Disclosure: this guide contains referral links, marked where they appear. All prices are independently measured from public data on the dates shown.
The Daihatsu Hijet is the workhorse’s workhorse — the longest-running kei truck nameplate, built continuously since 1960, and the model whose price data hides the single most interesting number in the class. On August 18, 2026 I measured every 25-year-eligible Hijet publicly listed for sale in Japan: all 61 of them, and then broke them down by configuration. The headline: an ordinary-bed Hijet costs ¥390,000 (≈$2,453) — but the factory dump trucks that make up 30% of the supply command a ¥790,000 median, double the money. If you have seen the Hijet described as “the expensive kei truck,” that is the dump fleet talking.
I research Japan’s used vehicle market from Sapporo. If you are still comparing models, start with the five-truck comparison; this page is the deep dive for the truck that won its “toughest worker” slot.
The 60-Second Verdict
For most buyers: a 1999–2001 S210P — the 4WD truck of the last eligible generation — with the 5-speed manual. As you will see below, this is barely a choice: 92% of Japan’s eligible public supply is this generation, and it happens to be the newest, Toyota-era truck anyway.
If you need a dump bed: buy it in Japan, not in the US. The dump premium exists on both sides of the Pacific — a ¥400,000 gap between medians in Japan (¥790,000 vs ¥390,000) and, per carmanji’s US price guide, $2,000–4,000 landed. Paying the premium in yen is the cheaper half of that trade, and dump supply here is deep: 18 of the 61 eligible trucks — 17 of the 40 dumps across the whole specialty-body market.
If you find a Jumbo cab, decide fast. The extended-headroom cab that taller American buyers hunt for appeared in just 4 of my 61 measured listings. It is real, it is importable, and it does not sit around.
Generations and the 25-Year Calendar — Including the One Most Guides Skip
| Era | Years | Truck codes | Import status (August 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Late 550cc/early 660cc era | 1990–1994 | S82P (2WD) / S83P (4WD) | Eligible — scarce and collector-priced (see data below) |
| Mid-90s update | 1994–1998 | S100P (2WD) / S110P (4WD) | Eligible — but nearly absent from public listings |
| Toyota-era redesign | 1999–2004 | S200P (2WD) / S210P (4WD) | Builds through mid-2001 eligible, rolling monthly — 92% of today’s supply |
A correction worth making explicitly: at least one widely-read US model guide compresses this history, dating the S80-series trucks to 1990–1998 and skipping the S100/S110 generation entirely. The chassis code on the frame plate is the truth-teller — S82/S83, then S100/S110 from 1994, then S200/S210 from 1999. It matters practically because parts and trim differ across the three, and because auction search filters run on those codes.
What matters most is the 1999 redesign. Toyota took control of Daihatsu in 1998, and the S200-series that followed is the truck Japan’s fleets actually kept: stiffer, better-appointed, and — as the measurement below shows — almost the entire surviving market. Eligibility runs on the build month stamped on the caution plate, verified as covered in the import guide.
What Hijets Cost in Japan Right Now — Measured, Not Guessed
Complete public dealer inventory of 25-year-eligible Hijet trucks on Carsensor, Japan’s largest vehicle marketplace, measured August 18, 2026. Yen converted at ¥159/USD.
| Segment | Listings | Median asking price |
|---|---|---|
| All eligible Hijet trucks | 61 | ¥450,000 (≈$2,830) |
| Ordinary beds (dump trucks excluded) | 43 | ¥390,000 (≈$2,453) |
| Factory dump trucks | 18 | ¥790,000 (≈$4,969) |
| S200/S210 generation (1999–2001) | 56 | ¥465,000 (≈$2,925) |
| Older survivors (to 1993) | 2 | ¥750,000 — but see note below |
| Jumbo cab examples | 4 | ¥390,000–650,000 range |
Notes: dealer retail “total payment” prices; auction prices typically run lower. Generation splits use listing year as a proxy for chassis code; the S100/S110 era showed just 3 listings, too few for a meaningful median.
Two findings in this table changed how I describe the Hijet across this site.
First, the “expensive Hijet” is a statistical illusion. The Hijet’s overall median (¥450,000) is the highest of the five kei trucks — but strip out the 18 factory dumps and an ordinary Hijet bed costs ¥390,000, right between the Acty and the Carry. When I first published the five-model comparison I read the Hijet’s premium as a 4WD story; decomposing the data showed the premium follows the dump bed, not the drivetrain — among ordinary-bed trucks, 4WD and 2WD medians sit within ¥10,000 of each other. The correction is now live in the comparison article too, because measured data only stays honest if you re-cut it when a better explanation appears.
Second, the market has already chosen your generation for you. 56 of 61 eligible listings — 92% — are S200/S210 trucks. The older generations were worked to death or exported years ago; the two pre-1994 survivors list at a ¥750,000 median — though honesty requires a caveat: both happen to be dump trucks, so their prices mix scarcity with the dump premium and cannot cleanly prove a collector market the way the Carry’s 14 pre-1991 classics do. Unlike the Acty, Sambar and Carry, where a real new-vs-old choice exists (and where I measured the newer generation as mispriced cheap), the Hijet decision is simpler: you are buying a Toyota-era S200/S210, and the only real questions are configuration and condition.
The Dump-Bed Economy
The Hijet’s signature configuration deserves its own numbers, because nobody else publishes them. Factory hydraulic dump beds account for 18 of Japan’s 61 eligible listings — the deepest dump pool of any kei truck — at a ¥790,000 median, and 15 of the 18 are 4WD, which is why the dump premium masquerades as a 4WD premium in aggregate statistics. These are the trucks Japan’s farms, landscapers and snow crews bought to move loose material, and they hold value here because they keep working here.
Crossing the ocean does not erase the premium. carmanji’s US price guide adds $2,000–4,000 for dump-equipped trucks, and the same guide’s modification pages price aftermarket hydraulic dump kits at $800–1,200 before installation — which makes the arithmetic straightforward: a factory dump bought at the Japanese premium (roughly $2,500 over an ordinary bed, converted at ¥159/USD) lands you factory hydraulics, factory geometry and factory reliability for about what a US-side conversion costs in parts and labor, with none of the warranty ambiguity. If a dump bed is the point of your truck, source it as one.
Three Ways to Buy One
Measured, the Hijet market sorts into three clean buying profiles. Bands are the middle half of actual listings (25th–75th percentile, linearly interpolated), not rounded guesses:
| Profile | Target spec | Japan middle-half band (measured) | The logic |
|---|---|---|---|
| The worker | S210P 4WD, ordinary bed, 5MT | ¥340,000–472,000 (median ¥380,000, n=24) | The newest truck in the class’s deepest single-generation pool |
| The dump buyer | Factory hydraulic dump, mostly 4WD | ¥612,000–1,125,000 (median ¥790,000, n=18) | Cheaper than buying the premium in dollars; factory beats conversion |
| The comfort pick | Jumbo cab, either drivetrain | ¥390,000–650,000 (all 4 measured listings) | Headroom worth hunting for; scarcity means you take condition as it comes |
Living in Sapporo, I will add one seasonal note: the dump-plus-4WD combination is what half of Hokkaido uses to move snow all winter, which is exactly why worked examples exist in volume and why service parts for the hydraulics never dried up. A snow-state American buyer is importing a tool this country already spent decades debugging in the same conditions.
The US Side of the Ledger
Classic.com shows an $8,619 average completed sale across 33 US Hijet sales ($4,600–15,256 range), measured the same day as the Japan numbers. Against the ordinary-bed median of ¥390,000 plus roughly $2,900–5,300 in freight, duty and fees, a working Hijet lands around $5,400–7,800. Comparing raw truck prices — the ¥390,000 ordinary-bed median against the $8,619 US sale average — the gap is about 3.5×, second only to the Sambar’s 4.0× in my five-model measurement. carmanji’s asking-price bands run $5,500–7,500 for 1990s 2WD trucks up to $11,000–16,000 for low-mileage 1999–2001 4WDs — and remember that nearly everything you can import today is exactly that newest band, buyable at the source for a fraction of it.
Dump, Jumbo or plain bed, the price gap is the same argument: buy at the source. Hijet inventory is searchable free at CAR FROM JAPAN — code KEITRUCK takes $100 off a first purchase (referral link).
Jumbo Cabs and the Rare Configurations
The Jumbo cab — Daihatsu’s extended-roof, reclined-seat option — is the configuration tall American buyers ask about first, and the supply data says: act when you see one. Four of my 61 measured listings were Jumbos, spread from ¥390,000 to ¥650,000 depending on condition and drivetrain. US dealers price the same trucks at $9,000–12,000 per carmanji’s bands, so even the expensive end of the Japanese Jumbo market imports comfortably below US retail. Rarer still: my count caught a single Climber — the agricultural super-low-gear variant — which is the kind of unicorn that surfaces more often at the dealer auctions than in public listings. If a specific rare configuration is your goal, auction access through an agent or exporter beats waiting for retail supply.
Engines and Known Issues — Every Importable Hijet Runs the EF
All 25-year-eligible Hijets use Daihatsu’s EF-series 659cc three-cylinder — mostly the naturally-aspirated EF-SE at around 38–42 hp, with factory-turbo EF variants reaching the 64 hp kei ceiling. The modern KF engine with its timing chain did not arrive until well after the eligibility window, so plan around EF realities:
- Timing belt, non-negotiable. The EF is a belt engine on a 100,000 km interval; US guides treat it as an interference design, so a snapped belt is not a shrug. Assume it is due unless paperwork proves otherwise, and do the water pump in the same job — the maintenance guide sets out the EF’s full schedule alongside the other kei engines.
- Head gasket vigilance. carmanji flags EF-SE head gasket failure as the known weak point, usually downstream of overheating. A cooling-system pressure test before purchase — or at minimum an auction sheet clean of engine notations — is cheap insurance.
- Undersized alternator. Ninth-decade electrics were built to a price; US owner guides consistently report alternator failures on older trucks, especially with accessories added. Budget a replacement as preventive maintenance rather than a surprise.
- Cab heat. The engine lives under the seat, and summer heat soak into the cab is the Hijet’s most common comfort complaint. Insulation kits fix most of it.
- Rust, the universal veto. Frame rails behind the front wheels, cab floor around the engine access panel, bed floor and arches. All of it is readable from the other side of the ocean on the auction sheet — the auction sheet guide decodes the rust codes and inspector shorthand.
One sibling worth knowing about: the Atrai, the passenger-spec van built on Hijet bones, lives in a different market with different prices — the whole Van/Cargo/Atrai family is decoded in the Hijet van guide.
How to Import One
Confirm the build month clears the 25-year line, buy through Japan’s dealer auctions instead of tourist-priced retail, and clear US customs at the 25% truck duty with fees mapped in advance. The step-by-step import guide has the current cost math, and the exporter comparison covers who gets you real auction access — which matters double for the Hijet, since the dump trucks and Jumbos worth chasing surface at auction far more often than in the thin public listings.
If you want to see live supply: CAR FROM JAPAN lists Hijets across every configuration on this page — standard beds, dumps, Jumbos — searchable by year and drivetrain. My referral code takes $100 off a first purchase — create a free account, shortlist an S210P or two, enter KEITRUCK at the order step.
Browse Daihatsu Hijets at CAR FROM JAPAN — $100 off with code KEITRUCK
You save $100; I earn a referral reward. Every price in this article is measured independently of them.
FAQ
What years of Daihatsu Hijet can I import in 2026?
Builds through roughly August 2001, verified by build month rather than model year. In practice that means the S200/S210 generation (1999 onward) plus the scarce older survivors — 92% of Japan’s current public supply is the S200/S210.
Is a factory dump bed worth the premium?
If you will actually dump loads, yes — and buy it in Japan. The median-to-median premium is about ¥400,000 at the source versus $2,000–4,000 in the US market, and a factory system beats an $800–1,200 aftermarket conversion on geometry, capacity and reliability.
What is the Hijet Jumbo and should I hold out for one?
An extended-cab option with more headroom and seat recline — the comfort pick for drivers around six feet and up. Supply is thin (4 of 61 measured listings), so hold out only if the cab is a dealbreaker; otherwise buy condition first.
Daihatsu Hijet or Suzuki Carry?
Hijet for work focus and the dump/Jumbo configurations; Carry for the biggest parts ecosystem and US community. Ordinary-bed money is nearly identical (¥390,000 vs ¥400,000 in my measurements) — the Carry guide makes the other side of the case.
How much does an imported Hijet cost all-in?
Ordinary bed at the ¥390,000 median (≈$2,453) plus roughly $2,900–5,300 in freight, the 25% truck duty, port fees and paperwork: $5,400–7,800 landed. A factory dump at the ¥790,000 median pencils out around $7,900–10,300 — still at or below what US lots ask for dump-equipped trucks. Full line items in the import guide.
Is the Hijet reliable?
Yes — the EF engine family powered millions of Daihatsus and its failure points are well mapped: timing belt on schedule, head gasket vigilance after any overheat, and an alternator that appreciates proactive replacement. At 25+ years old, the individual truck’s rust and service history matter far more than the badge.
Can a Hijet handle American highways?
Like its rivals: 55–60 mph with effort, happier below that. Turbo examples cruise more comfortably. It is a farm, property and back-road tool; interstate commuting is the wrong assignment.