS of imported vehicles that are more than twenty-five years old.[2] (Other minitrucks are used exclusively off-road and therefore do not need to comply with the full suite of FMVSS.)

But new Kei trucks designed for highway use are de facto banned: an importer or manufacturer of a new vehicle must certify that it complies with all FMVSS.[3] And while NHTSA regulations allow low-speed vehicles (LSVs) to comply with a limited set of FMVSS, most Kei trucks are too powerful and/or large to qualify under that category.

Federal law allows manufacturers to seek temporary exemptions from compliance with FMVSS.[4] But NHTSA grants exemptions in limited circumstances, and agency consideration is often protracted. Furthermore, exemptions are typically limited to 2,500 vehicles per year and subject to time limitations.

Over the last year, as ADS/AV technology has improved to the point of commercialization, NHTSA and DOT have indicated that they intend to make it easier for manufacturers to seek exemptions for autonomous vehicles and has granted an exemption to Zoox for demonstration purposes. To date, however, NHTSA has not granted any petitions for exemption for permanent, full-scale commercialization of autonomous vehicles. In short, the exemption pathway is unlikely to be a reliable option in the near term.

How Can Covington Help?

Vehicle manufacturers interested in new, highway-use Kei truck commercialization have a plausible path forward in the current regulatory reform environment. DOT has expressed a commitment to “rescind, withdraw, or amend burdensome regulations that do not enhance safety,” and its Regulatory Reform Task Force has already proposed rulemakings amending or withdrawing several FMVSS.[5] NHTSA could similarly initiate a rulemaking modifying the application of certain FMVSS to Kei trucks, as it has for low speed vehicles under 49 CFR 571. 

Covington’s vehicle safety team is well-positioned to assist Kei truck manufacturers develop and implement a regulatory reform strategy aimed at reducing barriers to commercialization in the U.S.

If you have any questions concerning the material discussed in this client alert, please contact the members of our Litigation and Investigations practice.