DIY MINI Truck Camper Build | Japanese Kei Truck

FINALLY STARTED THE BUILD (Im Aware how impractical this is)
SHOUTOUT TO ‪@Wazimulife‬ FOR HELPING ME BUILD THIS BEAST. Reach out to him if you need to build anything g dope
JOIN MY DISCORD GROUP - / discord
INSTAGRAM - / ryantwomeyy
TIKTOK - vm.tiktok.com/...

[@Bleats_Sinodai]

I think the best part of the first seconds of this video is realizing that both trucks have about the same size beds.

[@sometf2player752]

Yeah the only difference is one is stuffed with unnecessary features and is overpriced

[@CosyCottageCamper]

I've just imported a Suzuki Carry Kei Truck from Japan to Australia! Going to build my own tiny camper and also document the journey. I was lucky with it being the same right hand drive and kms per hour instead of miles. Yours is looking awesome so far, looking forward to watching the build series and then you touring around in your ultra tiny camper! Thanks for sharing. Tamara

[@TheGoodTheBadTheRowdy]

Similar to what my son did, he imported a 2023 for his ranch property in AZ, he worked at bug out in japan, so he built his own rear box like this, but you can pass through the cab, into the box. His insulation seems thin, will be interesting to see how it performs this summer. Right now its been 25-30* in az, and he said with his small marine wood stove, or electric heater, he gets heated out easily, and it stays warm nicely, till morning. He upgraded his suspension for heavier load, added a turbo kit, his is stick shift by the way! His camper has a power unit and ac I think from eco flow? He still has stuff to finish, hes doing alot interior wise. custom fold up bed/bench etc

[@wayneegli8379]

Arizona must have looser car rules than PA. PA )and most of the Northeast) has gone full A-hole in basically banning Kei vehicles except for private land use.

[@mocagami]

you probably already know this by now but the pamphlet at 3:55 was basically a manual on what to do in the case of getting into an accident or how to prevent an accident on public roads in japan so it might be good to auto translate to see if there are any specific tips to your specific vehicle or if it's just a generic pamphlet required for all worker vehicles in japan.

[@Ryantwomeyy]

Good to know - thanks!

[@lillianmagee7198]

I’m really excited to see the way this turns out!

[@breeethompson]

This is so cool!! i love that you decided to take on a challenge that most people wouldn’t do 👏🏻👏🏻 cannot wait to see the finished project i know it’s gonna be so amazing ! ☺️

[@TenTenorioArt]

Bringing the keitora to the US! Very cool! I watch a Japanese channel (TABI-IE) that has a chill humble kei truck that he built and uses in camping areas and parking lots, etc. It's interesting to see your approach to framing and weight management given the limitations of small vehicles. Can't wait to see Part 2

[@alfredhendricsalim3078]

I watch tabi-ie too, and also coupy channel, he has a kei camper built by japanese company, so yeah.. kei truck camper is really a thing.. 😃

[@TenTenorioArt]

@@alfredhendricsalim3078 Coupy got shook up (literally) by the earthquake and got himself a better emergency camper. He's still testing it out before taking the whole fam. Kei campers and RVs are kind of a different experience in Japan, very unique!

[@francesthezookeeper5341]

I love this concept its out of the normal get a van kit it out this bloke is taking such a small truck and making a challenge for himself thats so cool cant wait to see the finished job

[@davidhamilton1124]

1000lbs sounds good. My Kei truck (Suzuki Carry 4X4) surplus from Japan (used then imported and rebuilt in the Philippines). It has a listed load capacity of 300 kg (660lbs). I found out that my driver at the rice farm was regularly carrying 20 - 50K (2205lbs) rice sacks plus 3 passengers and himself in and on it (well over 2500lbs) plus a fiberglass half topper on the bed! I damn near died when I found out!!! I quickly lowered him to 10 rice sacks (1000lbs)! It continued for several on for several without problems for several years. I got out of the rice business and sold my Kei truck to a mining company. Last I heard it is still carrying personnel and supplies up and down the mountains!

[@jeffharrison6059]

This is a great project. There's a lot of vanlife enthusiasts who either have built out or would like to on another Japanese import, the Hi-Ace.

[@danutcrackerstream5799]

Ryan is living his dream, happy new year brother can't wait to see your build.

[@karelesterhuizen7117]

Can’t wait to see the final build, loved it so far, that dude knows his build, love how he cleans his metal before use. That is hard super work. Please change them tires, think I saw new ones.

[@lorilori3]

It's exciting to watch the process! Thanks for sharing all you do!

[@rileytat123]

i love kei trucks theyre insanely cool

[@Wacke]

A video series i’ve been waiting for can’t wait for the future of this!

[@roidigitalggroup1721]

This guy has some of the best content...I enjoy watching your videos...Thank You for the time you take to edit these videos on Final Cut or Adobe whatever you are using....we know it takes time to edit....

[@NickWellingFitness]

Super cool build. Had a lot of fun watching this. One thing to keep in mind: yes, this is light weight and COM is low, which helps with overturning caused by inertial forces, but it is also very narrow and has a large wind area. So you may need to remind yourself to angle the vehicle parallel to the wind direction on super windy nights

[@Dawn_2a]

Wow! Trevor is the man when it comes to metal work! Makes me wish I had a project for him bc I know it would turn out dope!

[@seth6753]

Excited to follow this journey, brother! Super cool and unique build. I used to drive a similar truck when I was stationed in Korea 7 years ago. So this hits home!

[@CL3V3R619]

Looks awesome so far. Cant wait to see it finished. I live in San Diego maybe I'll see you cruising around someday. 👍🏻

[@josecarvajal6654]

That type of trucks are probably the more common type of truck in my country, you see them everywhere, usually full of vegetables and fruits, or just used to transport stuff (the first time I moved I actually used one of those to bring all my stuff packed like tetris lol)

[@jamesdove8021]

This is fascinating. Thank you for showing this.

[@Sammysnipz]

You and Trevor compliment each other’s personalities very nicely. Would love to see you guys do more stuff together in the future.

[@shire1944]

Love the dream man! My one concern would be speed after you have that thing built and fully loaded. Uphill you'll probably be doing 25. Good luck my dude!

[@sherryreinhardt3845]

Love it, excited for the finished product!

[@JCVerseTv]

Great video man! SO excited to see the results! That dude is a badass welding and organizing it all together =)

[@TempyBuilds]

Aww little doggo man is so cute

[@MatthewJohns-mk3cj]

I’ve been following your channel now for months and finally signed in to make a comment. Overall video editing and presentation is amazing. Im excited to see what you do with this.

[@SweetSativaOSRS]

SO STOKED for this build. I absolutely love this. Congratulations Ryan!

[@bradschlemmer1726]

Been waiting on this video for a while now. Interested to see how this build ends but excited to watch

[@matteugenio]

So stoked about your kei truck build!

[@kateandjosh]

It’s coming along great! Definitely bring it to a scale to get it weighed once it’s done, I’m interested to see how much it will add up to with water and you in it. I’d look into getting a rear sway bar to help. They stiffen up the rear a lot. We have a Hellwig brand one that has been great, but I don’t know if they make them for the import mini trucks. Stay safe and be mindful of where you take it. The lack of airbags and braking abilities would make me really think about where I’d go with it.

[@ch3w3yfpv42]

Homie blocks the plates like were not gonna know its him when we see the ONLY camper mini truck in the US 🤣 👀 😝

[@jpht.adventures]

Niceee, thats almost the exact design I'll be doing for my kei truck. I'm still waiting for it to arrive from Japan to Texas. Cant wait to see how yours turns out

[@GeorgeWashingtonLaserMusket]

17:19 I was thinking to myself "I wanna do this but in aluminum" then he mentioned vibrations. Good point.

[@roseanneweyrauch2886]

We really enjoy watching your videos get to see a lot of places we've never seen and I'm glad to find out that you have a home base there's no shame in that it's a wonderful thing to have your own home to go to and it's fun watching you build your new little camper you're like a new person I can tell that you're enjoying the project and having fun doing it keep up the good work

[@craftymulligar]

Watch the ... ttthefineprinttt .... that van dweller stayed in an cabin tree house, fire tower, haunted locations. There is always someone better.

[@anetteskyumlarsen8077]

❤ This is so exiting and interesting. I love being able to see that mini camper being build 😍. 😂 And my, how I laughed when it looked like you were squeezing the truck like a squeeky toy and the sound you have added 🤣❤❤. Thanks for sharing Ryan 👍❤️❤️

[@tcasillasbakeberg]

Let’s gooooo!!!!! I’ve been waiting so long to see this. Good work Ryan! 👊🏽

[@stephenbennett7176]

I moved to the Philippines and those little trucks are amazing. They can handle a lot more than 700-1000 lbs. thank you for your video I can now do the same here . 👍🏼

[@starvinmarvin1200]

One of those cars a man wants not because of the speed, but solely for the tinyness and esthetic of it

[@kfeldinAZ]

Fun watching the build! It looks like it will be too small for you, but I’m still dying to see how it turns out. 😀

[@Callsign_Ronin]

This thing is incredible! Don’t think about what it is but the journey it can take you on. I’m sure it’s great in gas and it’s 4wd. I’d love to have this thing. Plus I’m 5’ 6” it’s perfect size for me lol. This was probably my favorite series so far from Ryan. Keep up the amazing content and never lose sight of the goals and dreams brother!

[@abcamacho6187]

This is fkn awesome, wish we could've seen pt 1 and 2 at the same time!

[@AlphaMachina]

I want an extended cab kei truck, and then take the back glass out and cut a pass-through from the back glass downward. The extended cabs have better seats too─you can recline them.

[@michaeldobbins1258]

I need more content! I'm so stoked to see this build!

[@theathjr]

Ryan you are absolutely insane lol. And I love it. This is one heckuva epic build. You HAVE to collab with MAV !!! He’s gonna love your build out 👊👊

[@davestevens4263]

Looking great , I'm glad you went with a non pop top .good design so far , fab dude seems to be a good fabricator.

[@bee-anca236]

Wow the metal work is amazing

[@401Adventures]

great build Ryan can't wait to see what else you come up with

[@hirotakaosawa6148]

This is really exciting to see that a K truck is running second life in US! The manual shown on video says that this is originally hold by Kakogawa City Federation of Agricultural Organizations with several persons.

[@seamushassard4770]

Not sure what you plan tonuse for cabinets etc but rigid foam construction would be an extremely lightweight option

[@CalThompson-oj2kk]

I've wanted to do this since I lived in Japan a decade ago. I still can't wrap my head around why you built two steel subfloors instead of just one wider subfloor. It doesn't seem to add any strength, but it does add about an inch of extra height, and a bunch of extra weight.

[@CyFr]

The bottom frame is to support the top frame, so that he can use a jack to lift the box and do maintenance. At least that's what I understood.

[@CalThompson-oj2kk]

@@CyFr ​They connect the mounts for the box lift jacks to the top frame in the next video. The only thing the bottom frame is doing is holding the bolt brackets (which the top frame could easily do) and adding height and weight.

[@MudPig6110]

Very cool build, that guy is a great fabricator.

[@ienjoicomics101]

This is absolutely gas! So jealous wish I had the extra cash to buy a kei truck. Gonna live vicariously through you!

[@Simplistic]

INSANE brother 🔥

[@travisbro]

get a haircut

[@HF1.0]

@@travisbroAchieve some happiness in your life. You sound miserable.

[@Tapperje16]

I love my weird youtube feed, was watching things about the planet Vernus and now i'm here..., yup, makes perfect sense!

[@ms-ht1cj]

Don't worry, I just watched a karate video, yt showed me k-truck camper video 😂

[@tstewartfan626]

Louie is a great supervisor!🐶 Ryan, you should get your own Louie to go on your adventures.

[@birdman7039]

awesome project looking forward to part 2! please show everything love watching your videos. Keep up the great work

[@JOKERofGOTHAM]

I've seen a couple of these little kei truck campers pretty neat little campers for sure

[@poppawheelie203]

He is such a nice humble genuine real friend for helping and his welding and fabrication skills are amazing. I

[@OddlyLucky]

He’s not his friend he’s paying him to work

[@Crisptbh1]

super excited to watch this series cant wait for the first overnight in the k truck such a w ryan

[@kemikemi]

WEEELLL!.. I prefer the black van that I have vicariously travelled and lived in over 2yrs now. I don't care for this sardine can but will wait and see the end result. Good luck! Ryan.

[@joshuaclark647]

Hey mate super keen for this series!!! Please make a kei truck play list!!! Soooo sick Also please make the interior build a video

[@antoinettehenley2459]

So exciting seeing it all come together. Thank you 🙏🏻 lots of luck to ya !!! It’s gonna be great 😊!!!!!

[@CattleGuitarB]

It's a nostalgic car. I'm currently building a camper using the latest Daihatsu Hijet truck. Let's keep up good work!

[@beetlebailey]

You might rethink the REAR and turn it into a dual wheel for better stability

[@JustinAllenVlogs]

I’m enjoying the mini truck built project. It will be great to see it all finished Soon.

[@vickywylie5075]

Really excited to see this love ur videos Ryan wish u well .All the way from Leeds West Yorkshire, UK 😁

[@MegaSusanc]

Awesome, I can't wait to get over to the next video to see the end results. Y'all are doing fricken awesome. Wow GOD BLESS Y'ALL KEEP ADVENTURING Now, I'm headed to the next to see the final results.

[@guycomputer829]

Man, this looks so much fun! Hope it all goes well in part 2.

[@Vicwavy]

Excited for this build! Love it!!!

[@Dla0004]

I see this truck sitting around after a few trips lol. Way too small but cool idea.

[@quakxy_dukx]

I’ve seen people live out of smaller

[@edwardseth1230]

Check the underside of the minivan... usuall 25 year old trucks like these are farm manure haulers.. so there is bound to be rust. or gunk. back number plate should go on the right side beside the back door. add a bar led light front and back and check the bumpers.. some van/trucks are plastic some tin based.. so make sure you have a solid bumper to mount the winch on, the doors are usually squeeky and seals on the doors might need replacing.. in winter.. when the van is on the road.. while driving you might feel cold seeping in from the seals.. therefore the rubber seals need to be replaced... door opening and closing might be difficult in winter.. so door alighment might be needed.. door handles can get rusty.. so keep a 2 extra handles if need to replace them on the road...lastly front battery operated winch is advised

[@RyanLarivee]

This is awesome I bought a 99 Hijet. It is supposed to get to port Feb 6th In Vancouver then ship it across the county I also want to add a camper type shell to the back of it.

[@mick1598]

A good idea is building the camper on the tray and secure it down with latches and jacking legs on all four corners that way if you want to set up a base and explore more you can undo the latches, lift the camper up with the legs and drive away, then you have a mini truck back.

[@LooksFrosty]

Yooo this is a GREAT idea!

[@djmarine4499]

Not sure if you have seen Mighty Car mods and then turbo converting a k truck might be an idea to offset the added weight and give you a bit more whoosh! Still think I would pop a minimal amount of rivets in to complement the tape as everything fails some day in the most inconvenient way possible I would say a smattering of rivets would be cheap insurance although not as clean a look as your after might pay you dividends one day! Looking forward to the second episode keep up the good work! 😊

[@mohamedassakkour6055]

I know it's hard but a Secret tunnel from the front to the back will be cool

[@Liberty4Ever]

I have a 1996 4WD Hijet. Mine is the 5 speed manual with the HI/LO transfer case and probably the same 12 valve twin cam engine. I've had it a year and am halfway done with the mods and upgrades for its second life in the US. My progress has slowed for the winter but today, I designed and 3D printed custom mud flaps that say "MEEP!" 😀 I've thought of making a fiberglass over foam camper box that drops into the bed and hangs a foot out the back. It'd be much simpler than your camper because I'd use it for short overlanding trips and I wouldn't live in it so I wouldn't need to stand up in it. I wouldn't have it extend over the cab. It'd be similar in design to the kei truck campers built by @MikeFestiva and his brother @OlympicOverland, but mine would have a structural roof rack that could be used to lift the camper out of the bed so I can retain the use of the truck most of the time. The simple design would have a bed down one side and a tiny kitchen and storage on the other side, with LiFePO4 battery, inverter and storage under the bed and probably the smallest diesel heater I could find. Solar panels on the roof and if I was going fancy, a pull out solar awning on the side. I can't wait for part 2 of your build. Thanks for Part 1.

[@Mr.Nuamah]

Really love your own progress joined you at 50k subscribers and now we at 300k plus 🎉🎉🎉❤❤❤

[@nikkovaldez1]

Nice. Hope you succeed with the creation!

[@IAmWillMcLovin]

Can’t wait to see the finished project bro

[@MichaelVettas]

these are so cool, and so the in thing now, i cant believe a friend of my dads from 20 years ago had i think close to 10 of these, all for different occasions, he had a camper, tow truck version he used to tow engines around for mechanic shops, a dump truck, flat bed, 7 seater for him and his family, an offroad 4x4 version with huge wheels, a race version and a quarter mile beast, had some crazy engine on the back then the rest where all just the standard version but all different colours, but i think my favourite was he turned one into an actual bed for his son which they had in his house, pretty sure he was buried in one when he passed awat. Cant wait for the final build

[@emt618100]

I'm so glad too the mini truck build underway 😊 can't wait too see the finished product.

[@tellitlikeitis-rg4ny]

Had these in the uk for years , and bedford bambibcampers 😮

[@richardpatrick7701]

I don't want to be a dream killer. A few factors, 660 cc engine, non dot glass, truck by itself can barely get to 52 mph, the stick is way better than the auto, I modified one about 8 years ago, New York won't let you put them on the road ( don't know if they will now?) Good luck with the build, can't wait to see the inside.

[@bigslacker666]

Weight has gotta be a serious consideration, payload on those things is like 770. Cool project, will be awesome to see it complete!

[@noseboop4354]

FYI most of these mini trucks have an official payload capacity of 770 pounds (350 kg), and an unofficial capacity of about 1500 pounds. Anything beyond that i'd recommend some lift, better suspension and bigger tires.

[@TheMotoShaman]

Watch the transmission in those automatics. Notorious for issues!

[@JustIn-mu3nl]

Strange about the tape, you can get it pretty readily here in Australia, it's used in construction as well.

[@SecondFinale]

The full primer might be good, though, for metal longevity.

[@Loki5x]

can't wait to see the end result of the Japanese cyber camper its already looking so cool

[@VolvoLaplanderCamper]

The camper itself is built like mine, also the same size,. Greetings from Volvo Laplander Camper

[@alexko2877]

Such RV on Dalton highway would make history 😊

[@VdubSPAZ]

If you plan on doing a redesign which I would suggest probably due to the weight of it is build a foamie build using inch to an inch and a half rigid foam what sound strange but with fiberglass or with other fiberglass reinforced plastic four other thin simple materials would make the panels vary rigid and durable an extremely lightweight very large builds that are designed for large pickup trucks end up weighing only about 700 lbs fully loaded

[@HostileTerritory]

Hopefully you see this, but there's a KZbinr in Japan that I watch, his Channel is called @Tabi-ie and he has one of these trucks that he built a tiny camper on. Pretty good use of space. Definitely minimalistic.

[@pb6839]

There’s a company in suginami (I think) called Bug-truck and they build some really cool off-road style kei camp conversions. New trucks only though.

[@HostileTerritory]

@@pb6839 oh wow, I'd definitely want to see how they come out!

[@Cool5380]

Thank you! this was just what I was looking for :)

[@captainjollyrogersailingso6809]

I would live in a tiny camper like this I mean I cannot afford one but it’s awesome

[@user-jg3nf2yh7b]

He wants to save wait yet puts in a whole couch yet has a bed that's probably more comfortable

[@LAkadian]

Wait for what? What is he waiting for?

[@Brickazar250]

soi the iphoen box that lift up is like an australian camper trailer, which is a tent in a hard camper, maybe that can help you :)

[@zxyt9866]

Been looking forward to this!!