Daihatsu Charade

Daihatsu Charade

OVERVIEW

Daihatsu powered into an rising lightweight automobile scene in 1980 with a budget, cheerful and reliable Charade. In but a year it doubled Daihatsu's Aussie sales, and was a key driving force behind the company's glory days in 1992 and 1993 - when Daihatsu outsold even Honda and Nissan.

Since then the whole has done everything attainable to self destruct. Charade was dropped in 1997 and Applause, Feroza and Rocky suffered similar fates. Daihatsu modified tack, bringing boxy, characterless products like YRV and Cuore to market, and Australians responded with overwhelming indifference. Only the 4WD Terios managed to keep its head higher than water as the company's annual sales dived to record lows in 2000.

Now that parent company Toyota is taking an energetic interest in its subsidiary, Daihatsu is plotting its means duplicate the ladder and therefore the new Charade is an integral part within the set up. An incredibly attractive value tag and a healthy features list are undoubtedly Charade's two strongest lures, its lightweight-sipping engine is another. Thing is, this new automobile may wear a Charade badge, however it appearance a lot of like a boxy YRV or Cuore successor.

OPTIONS

This generation Daihatsu Charade could be a massive departure from the Charades Australians grew to rely on within the Eighties and Nineteen Nineties. Its tall-boy form has not proven standard; cars just like the Suzuki Ignis, Wagon R+, Daihatsu Cuore and YRV never commanded large charm with new car patrons.

CarPoint understands that the styling of this automobile was primarily for the Japanese domestic market, and export markets had little say in the finished product. For Daihatsu Australia, something is healthier than nothing.

The three-door Charade's biggest single drawcard is its incredibly roomy interior - maybe a small amount narrow, however actually capable of accommodating four adults comfortably and simply.

Second on the list of desirables is Charade's fairly extensive features list for a automobile priced less than $12,000. It's customary with central locking, electric windows and mirrors, CD player and a number of safety options, including dual airbags. The only hiccup in the value for patrons is the extra $1500 needed for air conditioning - practically a necessity in the Australian summer.

Third, and arguably as vital as the Charade's features is its very frugal - nonetheless surprisingly spirited - engine. Sipping around 5litres/100km interprets into 700km per tank or roughly $50 per month for the common urban Australian.

A less obvious feature of the Charade is its build quality - a feature sometimes solely noticed when less than optimum. Consistent work and end, smart quality plastics throughout and sturdy cloth trim are the highlights, a poorly fitting floor covering within the boot the only real negative.

MECHANICAL

The three-door Charade could be a front drive hatchback powered by a 1.0-litre, three-cylinder engine. It's relatively straightforward fare with four valves per cylinder and two overhead camshafts. Steel block and alloy head, the engine produces 40kW of power and 88Nm of torque.

That's hardly stonking, but in an exceedingly light-weight body tipping in at just 720kg, it's a lot of than adequate. Charade comes standard with a 5 speed manual transmission, a four speed automatic is optional ($1250 at launch in July 2003). The Charade's braking system - discs front and drums rear - also benefit substantially from the automotive's light-weight weight, giving it spectacular stopping strength.

The Charade's suspension has been designed to not only provide a sensible ride and handling compromise, however additionally with minimal cabin intrusion. Coils over shock absorbers up front and trailing arm shocks at the rear keep the Charade's 13inch Bridgestone tyres in sensible contact with the road.

Charade gets power steering which is road speed sensitive, said to create parking easier whereas also giving higher speed stability.

COMFORT

Charade is a surprisingly snug providing for a car therefore physically compact. We challenged a 6ft 4in (190cm) colleague to occupy the back seats - that he accessed with relative ease - with the writer's 178cm frame within the front seat. Neither bloke is probably to be accused of stinting on the food when seconds are on offer, and however the Charade accommodated each quite comfortably indeed. Four up would not be a downside space-wise, though the not-so powerful engine may have problems with 400kg of humans onboard.

The driver's seat adjusts for slide, the seat back for rake and the steering wheel has tilt modify. We had no drawback finding a comfortable driving position, but there's no seat height change, nor does the steering wheel telescope - this could be an issue relying on your body form.

The wing mirrors are electrically adjustable, and therefore the rear read mirror has smart vision past the rear seat headrests.

One issue with house within is the terribly slender body. The Charade is just 1475mm wide on the outside, translating into 1300mm of shoulder space at the front seats. Our two test dummies barely had room for John Grisham's latest between them.

The passenger seat tilts and slides forward to improve access to the back, created even easier by the doors which open to just about ninety degrees. Bootspace is restricted with the seats up, though a 60/40 split-fold allows a modicum of load carrying versatility.

SAFETY

Dual front airbags are commonplace on the Daihatsu Charade along with front seatbelt pretensioners and side intrusion bars. In addition to this the steering column is set up to collapse in a very frontal crash, reducing chest injuries. Self locking doors - which lock when you move off - automatically unlock in a crash, and the automobile additionally cuts off the fuel system.

The Charade's rear drum brakes could initially seem like a safety weak link, however are a lot of than up to the task of stopping the 725kg Daihatsu. An Antilock Brake System is not fitted and isn't an optional further.

The bonnet, bonnet hinges, front wiper pivots and front guards have been designed with minimising harm to pedestrians within the event of a collision.

 Daihatsu Charade

 Daihatsu Charade

 Daihatsu Charade

 Daihatsu Charade

 Daihatsu Charade