Can the Suzuki Carry Mini Truck survive the 4x4 Alpine loop in Colorado?

We put our 1992 Suzuki Carry Mini Kei truck to the test to see if it could four-wheel with the big boys on the Alpine Loop in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. Give a watch to see if the Mini Truck can answer the challenge.
0:00 Intro
0:35 The Kei Truck
2:53 Modifications
4:05 Base Camp Lake City, Colorado
4:55 Leaving Base Camp for the Alpine Loop
5:15 Support from Scott in the Delica
5:53 Side-by-Sides
6:22 Ute Ulay Mine & Capitol City
7:24 Whitmore Falls
8:01 Airing down the tires
8:48 Breaking free of tree line
11:11 Engineer Pass, 12,800ft
12:27 Decent towards Cinnamon
13:15 Cinnamon Pass, 12,620ft
13:53 Animas Forks Ghost Town
14:38 Feeling Confident / Cinnamon Pass
15:47 The reason to 4x4
18:18 Mission Accomplished
Directed by Jeremy Heslup
© Valkyr
@glenshellyauto
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[@namaan123]

The fact that Americans are comfortable about buying 25+ year old imported trucks is really a testament to Japanese quality.

[@usafman8864]

For some reason I thought the ones that were being built today were able to be sold in the u.s. The fact that we can only buy used ones kindof ruins it.

[@VcottntailW]

We've been waiting 25 years for these!

[@kristoffermangila]

Here in the Philippines, we buy 'em brand new! BTW, the latest version is powered by a 3-cylinder diesel. We also get used ones from Japan, although it needs to be converted to left-hand drive.

[@bryanbrowning5746]

@@usafman8864 you can buy new ones, but they are wicked expensive compared to these older trucks. There’s a company in Ronan, MT selling them for $22,000 and up.

[@jackmountain8503]

Since Americans are still buying 100 year old American trucks...why not buy the young Japanese ones?

[@rubenluna2839]

“In case we need to recover a stuck jeep or 4Runner” 😂

[@ryukarrots8903]

haha

[@hijetoffroad4757]

I'm glad to see someone else work their truck off road. 80% of my truck's use is serious off road exploring and adventuring, and my little Daihatsu eats it up with no problem. Many people with side by sides are amazed when I pull up in my truck at almost inaccessible mountain tops, having traversed 'supposedly' impassable quad trails with creeks etc. These little trucks are the best bang for the buck one can get!

[@VidadeAP]

That’s awesome you make me wanna buy one now 😂

[@brandonboulton2776]

​@@VidadeAP swapping in an F8A engine into my 88 DB71T Carry. I'll be out there getting muddy again soon.

[@flipa.441]

is the f8a the 4 cyl engine? @@brandonboulton2776

[@sincerewyd2285]

I know vehicles aren't sentient creatures. But, the character and background of that mini truck really makes it feel like it's conscious about what the little guy is doing.

[@kingkinit8120]

Kei Trucks are all over the Philippines since they started being brought here. Now, it's part of the way of life of many. They are capable little trucks, been using them in our farms.

[@free2roam674]

I have just moved here and I have the motorbike of Kei trucks, a Honda XRM 125. Once I settle in here I will be getting a Kei truck. I am from Canada and so many expats buy huge pick ups and SUV's. The roads are narrow, chaotic and people park everywhere. You need something small and nimble, it will be a Suzuki Kei minivan for me.

[@escargotiskuhol]

I remember traversing Mt Apo (highest mountain in the Philippines) in a Prado and was having some challenges, and in came a Kei car as if we were in a flat road 😅

[@drrrw]

Best mini truck production video to date. This content isn't just the car itself but the idea of ownership and adventure preparation. Breathtaking views is eye candy. Thanks

[@mattfleming86]

I'd absolutely love to have one of these to use for arborist/tree work. Boxed in there would be PLENTY room in the back for tools and most of our climbing/felling/rigging stuff is not that heavy. It would be nice to he able to drive right up to the site, get set up quickly, and then drive the mini out of the work zone. My distant neighbor has one and he LOVES it for farm use.

[@leofernekes343]

Somehow we lost our way making evermore ridiculously larger, heavier vehicles, we need to rethink and scale down, these mini trucks are a great example.

[@BRIDGEBURNERSTV]

Not only does the mini survive in the land of the giants, but it also has its own place, where none of the giants can even go. Proud Carry owner here, and my brother also even runs support in his Delica. Happy adventures, man.

[@222FlowFilms]

This was shot and produced so well!!!!! Makes me want a mini truck more than I already did

[@morganlewis2667]

Here in rural Japan "Kei" Vehicles are ubiquitous. I have a 4wd Daihatsu van that would be a cool project to turn it into a camper but I need the load space for utility. Japanese in the automotive know are rightfully proud of this engineering design of Henry Ford X WW2 Jeep. Pure utility and reliability. I think I can, I think I can.

[@tadahiromurooka]

Hello. I am Japanese from Japan. I couldn't have imagined how Americans who are taller than many Japanese found the advantage of the Kei truck and came to love such a small car! I enojyed this movie=) Thanks!! By the way, I like Delica of the first model. But there is no such old models at the market in Japan any longer. New delica are too modern for me while the old models are very fitting to muddy road in its design.

[@danyhimawan1795]

Here in Indonesia, 80s style Delica L300 still produces, on sale and used as it is....

[@joshuasouribio5984]

We have the same car for 8 years and it get us in places we didn't imagine and expect. Such a great car with its 4 wheel drive it really does the thing that a mini truck does.

[@calenbolo]

Huge thank you to your production team, camera man and their knowledge on what to use to make this so beautiful. What a fantastic video !

[@LARGEONE71]

I drove mini trucks all over the world in the military and they never let me down. I’ve been toying with the idea of getting one for my property but the Polaris Ranger is still kicking! Great video on some of the most beautiful passes in CO.

[@wrayjordan7188]

Have a ‘93 4x4 Carry in the flatlands of FL. What a great trip. Thanks for sharing.

[@Nellie-H]

Greetings! Sarasota & Pasco ;)

[@ZhibinHong]

as a Kei-tora lover i truly admire this video and all the efforts behind it! nice job!

[@gadgetorian-rctechgadgetsm4566]

Found your channel because of this mini truck video. You definitely need to do more mini truck stuff. This video was awesome!

[@northpointaxe6167]

I owned a mitsubishi delica 4x4 van when i lived in Lesotho, the whole country is above 5k meters above sea level. Great vehicle, eneded up driving it down into sounth Africa down to Durban (sea level) where it still ran great. Excellent vehicle.

[@africanmoose1]

This is great! I used to own a Daihatsu hijet kei and it was awesome. This 4wd kei looks awesome. Now i have a samurai which is even smaller but more capable offroad. Thank you for sharing this

[@escargotiskuhol]

Been smiling the whole time I watched this. Great video and thanks!

[@MiniTruckMatt]

wow, incredible video!! Within about 10 minutes of watching this I am already planning to take a trip and try this loop myself with my 1993 Suzuki Carry., can't wait to see more content from this channel.

[@johnlee55555]

This reminded me when I used to own this very same make and year of kei truck. I imported about 15 of these in the early 2000s but the one I kept had a working air conditioning system, diff lock, a extra low gear and a Kenwood AM/FM cassette player . Was my fishing truck when I would punch through ATV trails of Vancouver island wilderness to reach those hard to get to fishing holes. I seriously miss that truck! So never sell this one! BTW old Toyota 80's MR2/Corolla oil filters fit these trucks! Suziki Carry are considered the best selling kei trucks in Japan... like the Ford 150 of North America.

[@randygreen7871]

Amazing little truck and amazing scenery, thanks so much for sharing!

[@evolutionj]

Love that I came across this channel in its early stages. Keep up the great work this channel will blow up. Thanks for taking us along on the kei truck adventure

[@amandahuginkiss4098]

Suzuki please bring these to America!

[@zurielsss]

I think the lobbyists made them illegal to protect their trucks that cost 10x more. But you can still import it directly

[@docmorrell]

Blame the Chicken Tax. Talk worth your elected officials

[@kimutone2970]

​@@zurielsss not to mention these tiny things see more action than the average pickup truck does. That's what one gets for thinking we should make of work vehicles a family car or that a family car has any business being that big.

[@bisket2003]

"Most importantly it looks badass!" Dudes got his priorities right.

[@carlolding7699]

Thanks gentlemen. Great event!

[@moenorman356]

Really great vid! Well done. Very entertaining. Thanks for sharing it. Keep up the good and needed work in this crazy world.

[@todstrucks2919]

Great video I’ve been thinking about picking one of these up for the fun factor. You just sold me! My new 2024 resolution . Thanks happy new year.

[@lazaradamovic2813]

Videography is superb

[@discovervideo101]

I am so happy that I've come across this channel. In a world saturated with new and exciting (no judgement with a new 0-60 record!), this feels like such a healthy dose of contentment, appreciation, and enjoyment for where we came from. I love cars because of this. Thank you. :)

[@Nellie-H]

Great tour you did! We have had a '95 Suzuki Carry 4x4, F6A engine and 5 speed. Slightly lifted. Doing tours up to a Volcano in South East Asia. Also using it for driving water up to our Resort. 1000 kg load plus 3 people and going up steep mountain roads. Susi never let us down! A workhorse and a mountain goat! No new SUV could do such things after 25+ years!

[@stevenpower3780]

The landscape is phenomenal like your channel i hope you keep the good work up!

[@beezowdoodoozoppitybopbopb9488]

Niiiiiiiice. Just wheeled through there in a side by side last july. Been there a few times over the years. Was just wondering about a keis capabilities on the alpine loop, and here you are. Thanks for the vid!

[@lldrny]

Amazing video 🤜🤛👌 Love my Suzuki carry 💪

[@MrFishenough]

Love that Carry, it's been 12 years since parting with one and one like this, suddenly I want to import another!!! No Delica, been there, done that; had the 1st in Canada.

[@bryanbrowning5746]

I can appreciate how hard that little truck worked having done the loop a few times myself, on motorcycles. I’m considering buying a Kei truck for taking over the snowplow duties from my atv here in NW Montana. Overall, a great video!

[@totogelen659]

I owned one long time ago, i love that mini truck, easy to maintain, simple parts and it can be catered to your own needs, mine was 4speed and low speed differentials for hill climb, the only problem is when the carb is in trouble, you cant go on, in the past its hard to secure parts in our place here in philippines now they are many here including the fuel injected model, its very handy and capable mini truck.

[@DavidHuffTexas]

Glen, that was a sweet video! Been up to Animas Forks and Cinnamon Pass twice from the Silverton direction. Once in the back of a big Ford 4X4 pickup fitted with seats, and once in a side by side. It's a gorgeous area! Good for you and your modded mini truck!

[@user-oe4yl3qd7e]

Love your show and Great presentations ❤

[@ericbrown4081]

Wicked video with great vibes. I was sitting here smiling to!

[@dan0000023]

Spectacular scenery🙌

[@awreno]

very well crafted

[@elijahdondada]

So dope! Would love to see more kei trucks do this.

[@Varsityathelete61]

12:55 "I know its not going to do any good, but I still pucker"! I litterally laughed out loud in Tim Hortons!😂😂

[@mickell4adventures]

Great Vid hands down the best ..

[@chris-gh4cd]

This channel has such great videos. I can’t believe it doesn’t have significantly more views

[@twocrazyhens]

Restoring my '72 Suzuki LJ20V right now and am planning a similar adventure in the San Juans next summer!

[@doodskie999]

I have the same truck here in the PH. You can also get a newer minivan version like a 1997 or 1999 with a turbo and EFI engine. These things are workhorses here

[@rokko_hates_japan]

That Delica is beautiful. I have a Toyota Town Ace 4WD van. absolutely love it!

[@rokko_hates_japan]

I like that the sheep dogs look like cows.

[@fuzzi1002]

What an epic landscape, I would love to do this on a mountain bike.🙂

[@overlanding.adventures]

This is so good!!!

[@peterjorgensen3]

This almost made me cry. It's so beautiful. And I love the Kei trucks. We need more of these.

[@calvinbass1839]

I wish these were road legal in Missouri. I'd definitely get one to work out of. Preferably the the little 4x4 van. Thank you for sharing. Have a blessed day.

[@scottbehr5690]

Seriously impressed!

[@martykauffman]

this was an incredible video

[@tomdrewett1929]

That was cool - I could do that in a Ford Fiesta though, used to absolutely rag that thing when I was a forestry harvesting manager. It was so light it bounced off everything

[@vectorair1]

Awesome Video Alex and team!

[@gynat5968]

Great job Titus!

[@ExtremelyAverageMan]

Cool vid! Doing the Alpine Loop this year on my DR-Z!

[@peterhuffam1006]

You’re a man after me own heart, Glen. I’ve read somewhere that a guy transplanted a Suzuki Hayabusa motor into one of those mini trucks, with astounding results. I believe 330 Hp would be dangerous in a vehicle with that high a centre of gravity, so perhaps you might consider sticking with the stock motor while adding a little tiny turbocharger system to your rig? That would improve fuel economy and give you more than enough torque/Hp for further adventures. All that being said, I admire your tenacity and techinical driving skill, both in modifying this truck and executing the mission in your vehicle as it is. My suggestions above are purely to give you “peace of mind” in future endeavours. Keep up the great work, buddy, you’re an inspiration!

[@strtchrmstrng]

excellent video.

[@garyderksen]

Great video! I also have a 1992 Suzuki carry exactly the same as yours except I have the round headlights. Just put the 2 inch lift kit on it and all new suspension also from Muddy Bottom. I was considering doing the same thing I was actually thinking about doing the whole transamerican Trail in it! I was so glad when I found this video because this is what I've been thinking about doing this for a while now! Do you think you could do the whole transamerican trail? LOL

[@magnusatheos7301]

Such a cool little truck!

[@ScottHolcomb007]

Amazing Mini Truck!!!!

[@Colorado-Tinkering]

I am fortunate that I live in this area. I regularly ride my motorcycles and my Toyota FJ cruiser over those passes. I once encountered an entire convoy of Ford model-Ts coming down engineer pass in a late spring snow squall. One driver was all smiles and told me that it’s a little bit touch and go because the brakes are the original unaided design. Kind of puts it all in perspective doesn’t it?

[@dcf8978]

Well now I want one... seriously good video, especially for a guy with 5k subs!

[@danielwoods404]

This is awesome.

[@ephjay6t87]

I run a 2019 Hijet at work. Fuel injection is nice. I recommend a snorkel so your airfilter doesn't clog up so quickly. I enjoyed your adventure

[@jaysonschor]

These are what we used in the Navy while stationed there in the 90's for mail.

[@xa9131]

I love it!!!! I love stuff like this!!! 🎉🎉🎉

[@experimenalbob]

Awesome!

[@fluxfaze]

Drove this loop first time in a 1985 rear-wheel drive Ford Courier. Second time in a 1986 Chevrolet K30 Silverado crew cab dually, also rear-wheel drive. Third time in a 1997 2-door Tahoe Sport 4x4. Never experienced problems on any of the trips. The Tahoe was overkill.

[@caturlifelive]

your country looks so beautiful

[@sayimsgt4953]

had a Delica in Japan. I would go broke to have another. love em.

[@kiwibrett]

I reckon you missed an opportunity in the closing minute to point out the ride-on has the same size engine! My yr 2000 Hijet is fuel injected an makes around 50 horsepower and my Husky is 650cc and makes 18. 'Know which I'd rather do a mountain pass in! I've done 40 degree slopes up, down and sideways. They really are the 'little trucks that can.'

[@pedropereira5043]

Love it! This thing can go everywhere, but I have to tow it cause it's uncomfortable! 🤣🤣🤣

[@rdmgwinn]

Oh the memories! Grew up in Gunnison. CO. Covered most of that region in a 1965 International Scout. Back home on leave from the Air Force In 1975. Met up with a friend from out east. Was showing him around a bit (his car). Did the loop out of Gunnison to Lake City. That's where we where suppose to turn around and go back to Gunnison. Ended up heading up then over Cinnamon pass, Animas forks to Ouray and back to Gunnison. In a "newer" (don't remember the year) Ford Pinto station wagon, 4 speed. I walked a large percent of it moving rocks and spotting rocks / terrain. The wives also walked a lot of it laughing at us all the way. Pretty much every 4 wheeler (long before side by sides, even big red 3 wheelers or cell phones) would ask how did you get THAT here. Most ask if we had camping gear with us. A few dents and dings on the oil pan and under side but not a scratch on the exterior body. Haven't done that loop since. Going to have to "soon".

[@veriest1]

You had me at AM Radio.

[@Tws5515]

Great camerawork guys.

[@777Patriot]

Cute Truck! Having worn out numerous 4x4's; 74 Wagoneer, lifted and locked 93 Grand Cherokee, lifted and locked 97 Warngler, 2007 lifted Tacoma. I'm on my second Tacoma now. I would like to see a video of your minnie truck on PRITCHETT CANYON Moab or THE Rubicon Trail.

[@jeffwade5451]

Love these trucks,I've had 5,love the subaru trucks have 4cyl 5 sp.

[@Onikikai]

Just got our Daihatsu van and excited to get her fixed up so, we can take her around the mountains of Colorado and beyond.

[@badbusdriver7160]

Outstanding film and outstanding little truck👍👍 I run a Piaggio Porter as my work vehicle. It is basically a Daihatsu Hijet Kei truck for the European market, so rather than 660cc, I've got 1300cc (and a whopping 64bhp!). I'd be happy with an actual Kei truck, but the 350kg payload is too small for my needs (my Piaggio will carry about 600kg). I've always been more a fan of small vehicles than big ones though, and I used to have a Suzuki ST90 van (again not quite a Kei having an 800cc engine, but the same dimensions), so ending up with the Porter was kind of going back to my youth. But with the amount of smiles, thumbs up, flash of lights from other vehicles, there is no doubt that they just make people happy😁 Small is the new big!

[@chaleowin7732]

I would imagine 12hp at 11K Great video!

[@lilsharky2163]

I want one now haha. Love stuff like this

[@gregsanderson2470]

This answers our concerns about the miniz. Ty. We have a source and won't be pushed as hard as you. We will look into snorkeling for hurricane season rescue. Are there groups that do that.

[@turboash78]

Those gravel roads look super challenging...

[@lukefarris556]

A year ago I was driving home from Denver to Durango, wanted to detour and go to lake city, and we decided to not do any 4x4 because it was getting dark and we wanted to get home, routed the way home on Waze, and no joke Waze ended up taking us up and over california gulch and we ended up doing a chunk of the alpine loop at night and got spat out in silverton a few hour later

[@lelandeggleston1041]

Here for the mini truck.

[@nickzanin]

I love your truck!

[@brianvosburgh]

Just needs a little turbo for the altitude. Old school is cool.

[@atlasoverlandrecovery]

nice video! i'm planning to get the mini van da64 or da17. 4x4. it's amazing these things comes with factory diff lock. that Delica is awesome. where can I see more content of that and it's adventure?

[@nenadnedovic9246]

Love these types of videos. Hey mate what shirt you wearing in the water hole scene. Good outdoor top.

[@grampabadger]

I wonder if it would be possible to adapt a central point fuel injection system for the older KEI trucks. If a side by side can use that, the KEI should be adapted fairly simply. That would solve the flooding and loading up on the small engine.

[@HamadKiani]

These carry vans are commonly used across Pakistan as commuter vans with 10 people on rear side on bench seats and 3 at the front. They carry 13 adults with reasonable speed on roads. Cheap and easy to maintain, these little monsters face a lot of beating.

[@pushnpow]

The mini maxtrax are the icing on the cake

[@seankelleher4222]

Suzukis are so much fun.

[@dartology]

Immense and beautiful landscape. Looks like a great place to explore. Any idea how much weight did you add all up?