How Far Can Japan's TINIEST Car Go on a SINGLE Tank of Fuel? 🇯🇵

We set out to answer one question: just how far can Japan's tiniest car go on a single tank of fuel? Our plan is simple: fill up the 27-liter tank and drive down Japan's West Coastline until it runs completely empty. We started in Sakata, Yamagata, and placed bets on the distance, with the loser having to drive all the way back. It's a long journey, but we're determined to find out the Kei car's true range.

After a worrying start with a flat tire and a slow escape from the car park, we drove for two hours into Niigata Prefecture, hugging a remote coastal road. This is one of my favorite driving routes in Japan, offering stunning scenery. We decided to enjoy our Lawson Kagum (chicken nuggets) brunch somewhere scenic along the rocky shores of the Sea of Japan, near a beautiful shrine I always stop at. It's a very windy day, which could either help or hinder our fuel efficiency.

After crossing into Niigata and hitting the 100km mark, it was time for a driver change and a highway stretch. Before that, I had a lunchtime idea involving McDonald's. What should have been a simple drive-thru in Murakami turned into a full-scale diplomatic incident as Natsuki struggled to order a 'Samurai Mac' due to the pronunciation of 'R' in Japanese. We ended up terrorizing the staff and fleeing the scene like a couple of hamburgers.

Relegated to the passenger seat, a restless Natsuki decided to convert the Kei car into a mobile gym. He started doing exercises, making the car move, and even came up with a new series called 'Exercise with Natsuki: The Brand New Series,' all taking place in a Kei car. This trip has certainly revealed the untapped potential of owning a Kei car, though I was worried he'd break it.

After his gym workout, Natsuki decided to reinvent the Kei car into a fully operational taxi, with me as his first lucky victim. He claimed 20 years of experience, having driven famous people like pro wrestlers, rockers, and YouTubers. The worst part, he said, was 'too much drunker.' It was an interesting choice of vehicle, and not very reassuring to hear my taxi driver say 'this guy is f***ing broken' while I was a passenger hurtling down the highway. At least I had Niigata butter-flavored crisps to keep me company.

After almost 12 hours of driving, we finally left the highway and found a restaurant selling omurice. We had a very big dinner of omurice with Bolognese sauce and Tonkatsu pork, which was a well-earned meal. While eating, we reviewed the map to see how far we'd traveled. We started in Sakata and were now between Kanazawa and Fukui, having covered over 500km. We decided to push on to Fukui City, about 55km away, and finish the journey the next morning.

The next morning, as the sun rose over Fukui, Natsuki got the day off to a worrying start when he came face to face with the ferocious and seemingly hungry local wildlife – the animatronic dinosaurs at Fukui Station. I was woken up to the sound of a dinosaur, only to realize it was Natsuki snoring next door. It's a unique station, probably the only one in the world with animatronic dinosaurs, making for a memorable start to the day.

After a good night's rest and battling through 'Jurassic Park,' we hit the road once more in the indestructible Kei car, which somehow still had 20% of its fuel tank remaining. We drove along the stunning Fukui coastline, but with Natsuki needing to get back for work, we decided to take the car into the mountains near Tsuruga to finally run it out of fuel in peace, away from civilization. The last bar started blinking, like the beating heart of the car, signaling its imminent end.