Daihatsu – Driven To Write

Something Rotten in Denmark

At present there are eight Daihatsus for sale in Denmark. Let’s peer in the dirty side glass of one of them. Nothing if not exclusive, these cars.

1990 Daihatsu Cuore: source — 1990 Daihatsu Cuore: bilbasen.dk

By way of a little contrast, anyone wanting something more common can choose from 87 Ferraris, 33 Aston Martins, 621 Porsches or 48 Maseratis. People feeling insecure about the rarity of their Rolls-Royce can be assured that there are only nine of them on sale this week, making it almost as exclusive as a Daihatsu. Those numbers are probably reasonable guides to the relative scarcity of these cars.
Continue reading “Something Rotten in Denmark”

Ashtrays: 2008 Daihatsu Materia

This must be a DTW exclusive. Daihatsu offered a small-car with a tank-like demeanour.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

I thought I’d like being inside this car but I didn’t. The high window-line and the cliff of dashboard coupled with the hard seats lent the car an altogether unwelcoming feeling. A casual net search showed only grey interiors. It is spacious and according to Car was quite alright if taken as an urban runabout and not a device for spirited driving. Thanks, Car, for conceding that much. They said this: “This is one of the Materia’s ace cards. It really is roomy in there, with plenty of room for four adults to Continue reading “Ashtrays: 2008 Daihatsu Materia”

Theme : Japan – Boxing Clever

Why is Japan so good at thinking inside the box?

Chapeau, Nissan? Well, it’s a start, I guess. 1989 Nissan Chapeau image : conceptnissan.com

An obvious introduction for an obvious concept. If you want to fit people shaped people into a car, the architecture that allows them the most room to sit in comfort is a box. An empty volume bounded by a series of flat rectangles. In the early days lots of cars were like this, now they are not. A common criticism of car design, used in the UK at least, is that a car is ‘boxy’. This comment needs no expansion – the fact that the car resembles a box condemns it. Yet, of course, a box is the best shape if you want to Continue reading “Theme : Japan – Boxing Clever”