(Very) Mini Van

This tiny van was one of the more interesting vehicles in the “special display” class at the 2015 Pacific Northwest Concours. The Subaru 360 was the first car from that company to arrive in the United States – in 1967 – and the related Sambar van soon followed, creatively renamed as the “360 Van.” “Kei” vans of this type are still common in Japan but in the United States there were relatively few takers. But this brightly-hued machine with is vintage sixties luggage got almost as much attention as big Cadillacs, racing BMWs, and pre-war Delages when it was displayed. The attention was appropriate – because the increased acceptance of long-shunned Japanese classic cars is one of the major growth areas of the affordable end of the collector car spectrum.