JDM guides & car terms
What JDM means · JDM cars & engines · importing from Japan
Plain-English guides to Japanese imports — what JDM means, what makes a car or engine JDM, which brands are Japanese, and how importing a car from Japan actually works. Start with the basics below, then dig into the import and state-registration guides.
Start here
JDM basics, explained
What does JDM stand for?
The meaning of JDM, what it stands for, and how Japan-market cars differ from the versions sold in the US.
What is a JDM car?
What makes a car 'JDM,' the models people usually mean, and how to buy a genuine Japan-market car in the US.
What is a JDM engine?
What makes an engine 'JDM,' why Japan-spec motors are prized for swaps, and how they differ from US-spec.
What is a mini truck?
What a mini truck is, how it relates to kei and K trucks, the popular models, and how to buy one in the US.
How to import a car from Japan
The step-by-step process of importing a car from Japan to the US — eligibility, shipping, customs, and titling.
What cars are Japanese made?
A complete list of Japanese car brands — and the difference between a Japanese brand and a car actually built in Japan.
Process
JDM import guides
How importing a car from Japan works — the federal 25-year rule, EPA and DOT compliance, tariffs, and clearing customs at the port.
By state
JDM registration by US state
Federal import clearance is only half the story — each state decides whether a Japanese import or kei truck can be titled and driven on public roads.
Alabama
Conditional / restrictedA mini-truck class exists under § 40-12-240(10), but the statutory definition requires an installed 25 mph speed governor.
Alaska
Street use permittedAS 28.10.068, enacted by SB 239 and effective June 24, 2026, bars the DMV from requiring FMVSS compliance for legally imported vehicles 25 years or older.
Arizona
Street use permittedOHV/on-road registration path with Primary On-Road Use — one of the most kei-friendly states.
Arkansas
Conditional / restrictedA.C.A. § 27-14-726 allows mini-truck registration, but only as a Class Eight farm vehicle on an F-prefix plate marked farm use only.
California
On-road use prohibitedOn-road registration effectively blocked by CARB emissions and FMVSS requirements.
Colorado
Conditional / restrictedHB25-1281 legalizes kei vehicle registration, but the act's official effective date is July 1, 2027 — you cannot register one today.
Florida
Conditional / restrictedRegistered as 'mini trucks' under FS 316.2122 — road use capped at streets posted 35 mph or less.
Georgia
On-road use prohibitedDOR Policy Bulletin MVD-2023-05 bars titling kei vehicles as 'unconventional' — existing titles are being revoked.
Idaho
Conditional / restrictedNo statewide ban; county-level registration with VIN inspection — confirm local road rules.
Illinois
On-road use prohibitedSecretary of State treats kei vehicles as non-highway under 625 ILCS 5/3-401(c-1) — plates issued earlier have been revoked.
Indiana
Street use permittedIC 9-13-2-103.1 defines a mini-truck class; the BMV titles and plates them, and only interstates are off limits.
Iowa
On-road use prohibitedIowa Code 321.30(2)(a) requires a 49 C.F.R. pt. 567 FMVSS label before title or registration — a kei truck has none.
Kansas
Conditional / restrictedTitled as a 'micro utility truck' under K.S.A. 8-1494 — exempt from registration, barred from state and federal highways, and city streets only with city permission.
Kentucky
Conditional / restricted2025 Ky. Acts ch. 89 (SB 63) created a registrable 'street-legal special purpose vehicle' class that names minitrucks — but it needs a local ordinance, a roll bar or roll cage, and caps highway trips at 20 miles.
Louisiana
Street use permittedR.S. 32:299.2 defines a mini-truck class and allows roads posted 55 mph or less, registered with an OMV off-road decal.
Maine
On-road use prohibitedThe BMV classifies kei trucks as off-road vehicles and will not register them; a 2026 state working group unanimously recommended no change.
Massachusetts
Street use permittedThe RMV reversed its ban on September 18, 2024 and now registers kei vehicles with passenger or commercial plates — by policy, not statute.
Michigan
Street use permittedThe Secretary of State titles and registers kei vehicles 25 years and older for on-road use — under 25 years, off-road title only.
Minnesota
Conditional / restrictedMinn. Stat. § 169.011 subd. 40a defines mini trucks, but road use requires a local ordinance and permit under § 169.045.
Missouri
Street use permittedTitled as a 'Non-USA-Std Motor Vehicle' under RSMo 301.190 after a Highway Patrol examination on Form 551 — no mini truck class, no posted-speed cap.
Montana
Street use permittedMVD Title Manual titles Japanese mini-trucks as 'unconventional light vehicles' — street-legal with a self-certified MV70A equipment inspection.
Nebraska
Street use permittedNeb. Rev. Stat. § 60-121.01 defines minitrucks; § 60-6,379 bars only interstates, expressways, and freeways.
New Hampshire
Conditional / restrictedNo kei or mini-truck class exists, but pre-2000 vehicles are title-exempt under RSA 261:3 and register through the town clerk. The widely repeated '35 mph / 25-mile radius' rule is not in New Hampshire law.
New York
On-road use prohibitedNY DMV states it will not register or title any Kei-class vehicle without proof of full FMVSS and EPA compliance — a bar no imported kei truck can clear.
North Carolina
Street use permittedG.S. 20-121.1 defines a mini truck class and allows roads posted 55 mph or less — unusually permissive.
North Dakota
Street use permittedNo kei-specific statute exists — NDDOT titles and registers imported vehicles under a published general procedure, and nothing in state law excludes kei trucks.
Ohio
Conditional / restrictedDefined mini-truck class under ORC 4519.02, but road use requires a local ordinance and is capped at 35 mph.
Oklahoma
Street use permitted47 O.S. § 1151.3 requires mini trucks to be titled and registered and allows all state roadways except the Interstate system.
Oregon
On-road use prohibitedDMV won't title or register kei vehicles for road use; off-road Class IV ATV titling only.
Pennsylvania
Conditional / restrictedPennDOT stopped issuing unrestricted on-road registrations in December 2021 — only off-road, farm-exemption, or antique titling remains.
Rhode Island
On-road use prohibitedR.I. Gen. Laws § 31-3-5(10) directs the DMV to refuse kei registrations and transfers — only pre-June 2024 registrations survive, and they cannot be sold with the vehicle.
South Dakota
Conditional / restrictedRegistrable, but as an ATV with a motorcycle plate under the DOR 'Mini Trucks' procedure — no interstate use.
Tennessee
Conditional / restrictedTwo pathways — 'medium speed vehicle' under TCA 55-1-125, or Class I off-highway plates for county roads.
Texas
Street use permittedSB 1816 classifies 25+ year miniature vehicles as motor vehicles for title and highway use.
Utah
Conditional / restrictedGenerally permitted with 50 mph road limits; stricter emissions in Wasatch Front counties.
Vermont
Street use permittedS.326 defined kei vehicles in state law and directed the DMV to register them — effective July 1, 2026.
Virginia
Street use permittedDMV guide VLIC-3.330 grants a title and full registration to imports over 25 years old — no mini truck restriction in the Code.
Washington
Conditional / restrictedRegisters 25-year imports but limits them to roads posted 35 mph or less — no highways. No emissions test.
West Virginia
Conditional / restrictedRegistrable as a street-legal special purpose vehicle under W. Va. Code § 17A-13-1 — but mini trucks are barred from federal-aid roads.
Wisconsin
Conditional / restrictedWis. Stat. 341.10(6) names 'Kei class vehicle' as grounds to refuse registration — collector plates under 341.266 are the only route.
Wyoming
Street use permittedRegistered as a multipurpose vehicle under W.S. 31-1-101 — WYDOT's own guidance pictures a mini truck as an example.
Laws and agency interpretations change. Confirm current requirements with your state DMV before purchasing. These guides are informational only and not legal advice.