For Canadians - Toyota 4x4 Diesel Camper Van

[TroySmith80]

Very cool, wish it could be brought into the US, although the right-hand drive would be odd! Looks like a decent (not fantastic) layout, and probably comparable in size to a westy? I rode in HiAce vans in Peru and it seems like, to my memory, they were larger than a Vanagon. But they may come in many different lengths.

http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/rds/c ... 98814.html

http://www.silkroadautos.com/toyota/lh1 ... 9.92f5.htm

Looks like the dealer may have a lot of other cool rigs as well.

[witoke]

Those are the sorts of choices I wish we had here though that pop-top canvas looks like it would flap like a bastard in any kind of wind. I for one don't know why the Japanese have not imported some of the fantastic utility vehicles they sell all over the world.

[Zeta]

There's a 25% tariff on trucks imported to the US to protect the industry. It's why almost all "imported" trucks are now made in the US, and why the Sprinters were assembled in Germany (or Turkey if I recall), disassembled, shipped to South Carolina and reassembled. Who knows, maybe it's the only reason we still have full size Ford vans to build into SMB's.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicken_tax

Z

[vwteleman]

There are many of these vans in Vancouver, particularly the Mitsubishi Delica 4x4. There are also a few Toyota Prados, Defenders, etc. My understanding is that Japan creates artificial demand for new vehicles by imposing high taxes and rigorous and expensive safety inspections on older vehicles. Japan therefore exports a huge amount of used vehicles that are in great condition but effectively un-sellable in their own country.

Most vehicles go to right-hand-drive countries, but there has been an increasing demand for 4x4 vans up here. They must be older than 15 years in order to be admissible without meeting safety regs (i.e., not being LHD). I have heard rumours, though, that Transport Canada is trying to raise the limit to 25 years which would effectively curtail imports. Recent studies have suggested that RHD vehicles have a 40% greater risk of being involved in a collision.

I thought about a Delica briefly before getting my Ford. Wasn't as worried about the RHD being in a collision as I was about my son or dog jumping out of the left-hand sliding door right into traffic when parked at the curb!

Cheers,
Brent