This is a 1990 Daihatsu fire truck. It's not a toy or a model, but built for its stated purpose. It's also adorable. Owner Todd Lappin has named his new friend "Kiri". You can see Kiri on the streets of San Francisco. Although Kiri is not affiliated with the San Francisco Fire Department, it's fully functional and can fight fires. SFist reports:
"I imported Kiri directly from Japan with a local importer I got to know," Lappin tells the paper. "Essentially it was retired by the town, went through the auction system. It sold for almost nothing, because who wants a 30-year-old tiny fire truck?" [...]
Lappin had some experience importing a Japanese car previously, and after he got to know the ins and outs of the process, he decided to seek out something cooler and more unique for San Francisco, as a whim. Enter Kiri, which served a volunteer fire department in Kirigamine, Japan for about 30 years, and came to SF about five months into the pandemic. The truck is made to navigate hills and narrow streets, and it's never had its own water tank — it has a pump that relies on suction, so you just need to park it next to a pond and drop a hose in, and you're good to fight a fire.
-via Super Punch | Photo: Kiri the Japanese Fire Truck
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