Here’s one last Daihatsu kei-car post from the 2015 Tokyo Motor Show, and it’s of the Daihatsu Copen. If you’re a fan of the 1990s Honda Beat and Suzuki Cappuccino roadsters, you’ll know the Copen, now in its second generation. It’s a rival to Honda’s fresh S660, although the latter has its engine behind the seats while the Copen gets a conventional FF layout.
For the uninitiated, the second-gen Daihatsu Copen made its debut in mid-2014 in its home market. The JDM roadster morphed from the Kopen concept Daihatsu showed at the 2013 Tokyo Motor Show relatively unchanged. Today’s car is less cutesy and cartoonish as the original Copen that was sold from 2002 to 2012.
The LA400K made its debut as the Copen Robe, before a more rugged, off-road inspired XPlay joined in late-2014. The car you see here is the Cero. Introduced in June this year, the third outfit sports round lamps at both ends like the Mk1, and has a more classy, classic appearance relative to its sisters.
Resin outer body panels such as the bonnet, fenders, bumpers side skirts and rear deck are interchangeable (doors are fixed) along with the lights, which means that one can change his/her Robe to a Cero, DIY at home for around 350,000 yen (RM12,470). Robe face, Cero tail? Strange, but possible if you desire. Daihatsu calls this skin-changing magic show Dress Formation. Unique to the Cero is the British Green Mica exterior colour and a red interior, both not seen here.
The Copen’s compact footprint (3,395 mm long) and its 660 cc turbocharged three-cylinder engine with 64 PS and 92 Nm are bound by Japan’s kei-car limits. The KF engine is paired to a five-speed manual or a CVT gearbox. The video above shows the little roadster’s folding metal roof in action. Press a button between the seats and the motorised hard top will do its thing in 20 seconds.
Like the Cast Sport we showed you yesterday, and the latest Move Custom, the Copen is a cool kei-car that won’t be cheap enough for Perodua to sell in large numbers here, no thanks to the ringgit’s “new normal” value of around RM3.50 to 100 yen. But how about a small batch for kei-car fans and those looking for an eye-catching convertible for below RM100k?
Daihatsu Copen Cero at TMS
Daihatsu Copen XPlay
Daihatsu Copen Robe
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I saw Tun M driving one a few weeks back along KESAS. Registered with number plate 2020, he was driving alongside a Proton engineer (presumably since he was wearing Proton outfit).
When Perodua bring in this, Proton can close shop instantly. But will government allow Perodua to do so?
For a junk car maker to survive, generations of Malaysian suffer.
Sam Loo spotted on the Daihatsu stand at Tokyo Motor Show
if it was me take out everything except tail lights and head lamps and drive naked. save weight save petrol :p