On the day Donald Trump was elected President in America, Toyota launched a Tank in Tokyo. Of course, it was all happenstance, but it also is an omen. Trump’s impending “America First” policy would lead to a rearmament at America’s former foes in Japan and Germany, commentators predicted, and talk about going nuclear as insurance against belligerent neighbors and unreliable allies already is rampant in both countries. Toyota’s Tank of course is for entirely peaceful purposes: It is a new compact minivan, built on the bones of Daihatsu’s minivehicles, or “kei” cars.
