The Honda N-Van Compo Is Overlanding Origami; And We Wish It Would Come Here.

The Honda N-Van Compo is a JDM overlander (Images: Honda)

White House Camper’s Honda N-Van Compo is 133.7 inches long, which is nearly 20-inches shorter than a Mini 2-Door, but it has SO much potential!

The Honda N-Van Compo will be on display at the 2022 Tokyo Auto Salon, along with many other concepts. While this concept, (which has been seen at other events) caught our attention with these amazing images. I mean, what a cool idea for such a small vehicle.

Considering the size of the vehicle, it’s an impressive display of what you can create with a limited amount of space. The regular Honda N-Van debuted a.few years back and is a fairly simple Kei car (abbreviated for the word keijidosha – meaning l”ight vehicle”). Currently, a Kei car (which is strictly built for the Japanese domestic market) has a max displacement at 660cc. Back in the 1940’s, Kei car started out with anemic 100cc scooter engines. Some were even two-stroke, but all these tiny cars and trucks had to measure within a tiny box.

In the old days, they measured 9.2-feet long, and 3.3-ft wide. Now they’ve grown to a staggering 11.2-ft long and 4.9-ft wide. It’s still smaller than the aforementioned Mini Cooper Two-door footprint, by a huge margin. Still, with the gas tank placed under the driver’s seat, and the engine pushed as far forward as possible, there’s tons of space. Building upward, and with nothing encumbering the floor, the N Box can hold four adults comfortably, or tons of gear. All of the seats can fold completely flat into the floor, making enough room for a motorcycle. No kidding.

Check out THIS Kei car 4×4 van!!!

The Honda N-Box comes with a 52 horsepower three-cylinder that is connected to the front wheels via a six-speed manual transmission. This van weighs less than 2,700-lbs, before the additional camping gear.

What is the White House Camper’s Honda N-Van Compo?

Using a massive amount of clever packaging and storage ideas, the Honda N-Van Compo is capable of sleeping a small family overnight. By use of inflatable mattresses, a expanding rooftop, and an add-on room – this rig is very utilitarian. It has a small cooler/fridge, microwave, sink, storage, folding awning and storage for lots of gear.

There are a few options for sleeping arrangements depending on the layout. You can build one for a single, or multipole sleepers. There are also a few layouts for storage and appliance locations as well. The most notable and noticeable addition is the pop-up roof. With the upper panel recessed, and roof extended, standing space expands to about six-feet.

Sadly, new Kei vehicles are not permitted or sold in the United States. For the most part, you have to wait 25 years to import them. Even so, state and city regulations vari for these runabouts in the U.S., so imports can be an issue in general. It’s a real shame because these vehicles sell (before the camping upgrades) for around $20,000+ U.S.

I know there’s a market here for something like this. Especially something so utilitarian and ready for light overlanding – with such a low entry price. Yes, I know – it’s not up to DOT requirements and blah, blah, blah… I would still rock this little guy with pride.

Speaking of the forbidden “Van Life…”