Toyota is bringing back the Scion badge after a decade away, and its first vehicle is a sharp break from the youth market hatchbacks the brand was once known for. The KEI-01 is a tiny Japanese style kei truck built in Indiana, due in the United States in the second half of 2027, with a top speed of 25 miles per hour and fleet only sales at first.
Scion first appeared in 2003 with small cars aimed at younger buyers, and it was wound down in 2016. The new version, called Scion by Toyota, has a different job. Toyota describes it as an experimental brand, a test bed for ideas that would not fit its regular models. Simon Humphries, the company’s chief branding officer, said it lets Toyota challenge conventional thinking.
Built for work, not the motorway
The KEI-01 keeps to the strict kei formula. It is about 11 feet long and under five feet wide, with a 660cc three cylinder engine, a continuously variable transmission and four wheel drive as standard. It is right hand drive, and the cargo bed carries up to 600 pounds, with three sides that fold flat for easy loading.
Its speed limit is set by law, not by the engine. The truck is certified as a low speed vehicle under the federal safety standard for such vehicles, FMVSS No. 500, so it cannot go faster than 25 miles per hour. That rules out motorways, but suits farms, campuses and delivery routes. Toyota aims it at small businesses, farmers, campus fleets and delivery drivers. Sales start through selected dealers in a fleet only pilot, with no price announced.
Why a tiny truck, and why now
Interest in kei trucks has been growing fast in the United States. More than 30,000 used kei trucks have been imported since 2020, at roughly 7,500 a year, despite patchy state rules. In Japan, almost 1.7 million kei cars were sold last year out of 4.6 million vehicles in total. President Trump said last year he wanted regulators to clear the way for the small trucks.
Toyota is backing the experiment. The trucks will be assembled from knock down kits at its Indiana plant, backed by a 34 million dollar investment and about 50 new jobs. Toyota has tested unusual vehicles before, including its plan to build self driving taxis for Japan from 2027. Small vehicles are finding buyers elsewhere too: Rivian recently reported its compact R2 as its best seller in a record quarter.
For now, the KEI-01 is a curiosity with a job. It will not suit a family car buyer, and most drivers could not buy one yet. But if fleets take to a truck that sips fuel and carries half a ton, the smallest vehicle Toyota has sold in America could open the door to something bigger.
