The Nissan S-Cargo is a Snail Van Thing

[@gavin758]

I own one of these. Couple things he didn't mention: the transmission often likes to stay in 3rd when it should really be in 2nd, the side mirrors are often nearly impossible to see anything through, because all you get is a reflection of the dashboard in the window, and the handbrake is in a really inconvenient spot and jams into your leg when engaged. Also, it has no glove box, but an enormous dashboard, so a lot of stuff will end up there.

[@bishopworks3203]

Also, you cannot forget the mirrors slowly fold in at relatively high speeds.

[@gavin758]

@@bishopworks3203 oh yes, of course. Also, the suspension is too soft right up until you hit a speedbump. Also, stiff brake pedal, stiff accelerator, mirrors can just pop right off, and tailgate is just high enough for the average person to hit their forehead on when open.

[@gavin758]

Oh also the sunroof has no automatic stopper so if you hold down the button when it's already at it's maximum open/close position, the motor just keeps going and it makes a fun grinding noise.

[@timmytot666]

I'll give you thirty bucks for it!

[@BAgodmode]

Is there a way to disable the speed alarm and possible introduce a little more horsepower? I legit just want to make one of these a road tripper.

[@tcpnetworks]

We have about 3,000 of them in Australia - they were the rage in the mid to late 90's. They get converted into bakery delivery vans, coffee vendors, etc..

[@numbereightyseven]

There's about 300 still registered in NZ. Reasonably common here at the time, too.

[@dcarbs2979]

Same here in UK. Not a particularly rare sight.

[@kgfgfg1]

What does UK, NZ and Australia share as a common feature? YES right hand drive! What is the Standard in USA? Left Hand Drive! So how hard is it to understand that a right side only care IS rare in the US? I guess to hard for some.

[@rxivild]

@@dcarbs2979 I have never seen one here in the UK.

[@Whomobile]

I was about to comment that I've seen a few of these in Aus! I guess it's one of those cars that were sold pretty much everywhere but the USA so they are "rare and exotic"

[@NatetheAceOfficial]

This is the perfect delivery vehicle for a cupcake shop.

[@thewritingroo]

If my wife’s plan of opening a bakery comes to light, I’ll remember that

[@ZGryphon]

Or a French restaurant.

[@agingwheels]

Or a ramen shop

[@Jehty_]

@@ZGryphon why would you you choose the snail over the Citroen CV2 van in that situation? What's wrong with you?

[@ZGryphon]

@@Jehty_ Reliability, mostly.

[@Trygon]

The parking markers have a second incredibly important function: They look like a snail's eyestalks.

[@DeviantOllam]

Hey it's that small van that everyone likes very much! 🐌🚚

[@ubertalldude]

I’m so glad he got to drive one and do a video on it. That line from his other Pike vehicle was quite good

[@VeraTheTabbynx]

Hang on, you're that guy who exploits security vulnerabilities and worked with lockpickinglawyer that one time, what are you doin watching a video on a snail shaped van?!

[@incidentshappen]

Hey its that guy who taught me a surprising amount about elevators

[@DeviantOllam]

@@VeraTheTabbynx I never miss Robert's charming face and informative voice. 😁👍

[@DeviantOllam]

@@incidentshappen I hope it's been enjoyable! And - hey - elevators have cars, too, sometimes quite old ones!

[@kennorcott7074]

I’m so happy you finally got to drive this. Now you just need the pao and the bee 1 and you’ve driven the full set

[@Cony989]

I love the Pao 😇 I only ever saw one in my life though 😐

[@1985toyotacamry]

@@Cony989 I only see the Pao(love the styling of it and I wish I own one) and the Figaro.

[@Cony989]

@@1985toyotacamry None of these cars can be seen in my country 😐

[@thatguyoverthere9634]

Gotta drive them all

[@1985toyotacamry]

@@thatguyoverthere9634 Pikemon.... OK maybe not so catchy but I'm happy to hear more creative names.

[@GridForgeMFG]

I live in Manhattan KS and the local pizza place “AJ’s” bought Doug Demuro’s old S-Cargo as a pizza delivery truck. They stopped using a a year or so ago, but it was fun to see crawling around town.

[@mikehall3976]

Was it replaced by an NV-200?

[@isaakwelch3451]

I'm pretty close to that, I'll have to make a roadtrip up and try to find it

[@obeseperson]

Let’s go steal it

[@trevgauntletneu_gaming]

S-Cargo, the car that personifies dad jokes.

[@dwaynezilla]

Snailed it.

[@thejunkman]

Trading Places Missed opportunity for the "Look at that S Car Go" joke.

[@trevgauntletneu_gaming]

@@thejunkman S-Cargo space?

[@mehpainter]

It really is a dad joke waiting to happen, it's _already_ got the Snail pun but it also has the ability to extend that into "S-Car Go"

[@richienyhus]

I remember seeing heaps of these in New Zealand in the 90s being used by small businesses as delivery vans. Most second hand vehicles in NZ are imported from Japan, so most working class people are driving around in quirky Japanese cars.

[@ReubenHorner]

There is still one down the road which is a mechanic vehicle

[@leeblack8888]

These are still quite popular in New Zealand, I've also seen quite a few modified for wheelchair access which make a lot of sense.

[@Francois_L_7933]

I've seen one of these once at my local Canadian Tire store. And I still wonder why "fun" is not part of automotive design anymore?

[@spitfire83]

Mostly pedestrian safety

[@rainbowbunchie8237]

@@spitfire83 I think it's more about platform standardization for cost and trending toward larger vehicles across the board. This fat bumper look doesn't affect most sportscars, see the new Corvette for a wedge front end. Definitely large though!

[@ve2vfd]

Chez Canadienne Bottines, or as AVE calls them "Canuckistan Tire"

[@bluefoxtv1566]

Love that 15 year rule.

[@CommodoreFan64]

Too much government regulation does not help things, wanting everything to be more "eco friendly", so they can push there BS climate agendas, instead of real environmental issues.

[@pathaze4299]

Would be even cooler if they’d used concealed headlights, and when you’d turn them on they’d raise out, about 6-8 inches above the hood, almost like how those marker lights on the side are on stalks. That would essentially give it eye stalks and be super snail like lol.

[@craigmclean8260]

That'd be fun; also, call it "Gary" and give it a horn that goes "Meow"!

[@piuthemagicman]

@@craigmclean8260 😂😂😂😂😂

[@JustWasted3HoursHere]

In fact that type of modification is right up AW's alley! Seems like something he could tackle in a day or two. Or three.

[@MrHack4never]

But frogs also can conceal their eyes inside their body

[@pathaze4299]

@@MrHack4never Not the same as snails though. Frogs use their eyes to help swallow food. I know cause I had pet tree frogs. As for why snails have eye stalks, it's a mystery lol.

[@vdevov]

I seriously did a double take thinking doug demuro was re-uploading old videos. This channel is a much better home for such goofiness!

[@666cemetaryslut]

My first thought was Doug should review this

[@vladvulcan]

@@666cemetaryslut he literally had one

[@666cemetaryslut]

@@vladvulcan he didn't figuratively have one?

[@vladvulcan]

@@666cemetaryslut he definitely owned one in the past

[@MoultrieGeek]

Watched this twice, still trying to figure out how you did those amazing camera angles. I'm (obviously) easily impressed.

[@PendragonDaGreat]

The interior shots? Those are gonna be a 360 cam of some sort (not sure which, but I know GoPro has been making one for a few years now). You can then pick and choose what part of the frame to extract, and move between different parts of the frame, or even zoom out for the fisheye.

[@SianaGearz]

Yep it's a 360° action camera. Insta360 makes a few, you could say it's their whole thing. Ricoh makes one. Polaroid had one. Some Chinese guys make some, can't pronounce their name, sorry, but you'll know it when you see it. Some Israeli guys make one too, Vuze i think?

[@GarrettWorcester]

Someone should hip Daddy Doug to the fact that these things exist. It would make his test drives at least 50% more engaging.

[@CyberlightFG]

He's a genius camera guy.

[@hectorcorona9536]

GoPro Max. It has 2 cameras and saves the raw video from each one. When you export the video you can choose the angles, zoom, and a lot of other functions. Tom Scott uses one in his technical difficulties show to get footage from the 4 participants with one single camera, he then exports 4 different angles from the same video.

[@LillaVya]

As a French Canadian, your French pronunciation really impressed me lol

[@DanielMReck]

As an Illinoisan, his "French" "pronunciation" of our state name really impressed me lol

[@supergimp2000]

The joy you must feel every time you get to say "Nissan S-Cargo."

[@pete3767]

1:40 is the kind of useful consumer-focused reporting I watch for. It's so frustrating when car reviews don't mention if I can fit several dead clones of myself in the back!

[@CommodoreFan64]

I would love to see this upgraded with an anti rollbar, and a turbo for the engine for more power if it can take it, as I think it still looks very modern despite it's age, and retro inspirations. 👍🏻

[@piuthemagicman]

This E15 engine had a turbo Version in at least the Nissan Cherry (EDM & JDM) :)

[@CommodoreFan64]

@@piuthemagicman Nice!!

[@markvdean]

Ever since I found out there were more than just the Figaro in the Pike Car range I may have become slightly obsessed with them, so it's great to see you cover another one.

[@LadyAnuB]

Regular Car Reviews may still have their Pao

[@binky_bun]

There used to be a takeaway restaurant in my town that had one of those for deliveries. I think it probably got them a bit of extra business because it stood out so much.

[@RoamingAdhocrat]

We used to have a lot of these adapted for wheelchair users in the UK!

[@darwinguiza369]

I love the 360 degree camera angle changes. Nice job 👍👍

[@jackthelad9933]

Seen a few of these in New Zealand. Didn't realise there weren't that many made. They're good cars for small business zooming around town - you get a lot of signage on the sides.

[@Dusty_Bottoms_]

Thank for correctly identifying the "anti-roll bar" and not referring to it incorrectly as a "sway bar", I like that

[@daanwilmer]

I love this car! Another one on the "cars I really want but will never buy because I don't actually have a need for it" list.

[@The_ZeroLine]

As a copywriter, the fact that its pun inspired name works on so many levels almost made my head explode. I saw tons of these things when I was in Japan...or something that looked nearly identical. This thing should really have a manual for fun, but that would make no sense for its purpose of thread through Edo era alleyways and creeping along in Tokyo traffic.

[@rubenyoranpc]

It has a speed chime! Therefor, it is basically an AE86

[@bachaddict]

lots of Japanese cars have it, such as my family's Toyota HiAce

[@bwofficial1776]

I love how it has those fender parking light sticks like an old man's F-350. I remember when Doug DeMuro had one of these and showed what its quirks and features were like to live with. He's said he wishes he'd never sold it.

[@las1147]

These little Japanese cars are so amazing. I have a '95 Daihatsu Charade hatchback automatic. It's a 26 year old tiny car, but it comfortably drives at 130km/h and in the past 5 years I only had to do regular maintenance and fix the exhaust. The cheapest car I've ever owned!

[@harisalic2568]

Looked it up to see what it looks like and it keeps reminding me of a golf/polo 1 and 2

[@MrBirdnose]

I *still* occasionally see a Daihatsu Charade on the road, in spite of Daihatsu having left the US market in 1992.

[@fangthewarrior]

5:08 Truer words have never been spoken, for car guys

[@JDevine687]

"You shouldn't buy one. So the prices will go down so I can eventually buy one." Preach it, Robert. I want a '96-'98 Celica GT Four THE MOST bad. And people have been calling them baby Supras and in the last year they've gone from $18k to almost $30k.

[@bensharrow]

I really like how your car reviews avoid the automotive media’s car review cliches. It probably has a lot to do with the fact that you only review weird cars and don’t need to worry about offending car makers’ PR departments. Keep up the good work!

[@smallcnclathes]

You mean the way he does not look for hard plastic to scratch and whinge about? Or wander around the exterior for 20 minutes making pointless and annoying comments about the design that everyone can see for themselves?

[@bensharrow]

@@smallcnclathes Partly that, but mainly the frequently repeated phrases used by magazine writers and some KZbinrs when reviewing cars. AW has a unique voice that is great.

[@BAgodmode]

Wow three minutes in and you already did a better job conveying the history of this model than Doug DeDuMbass. Fantastic you covered every fact I could imagine except for one. Not only was the name meant to be play on the French word for snail, it’s also an indicator. S (small) Cargo.

[@McElroysMotors]

Doug DeDumbass. I love that.

[@eekee6034]

I couple down the road from my parents house (in Britain) were huge 2CV fans. They had one of these, of course. :)

[@Catinkss]

Theres one of these near me thats owned by a local dyno shop, its tuned with a turbo charger and makes a hell of a noise whenever it goes past, but it never travels far - you always see it only a few streets away from the shop, obviously doing quick run around jobs and picking up things/parts/etc.

[@tibotibo6]

Great car, great video as usual, thank you. As a french dude, I'm really impressed how well you pronounce french words!

[@Igleas]

The best part is I didn't understand why he was talking about snails to describe the car, until he pronounced it the french way X)

[@JakobKsGarage]

Thanks a lot, Robert. Nice little video! 👍 I have owned a Figaro Pike car for almost 4 years, and my experience is muche the same: It drives like a car, but all the rest of it is just totally bonkers 😀 Maybe you could get an appointment with Jason Torchinsky and borrow his Pao for a drive? You have a lot in common with the always brilliant manic happy car reviews (which is a good thing!) and the love of Yugos.

[@foogoid8682]

Learned something new today! I thought all these Pike cars had the MA10 engine from the Micra, but this one has the E15 from the Sunny instead.

[@sheldonaubut]

I've been waiting for someone to "resto-mod" one. A Hemi and Art Morrison frame and suspension would do it nicely.

[@MitsubishiGTO]

Maybe an RB26?

[@bitemyshinnymetalass1569]

I just got the S-Cargo term. Sounds like that fancy snail dish that I will never try in my lifetime.

[@Heidegaff]

I like how the location for filming is the same one where Doug DeMuro filmed his review of the S-Cargo. Possibly it's the same vehicle.

[@peterzerfass4609]

That snail logo is just adorable. Well done by the designer.

[@ben10nnery]

I was today years old when I finally realized S-Cargo = "escargot"

[@margysan]

Ten years ago myself and a friend restored and sold at least 5 of these in the Uk. People bought them and put coffee machines in the back for mobile coffee vans . Some were used as advertising vans also.

[@KeeliaSilvis]

I had such a stressful day and needed to relax before bed, and this wholesome wonderfulness was exactly what the doctor ordered 🥰

[@lastatarist]

You’re French accent is not bad at all! Merci beaucoup!

[@wilbur9416]

I love it. It is so different it's cool. This is an 88 bookmobile. History, necessity, quirkiness, durability. Some of the many reasons why we love the vehicles we do.

[@Chomuggaacapri]

I’ve wanted to own one of these for a while now. Very happy you got to review one!

[@bluefoxtv1566]

There are two of these in my city that do food delivery for Save on foods. Should have put a turbo in it so it would have a snail in the engine bay.

[@musewolfman]

I can't think of a better excuse than that. "More power" actually takes a back seat to "keeping the theme up" in this case.

[@rudimentaryganglia]

@@musewolfman going faster than normal isn't very snail like...

[@musewolfman]

@@rudimentaryganglia make it a real tiny turbo then.

[@deanchur]

@@rudimentaryganglia If it's anything like my car (1.4L turbo diesel Fiesta) it'll still be slow as balls.

[@thecatwithatophat4069]

I saw the thumbnail and went, Doug, you already made two or three videos on this thing, and then I saw the channel

[@Erik_Swiger]

I honestly love the cartoon-like, simple dashboard, like the heater controls. I'm so sick of the overwhelming complexity of modern cars. I long for the elegance of simplicity.

[@GashimahironChl]

A two-speed fan (off, quiet breeze, and leaf blower speeds), a position knob and air mix knob should be all you need, the rest is just flair. Car entertainment systems with touchscreens but without a volume wheel and tactile play\pause\stop\forward\back buttons are also garbage.

[@NarfBLAST]

Those panels are great for advertising. A local basement waterproofing company imported a couple of these a few years ago. Greetings from Canada.

[@sparqqling]

The design is outstanding on this thing, if you told me they produced it in the late nineties I would believed you. There are not many cars from the eighties who can pull that off.

[@PiousMoltar]

Yeah I thought this was from like 2000 or something...

[@mattb4721]

This reminds me that I spotted a Figaro in Germany a few months ago. Sat rather sadly outside the front gate of an independent car-tinkering shop. I assume it had major problems and its owner could not find a mechanic who could deal with them. The forecourt of that place had a few other "exotic" looking vehicles, so I guess the mechanic who runs the place is a bit of a last-hope go-to guy for foreign vehicles.

[@DefconMaster]

A local pizza place around me has one of those! I always thought it was really cool. It may be pretty basic underneath but damn if it isn't charming!

[@IO-zz2xy]

Only tome I have seen one was in New Zealand, Auckland when on holiday. It was a small business delivery vehicle, I was in awe but only saw it for a brief while. What a fun little thing.

[@domramsey]

You see quite a lot of them in the UK - and Figaros. But it's fairly common to import Japanese cars here.

[@rml695]

That chime at the speed limit is the same one from my late father’s 1990 Maxima. I miss it.

[@fanboyfast6073]

S-cargo and escargot is clever if intended.

[@madmansprinkles]

Saw a madlad put a rotary in one while trying to see what people did with them on YT, they're too adorable, couldn't imagine the shock of getting passed by one on a track.

[@CokeCheese]

It looks like it would have been great as a daily driver for a wheelchair bound person. At least I think it would be cheaper to buy and modify compared to something like a Ford transit. I mean, if they had actually sold them in the states, which they didn't.

[@NissanSilviaKs]

Doug sold his to a pizza shop for deliveries. It served it’s job very well.

[@Kermoedi77]

I adore these quirky little vans. I would love to have one.

[@TenchiFox]

I've always had a soft spot for one of these, which is stupid. But I want one. You're my favorite person ever for actually getting one!

[@robin1987100]

Honestly, this is peak japanese clever car naming.

[@simonwillgress]

I love your enthusiasm for these types of cars 😁. Need to get you into a bond bug.

[@StrangelyIronic]

Gotta love the mini trucks, cars, and vans. I have two Honda Beats (pretty much all original) and two Suzuki Cappuccinos (one mostly original dead engine, the other had the engine but some body damage that led me into doing a suspension overhaul, wide body for better tires, and a turbo g13b inline 4 built to give a reason for all the improved traction and upgraded handling) that I love. I had an Autozam to complete the ABC of sporty kei cars, but I actually traded it for both of the Cappuccinos the had planned on building one out of. I'm very happy with my mini Miata on steroids and my regular mini Miata.

[@lasermike2147]

I first saw one of these in Tonga in 2005, wanted one then, still want one now.

[@johnvender]

A friend owned one of these. One amusing quirk/feature is the beeping when reversing, like trucks, but only inside the car.

[@Reman1975]

My old Lexus IS200 used to do that too. Bloody annoying feature. :)

[@johannesaylott]

I work on the South East Coast of the UK, and one of the businesses down the industrial estate use one of these. I had no idea it was that old because the UK number plate is from 2002 and drives the same way as us, so I didn't realise it was imported. I've only been in it a few times on occasions and I gotta say the suspension is almost none existent, so going along country roads and beach roads in it is definitely... a laugh. Great video though, and it's great to see the history behind it, I'll be sure to share this with the owner.

[@MartyTheGamer]

If it has a 2002 plate then it's no older than 2002. Only in extremely rare cases imports get given plates for the date of importation rather than age. Are you sure it didn't have the old format of plates where the first letter determined the age rather than the numbers?

[@petermiddo]

Could it have been imported into the UK, and thus first registered, in 2002, giving it a 2002 registration? (I'm Australian and, as such, not familiar at all with how the UK registers their cars.)

[@MartyTheGamer]

@@petermiddo In 99% of cases no. The plate always corresponds to the age of the car rather than the date of registration in the UK. So a 1990 car imported to the UK in 2001 would get the same age identifier on the plate as a domestic 1990 UK car has.

[@lemagreengreen]

I wonder how many of the 8000 production ended up in the UK as imports, as you say they're relatively common as little delivery vans for businesses.

[@dcarbs2979]

@@lemagreengreen I'm also on UK south east coast and they are not a rare sight. You don't see them every week unless you know where one works, but for something that old, they aren't a surprise when you see them.

[@alexhelvetica]

There's so many of these vans in Australia. My regional town of 25k has 3 or 4 or them. A one to advertise a caravan park, a red one, a white one, and maybe another white one.

[@PlasticAstronaut]

Props for mixing 2D and 360 footage in the same project…gotta learn how to do that.

[@kyledexter485]

Woohooo my names at the end of the video. I’ve made it “my names in print”.

[@XH1927]

Good to see this channel return to form, reviews of oddballs cars is what you really do best.

[@mediocrefunkybeat]

Saw a Pao the other night when I was out. Made me smile. Love these odd Nissans.

[@lauram5905]

Waiting for someone to mention “Canada’s Worst Driver”............. (this vehicle was used on a reality TV show to teach people how to do S-turns, which it apparently ironically excelled at, given its name)

[@TheStuartstardust]

Best and most up to date review on KZbin of the S-cargo 👍🤓

[@antoinelaurin5441]

Wow ! Your français pronunciation is really good ! (I am a French native speaker)

[@lastatarist]

Effectivement!

[@colpitts350]

One of these has been living in my small east coast Canadian town for a decade. It was bought originally as an advertisement car for an art studio. She’s tried to sell It a few times to no avail.

[@rapa2265]

I love that you like small weird cars. Wish more people in the US did!

[@jackielinde7568]

Thanks. Now I want to buy one. Just to haul camping gear for some really casual camping. Since my daughter moved out for college and got herself one of those "fancy" Californian boyfriends (Well, he's a Jersey boy who's family moved (back???) to Cali. Also, she's going to ASU and not some fancy CA school.) it's just me and two cats. I don't need much. I've been thinking of getting one of those Dodge RAM livery vans and turning it into a camper van. But I don't need that much. And I don't know how well two boy kitties would like camping, anyways.

[@Jehty_]

The coolest camper van I ever saw was a Citroen CV2 van converted to a camper. So please please convert a S-cargo to a camper :)

[@davidjones332]

I have come across a couple of these in the UK; what surprises me is that there is no bulkhead to stop the load arriving through the back of the seats if you have a shunt. Presumably they are best used to deliver marshmallows.

[@ducewags]

Garlic and butter for when the snail with a frog face has a turlte speed crash, it can cook it's self.

[@BoboTheVulture]

I remember in my brief career as a rural mail carrier, I considered this as a potential solution should I ever be required to provide my own mail delivery vehicle (the US Postal Service can require that of rural carriers). I think it would be almost perfect, though probably slightly too small to carry all the packages of a day's route.

[@conkerman01]

Such a cool little van, back when manufacturers were adventurous.

[@shawnnoyes2776]

Amazon should bring these back for their "outsourced delivery fleet"... you know to standardize for branding purposes. Love the channel! -Shawn

[@MinorLG]

I've wanted an S-cargo for a couple years now it is on my dream car list

[@Athenor]

I kinda want one because I'm 6'5" and this looks like it would be amazing for visibility.

[@bokke7u7]

This is the goddamn best channel on KZbin. Seriously.

[@Edua1111]

I like the camera work. Not many car reviewers use such effects.

[@davidwilliams5497]

I have waited for this video since the Figaro video posted. Thank you for finally getting it on the channel. I’ve been looking off and on for a Be-1 since the Figaro vid, but I can’t seem to find one with a manual transmission and that looks like it is in good condition.

[@kargaroc386]

The AM-only radio makes sense if this is a made-for-Japan vehicle Basically AM was way more popular there, as their FM band is really small.

[@madjidben8240]

That round shape of the roof makes it look very spacious from the inside

[@bukimari]

I'm really glad you've looked into the Pike cars. I really want to get a Pao and just give it all of my love and affection.

[@adaml4493]

Good too see a throwback to the OG content! Love it all though.

[@UncleKennysPlace]

That thing wallows like a boat! I'd be tempted to put an anti-roll system in the back.

[@Tom-sm3tq]

These cars are relatively common here in Australia all sorts of businesses used then in the early early 2000s

[@twocvbloke]

As a 2CV nut myself, I'd love to have an S-Cargo, cos it's so cute and 2CV-esque... :D

[@jetjazz05]

Just having these little things darting around Tokyo on backstreets delivering goods to local stores... feels right, man. Not so much at 65mph on the open road in the US lol.

[@tamasdobronyi7242]

When you think you have seen the most strange small cars ever… suddenly AgingWheels! I’ve been agingwheeled.

[@R4BBITG4MING]

1:08 nice french there 👏

[@lkporter1989]

Happy Thursday! A new aging wheels is always a good day! Take care man, lots of love from fricken cold Saskatchewan Canada