Axon’s Automotive Anorak: The eight best Daihatsu concept cars

Infiniti is the most recent marque from the Land of the Rising Sun to extract itself from Europe, following in the miniscule tyre tracks of fellow Japanese brand Daihatsu, which pulled-out of Europe in 2012 due to the high value of the Yen at the time against the Euro and Sterling, resulting in minimal profit margins for the minimal-priced economy car maker. 

Unlike Infiniti, which built some of its models in the UK and elsewhere outside of Japan, all of the passenger cars Daihatsu sold in Europe where produced in high-cost Japan, making the sale of its relatively affordable small hatchback Sirion, funky folding hardtop Copen and Terios SUV unviable in Britain and Continental Europe.

Ironically, Daihatsu was the very first Japanese car maker to venture into the vast European export market, arriving in the UK in 1964 with its pretty Vignale-styled Compagno two-door saloon. The model struggled to attract apprehensive British buyers, however, Daihatsu making a low-key departure from these shores just a couple of years later. 

After a break of a few years, Daihatsu quietly tip-toed back into Europe with virtually no-one noticing in the mid-1970s, first entering the neutral Benelux markets with its capable F20 ‘Taft’ jeep (also known as the Wildcat, Scat and Rugger, depending on market), before arriving back in the UK in 1976. The likeable first-generation Charade hatch, with its then-unusual three-cylinder engine, followed in 1977, with other successive and agreeable low-volume Daihatsu models, such as the Cuore, Fourtrak (Rugger), Materia and Copen, later arriving from Japan.

Daihatsu’s roots date back to 1907, with the Company producing its first vehicle - a three-wheeler commercial motorcycle – in 1930. This crude machine evolved into the popular Midget three-wheeled pick-up in the 1950s, and remained in production until the early 1970s. By this time, Daihatsu had established a niche for itself in the domestic Japanese market with strong-selling kei cars such as the Fellow Max, Cuore and Mira, plus tough off-roaders like the Feroza (Sportrak) and Rugger (Fourtrak). In 1967 Toyota took a stake in Daihatsu, soon offering badge-engineered versions of the Taft (Blizzard), Consort (Publica) and so on, followed by full integration into the Toyota mothership 2016.

Over the years, Daihatsu has sold a number of fun and intriguing models, both in Europe and Japan, including the characterful Copen two-seater (at one time the only ‘mainstream’ car sold in Continental Europe with RHD-only steering; a bold move that backfired!), plus the distinctive Materia, cute Lezza coupe and utilitarian Naked.

Although only ever a niche player in the UK new car market, I miss Daihatsu and its capable, highly original and fun city cars. I can now only look forward to seeing Daihatsu’s latest raft of well-considered and often zany production and concept cars revealed at the bi-annual Tokyo Motor Show, where it usually unveils around eight new models and prototypes. 

Here are eight personal Daihatsu concept car highlights from the past quart-of-a-century or so for you to enjoy from the crazy Japanese concept car master: 

1. 2009 Daihatsu Basket

The fun-loving Daihatsu Basket was a compact four-seater, in the nostalgic style of the Mini Moke and Citroen Mehari, serving a double duty as a pick-up truck ‘jeep’ and a convertible. Daihatsu called the Basket a ‘slow-life vehicle’ with a minimal and boxy design, and it was powered by a 659cc three-cylinder engine, making it very efficient. The roof came in two parts, with a removable fiberglass section over the front and a canvas top at the back. The minimalist interior was simple, with a fabric-covered dash and exposed floor panels. The Basket also had four-wheel-drive, making it capable of tackling some rough terrain when heading for the beach.

2. 2004 Daihatsu D-Bone

The D-Bone was a minimalist sporting kei car, powered by a 659cc turbocharged three-cylinder engine, producing 63bhp and able to achieve 94mpg in an ultra-lightweight two-seater, stripped down to the bare essentials. Equipped with all-wheel-drive, the 'D' in the Daihatsu’s name stood for 'Dynamic,' while 'Bone' was meant to underline the fact the concept lacked much of the bodywork found on more conventional sports cars, with a fully-weatherproof interior, due to the lack of a roof and doors. The D-Bone owed much to the earlier back-to-basics Matra M72 prototype of 2000.

3. 2003 Daihatsu UFE-II 

First shown at the 2003 Tokyo Show, the UFE-II (Ultra Fuel Economy, second generation) was Daihatsu’s mini-hybrid coupe concept follow-up to the original 2001 UFE prototype (with a larger UFE-III concept following in 2005).The UFE-II was a four-seater hybrid with an engine plus two motor system to achieve an insanely frugal fuel economy, aided by an ultra-lightweight aluminum and resin body weighing just 570kg, with a very low aerodynamic tear drop profile, giving a drag coefficient of 0.19Cd. The UFE-II used a newly developed 660cc Atkinson direct fuel injection petrol engine with two motors and a nickel-metal hydride battery. 

4. 2001 Daihatsu U4B

The U4B (Urban 4x4 Buggy) capitalised on the then-current fad for new retro-nostalgia production models such as the then-new ‘BMW’ Mini R50 and Volkswagen’s New Beetle. The all-wheel-drive, 659cc turbocharged U4B was created to tackle ‘all situations in life’ with compact rounded forms for city use, as well as a high-quality, luxury interior. 

5. 1997 Daihatsu Naked X070

The daringly named – and styled – Naked X070 concept, first revealed at the 1997 Tokyo Show, was a homage to the earlier utilitarian budget family cars typified by the French; the Citroen 2CV and Dyane, plus Renault’s best-selling R4. The Naked had an unadorned sheet metal structure and texture, enabling the customer to select the model’s colour and detailing. The agile and lightweight front-wheel-drive Naked featured reinforced safety pillars, with exposed door hinges (like the original early Mini and Fiat Panda) plus a simple and minimalist interior to delight of purists. Local Japanese reaction to the 1997 Naked was so strong that Daihatsu was persuaded to put the model into limited production for the domestic market only in 1999. 

6. 1995 Daihatsu Midget III

Looking like a car any five-year-old child would love, with its giant round headlights perched atop old-fashioned front mudguards, the charming 1995 Midget III concept was the third in a series of popular Daihatsu Midget models, first seen in the early 1950s (this prototype version being the first passenger car-derived variant). The Midget III had a central steering position with room for two passengers sat behind in an egg-shaped, nine-foot long body.

7. 1991 Daihatsu X-021

If Daihatsu should have produced any of its huge variety of concept cars, the X-021 – first seen at the 1991 IAA Frankfurt Motor Show – is the one. The design of the attractive X-021 two-seater sports roadster had a superficial resemblance to the Mazda MX-5, but with its curves more taut and muscular. Smaller than the MX-5, but with a better power-to-weight ratio, the X-021’s overhangs were minimal, with headlights mounted behind oval glass bezels to suggest ‘Jaguar E-Type’, rather than the pop-up lamps of the Mazda. The headlights were also mounted right at the end of the front wings which, from the front three-quarter view, also reinforced the impression of a baby E-Type. The X-021 was thing of beauty that really should have been produced, and remains Daihatsu’s great missed opportunity.

8. 1991 Daihatsu Mira Milano

After the beauty and ‘what might have been’ promise of the stunning X-021, I end on a more bizarre note with Daihatsu’s Mira Milano concept from the same year as the roadster: 1991. Using the front end and mechanical architecture of the production hatchback Mira kei car, Daihatsu tried to turn the Mira into a tribute to the Citroën 2CV, with questionable results. The Mira (Domino in the UK and Cuore in Europe) already existed in Japan in high-roof Van and Walk-Through Van commercial vehicle editions. The Mira Milano prototype tried to imitate the aesthetics of the Citroën 2CV, with the front recognisable as a Mira, but the rest of the car a glass bubble, with suicide rear doors and an overall height of two metres (6.6 feet). Surely ‘Parisienne’ would have been a more logical name, but like most Daihatsu concepts, the Milano made little sense anyway, so why look for any signs of logic?