What a Charade...Daihatsu Takes Toyota Yaris Leftovers to Create a New Model

Daihatsu may be getting ready to pull out of the European market, but as a last call, the Japanese firm will introduce one more model to its range, the new Charade. And as you've probably guessed by now, the “new” Charade is in fact a Daihatsu-badged version of the outgoing Toyota Yaris, the successor of which, has already been introduced in Japan and will be showcased through a hybrid study in Geneva.

The Charade will be available exclusively with a 1.33-liter gasoline engine delivering 99 ponies, mated to a six-speed manual gearbox as standard, with the option of an automatic gearbox. Daihatsu's rebadged Yaris will be offered with two equipment levels and the starting price is expected to be below that of its Toyota twin.

Toyota's small car subsidiary announced its decision to abandon the European market from January 31 2013, last December. The move was attributed to the increasing development costs to comply with emissions regulations in Europe, as well as the “appreciation of the yen against the Euro''. In short, Daihatsu decided it was no longer profitable to sell Japanese-made cars in Europe.

The firm's sale results didn't help either, with the company moving a mere 19.300 units in 2010 in ten European markets, which accounted for just 5.3 percent of the brand's global sales.

Daihatsu Launches New Move, Claims Title of Japan's Most Fuel Efficient Non-Hybrid Passenger Car

Toyota Motor Corp's small-car making subsidiary, Daihatsu, has unveiled a new generation of its Move mini in Japan. The five-door hatchback has been redesigned from the ground up and is claimed to be the most fuel efficient, non-hybrid, gasoline passenger car in Japan achieving up to 27.0km/liter, which is equal to 65.5 mpg US and 3.7 lt/100km.

The pint-sized model from Daihatsu measures just 3,395 mm in length (the new Fiat 500 is 3,546mm) with a wheelbase of 2,455 mm. The Japanese maker said it has shaved 35 kg or77 pounds over the previous model through a series of measures such as reducing the weight of instrument panel and door trim as well as CVT unit and other components.

The 2011 Move is offered with a newly developed second-generation KF engine equipped with what Daihatsu describes as the world's first i-EGR system that detects the combustion state using ions as well as Japan's first plastic electronic throttle body. The 0.66-liter unit, which features a start-stop system as well, is rated at 52HP and 60Nm (44.3 lb-ft) of torque, and is linked to a revised CVT.

Daihatsu offers the new Move in both front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive confrontations with retail prices (excluding tax) in Japan ranging from 1.066 million Yen to 1.372 million Yen (US$12,700-16,310) for the standard Move and from 1.247 million Yen to 1.534 million Yen (US$14,830-18,250) for the more hip Move Custom. The automaker said the monthly sales target for Japan is 12,000 units.

Hat tip to Leopaul

Source: Daihatsu, Via: Carview

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Revised Daihatsu Copen Roadster Adds New Ultimate S Variant

Daihatsu has launched the 2011 model year version of its tiny Copen roadster in Japan. In order to keep buyers interested, Toyota's subsidiary enhanced the base trim level with additional standard features and introduced a new Ultimate S Edition that gains a restyled grille, dark colored 15-inch BBS alloys, a Momo steering wheel and gear lever, plus the option of full leather sport seats or a set of Recaro buckets draped in Alcantara.

All version of the 3.4-meter long Copen come with a power hardtop and a 660cc turbocharged engine producing 64HP at 6,000 rpm and 110Nm of peak torque at 3,200rpm, matched to either a four-speed automatic transmission or a five-speed manual gearbox.