2014 Daihatsu Copen – Driven To Write

Tears Are Not Enough

Daihatsu’s abortive 1991 MX-5 fighter. Could it have been a winner?

daihatsu X-021 — 1991 Daihatsu X-021. (c) carstyling.ru

It could be said that the arrival in 1989 of the Mazda MX5 was the catalyst, but in reality, it was part of a movement which had been building for some time. Ever since the compact, lightweight open two-seater had been relegated to the outliers of the specialist carmakers, the enthusiast press began agitating for a mainstream roadster revival.

Those leading manufacturers who had abandoned roadsters (or were soon about to) Continue reading “Tears Are Not Enough”

Bonsai Aphrodite

Compact and comely, the Daihatsu Copen Coupé is something of a balm to the crossover contagion.

Despite the inexorable decline and likely demise of the small sports car; victim to the kind of commercial logic that has seen crossovers and their ilk take over every sub-niche, there remains one market that is seemingly still immune from contagion. Japan’s Kei car scene.

Daihatsu’s diverting little Copen roadster requires little introduction given that Driven to Write has warmly spoken of its compact pleasures in the past. The first series Copen was officially discontinued in 2012, and since then, owing to Daihatsu’s regrettable withdrawal from the European market, Kei-car enthusiasts have been denied its current incarnation.

The contemporary Copen was designed from the outset, not only to be more angular and somewhat more technical in appearance, but also to Continue reading “Bonsai Aphrodite”

Death Has A Revolving Door 3: 2014 Daihatsu Copen

Daihatsu’s Japanese production declines for the first time in 8 months…

…but production overseas increased to compensate. And generally sales are down overall. Daihatsu gave up on Europe a few years back so the news that the Copen sportscar is to be revived may not do so very much to improve the sales picture. Still, it’s nice to imagine. What sort of a range does the Copen fit into?

There is the Terios hatchback in five and seven seater guise, the Sirion hatchback and the Gran Max van which also comes as a pick-up. That make the Copen something of an outsider in a range of very practical vehicles, but it is still at least as small as the others. Continue reading “Death Has A Revolving Door 3: 2014 Daihatsu Copen”