Around the world, there are hundreds of cars, trucks, and crossovers that we can't buy. For safety, emissions, size, and countless other reasons, they'll never be sold in Canada.
But we want them! Usually, this is because they're something super cool and super fast, like a rare sports car trim or a spaceship-looking electric vehicle. In some cases, we want these foreign cars because they're just so cute! These adorable motor vehicles can look like Squishmallows on wheels. We love them because they make us smile, and that's something we all need more of.
Here they are, six cars for sale in other countries that are so adorable we wish we could buy them here.
Hyundai Casper
This is the tiny crossover that inspired this whole article. When AutoTrader's Editor-in-Chief Jodi Lai learned about the existence of the Hyundai Casper, she thought it was so adorable that we were forced to make sure everyone else knew about it. [Come on, it's also named after a famous ghost! –Jodi]
The Casper is the smallest vehicle of any kind that Hyundai sells right now. At just 1,595 mm wide and 3,595 mm long, the Casper is just half a metre longer than the minuscule Toyota iQ. It's 975 mm shorter than a Hyundai Elantra and still eclipsed by the tiny Venue. Despite that, this adorable crossover has five doors and seats five passengers. The price is KRW 16,900,000 (South Korean won) or about CAD $18,000.
More importantly, just look how cute it is! Boop!
Changan Lumin Corn
Is the Changan Lumin an actual car? Because it looks like a toy. Well, it has 41 hp and can hit highway speeds, so it must be real. The tall greenhouse and completely unadorned nose help make the Lumin adorable, along with the three-spoke wheels.
But why does this tiny electric city car have angry-eye headlights? What is this little guy so mad about? Like an outraged kitten, its fury has us making a "squee" sound. Then you get inside, and the steering wheel is sticking its tongue out at you! Can we fit this car into our pocket? We're willing to try.
Mitsuoka Viewt
This is such an oddly proportioned car that it can't be anything other than adorable. Mitsuoka is a Japanese coachbuilder that puts classic-style noses on modern cars. While some of the models are abominations (the Himiko) and others are oddly cool (the Buddy), it's the Viewt that is positively adorable.
A 1960s Jaguar nose on a last-generation Nissan Micra chassis looks delightful, placing big car styling on a roofline that is untouched from the hatchback it's based on.
A hatchback, you ask? Yes, Mitsuoka grafted a trunk onto a car that never left the Nissan factory with one. And it's the classic bustle-style that you would have found on the original Jaguar. Is it weird? Yes. Wonderful? Maybe. Adorable? Absolutely.
Ora Punk Cat
All of Ora's electric vehicles are good for an aww. The White Cat's underbite grille and the Ora iQ's 3/4-scale Polestar 2 body are wonderful, but it's the Ora Punk Cat that is the adorable one.
Imagine if Volkswagen had built the original Beetle with four doors. Cute, isn't it? That's exactly what the Punk Cat looks like, with the tiniest bit of modernization. Want a more modern interpretation/ Try the Lightning Cat, which is some sort of smaller and more VW-inspired version of the Porsche Panamera. Call it a Panamera you bought on Wish. Or the version you got as a kid when you asked for a Panamera for Christmas and your well-meaning grandparents went to Bi-Way instead of Toys 'R Us.
Suzuki Jimny
The Suzuki Samurai might have disappeared from Canada 30 years ago, but the vehicle lives on in most of the rest of the world. The latest version of it, called the Jimny, is a positively adorable mini off-roader.
The Suzuki Jimny is so small that the wheel wells nearly touch the doors at both ends. It forced Suzuki to cram the fuel filler into the tiny space between the door frame and the fender flare, which just makes it even cuter. Like a Mercedes-Benz G-Class that has been left in the dryer, the Jimny is nearly perfectly square. The roundest part is the spare tire that mounts to the tailgate in classic off-road form.
Suzuki just launched a five-door version that is a little bit bigger, but it's the three-door that we think is the more adorable model.
Honda E
Of all the cars on the list, the Honda E might be the one that has us the most frustrated. Just look at that EV! Adorable headlights, tiny mirrors that look like a cropped-eared pit bull (but, like, don't crop your dogs!!), and a design that looks like a sci-fi interpretation of an original Honda Civic. Even the inside is adorable, with a giant screen spanning from door to door.
So why aren't we getting this EV in Canada? They say it's too small. Too small!?! The Honda E is only 40 mm narrower than a Civic and about 750 mm shorter, which makes it nearly identical to the Honda Fit in length and much wider, with the packaging advantages of an electric car. Bring it here, Honda! Please!
