This charming electric kei van has plans to come stateside

A new company out of Japan called HW Electro wants to be the first manufacturer of electric vehicles in the country's hotly contested commercial kei car segment. Its first concept, the Puzzle, is a battery-electric van that conforms to Japan's strict kei car specifications. Unlike most other kei car makers, however, HW Electro hopes to bring the Puzzle to North America.

The van debuted at the Japan Mobility Show in October, then came to New York for a publicity shoot. The company is making it explicitly clear that it has plans for U.S. sales, even spending some time driving around New York city streets as part of a promotional video.