I was a 12-year-old kid reading car magazines when the Charade was first introduced for the U.S. It was unusual looking and underpowered (the Subaru Justy and Chevy Sprint were the only 3-cylinders I knew of at the time). But all the reviews raved about the quality and there was some degree of optimism that they might do okay here. In 1988, the idea of a Japanese brand NOT being wildly successful was unthinkable! I think there were three Daihatsu dealerships in the Atlanta area. When I saw the one on the north side of the city (about 30 minutes from my tiny rural town), it did not bode well for the future. It was located in a former power equipment showroom that had been empty for several years. It was about 100 yards off the main highway at the front of an industrial park. I never saw more than two cars for sale during the four years they were open. Looking back, it's hard to imagine ANY Japanese car failing in the late 1980s! But somehow they managed. It probably didn't help that in 1988, a Civic DX 3-door and a Charade CLX 3-door were priced identically. Only with the Honda, you got a much more powerful 1.5L 4-cylinder and the overall Honda fun-to-drive personality. You also picked up an extra foot of length and wheelbase in the Civic. They missed out on what could have been a great opportunity! By 1988, everyone was realizing just how horrible the Yugo was. They could've dropped the price of the Charade and tapped into that market! Oh, wait, that was Hyundai's move...and it worked out very well for them. I'll be 50 in a few months and it's sad to think back on all the car brands that tried to make it here in my lifetime, but failed. Some were so promising in concept, but failed miserably in execution (Rover, I'm looking at you....who else could f-up a car built on an Acura Legend chassis and powertrain?). Then there was Peugeot, Renault, Isuzu, Suzuki, Daewoo (crap cars, but that marketing plan was the real stroke of genuis....let's hire college kids to advertise by word of mouth)! Alfa and Fiat tucked and ran for decades and probably shouldn't have returned. Then there's Yugo...enough said.
Poor Diahatsu , Hickory NC had the nation's best selling dealer. Downtown Diahatsu. A former used car lot in a bad part of town . They actually advertised and sold really well around here. They would have 200+ cars on the lot at all times . When they left the market t hey got the Isuzu dealership but they never sold well. It's now a plumbing supply warehouse. Sad
When I was stationed in Japan in while I was in the U.S. Navy, I had 1992 Daihatsu Applause. It was a cool little four door sedan that was a hatchback.
@@autochatter Hey, can you do a video on the fox body For/Mercury Thunderbird/Cougar?😝 (cause I actually own one of these - ‘81 Cougar XR7 - now on my third)…
@Stevenimich Yeah..They are on my future radar...I tend to rotate the Big 3 and a import. Oh you have the rare shortlived boxy ones. I've done one Cougar so far technically in my Ford Probe Chatter. Emails in my description. Shoot me some vids of the car and I'll be happy to make it famous!
I had a 1993 Daihatsu Charade with a 4 cylinder that made 100 hp and it had an automatic transmission. I got it for 10 hrs labor, because it needed a water pump. I changed that, and drove it for years, all across the US. I actually got it up to 115 once. At one point, I pulled a homebuilt tiny camper behind it, and I vagabonded all along the I-10 corridor for almost a year in it. I pulled a small boat back and forth from Florida to Ohio many times. It was a great little beater car.
Always was a fan of the Rocky ever since I seen one as a kid. I think I read somewhere that the reason Daihatsu didnt make it was Americans weren't interested in small cars like in the UK and Europe. Sad, I think they would have been a good alternative to the other options. Especially today. Great video. 😊
I appreciate that! Yeah I guess alot of us "Muricans" like bigger rides, but there's plenty that like smaller ones ( I drive a MX5). The Rocky was cool....But it was kinda pricey and just a unknown commodity here. I really think if it was rebadged as a Toyota, it could have been a hit then. I see the current Suzuki Jimny,and wish we could have the Samurai back again!
While the unfortunately named Charade seems like any other throw away small Japanese econobox, the Rocky may have been more. I've watched some current reviews on the Rocky from some other TH-cam channels and it seems like a damn decent off-roader. It sounds like it was more than a Samurai or Tracker. I think the square shouldered honest styling holds up too. I'd definitely take one.
@arieljones4595 Oh I agree they are next level in terms of what they offer. I just saw a Suzuki Jimny pickup concept I think that's coming out...I want it!
I am in the UK,driving a Daihatsu Copen 1.3, and a Piaggio Porter diesel truck,(Italian assembled Hijet). I also own a Hijet camper. A friend runs a Sirion. The Charade was a great car,and the Rocky is called the Fourtrak in Europe.All great,reliable vehicles.Much missed brand.
I bring up Daihatsu to from time to time to my online car nerd homies, and most of them think I'm crazy and either have no idea what they were or tell me that they were never sold on the US. I'm going to show them your video 😂 I remember seeing them from time to time when I was a kid, I haven't seen one in a few years but oddly ills see them more often then cars like old 80s/90s Isuzus or Hyundais. Seems that they were pretty solid cars for what they were. I remember that Toyota got involved with them at some point and I think they still own them or hold a large stake in the company if they're still around. I hadn't heard anything about them in many years before your video. Great vid as always man keep it up
@weegeemike Thank you! Yeah they are still around and Toyota owns them 100 percent nowdays.My future sister in law had a 4 door Charade she bought used in the mid 90s...and prob got it cheap, as the resale value fell off a cliff with these by then.
@highwayman1218 Yeah...They were not here long. The only one I was ever up close and personal with then, was a Charade sedan my future Sister in law drove.
@@autochatter Good job on this. 👍 Its funny watching the commercials.... Actors tapping their heads like they were smart buyers.... I never realized Daihatsu sold for that much money. I always considered them econo boxes much like Yugos and prices low. I wouldnt have spent that kind of money for anything from them.
@highwayman1218 What???? You wouldn't pay the modern equivalent of 25k today for a loaded up car with 53 hp? Shocking! Daihatsu was asking near Toyota or Honda money😜 Glad you liked it!
Isnt like every small GM product over the last 30 years just Dhiatsu and or izuzu with a chevy/gmc/ saturn/buick etc etc badge slapped on it? Thinking specifically the Spark and Trax mini suvs
@DanoFSmith-yc9tg Pretty much everything after the Cobalt and G5 were discontinued yeah. Not Daihatsu though..GM bought Daewoo and renamed it GM South Korea. I think the Trax was built in Korea and rode on a Opel designed platform. GM hasn't used Isuzu for small cars since the early 90s. Isuzu stopped making small cars back then.
Toyo Kogyo made products from cork, firearms and electrical components including the license in Japan for General Electric's Mazda light bulbs. They also invented the motorcycle-based cargo vehicle. In 1931 Toyo Kogyo didn't have a sales apparatus for the Mazda-Go so it was sold through Mitsubishi Auto dealers.
The fact you are willing to do a video on a brand owned by Toyota says something. It was a good little video. I do recall the brand. I was laughing when you made the joke about the Chevette out powering it. The Chevette had a LS 4 cylinder engine( LOL! ). That is why it had more power. I am joking, but they were all coming to the United States for a while. Hyundai is still here in 2024 and expanding. You were working that GM angle in this video. The video was interesting.
@OLDS98 I'm glad you enjoyed it! Was just trying to paint a picture of the times and circumstances. Daihatsu was having a uphill battle from several fronts coming here.
@@autochatter They did struggle here and they thrive in Japan in 2024 under Toyota. I thought you would find this video interesting. I watched it the other day. This guy covers some of the GM models sold globally under many of GM's form brands. It was not all of them. I saw one I did not know sold under GMC: Same Car, Different Badge: The Craziest Cases of Rebranded Cars: th-cam.com/video/-ZDAnyks4U8/w-d-xo.html
I will never understand how the Y Tube algorithm works. This Daihatsu vid is currently outperforming my last two....and I thought Firebirds and Jeeps would be more popular!
I think this video is doing so well in comparison to the other two *because* those two vehicles (Firebird & Jeep) have a substantial following. There's already so much content on those models. The unlamented models (or brands, in this case) don't get much fresh content.
@@autochatter Here's how I imagine the product planning conversation for the Versailles. Lincoln and Ford were out shopping. A Seville passed by. Lincoln asked Ford for a Seville. Ford said, "We have a Seville at home." The Seville at home is the Versailles.
something I found weird about import (for the US) econobox from the 80's/90's Is their body style availability compared to the rest of the world, almost always available as 3 door hatchback and a 4 door sedan but almost never a 5 door hatchback (and no I'm not talking about wagon ) even when that brands did made one for other market, can someone explain ?
@TheQuirkyGarage1999 I've read more than a few articles over the years about that.The U.S. market just preferred 4 door sedans over hatch versions. The first gen Geo Prizm for example offered one, but it was dropped. I always liked hatchbacks myself, but alot of people preferred the security of a trunk.
@jeffreywoods4040 They were not cheap, but many were happy to pay alot for a Toyota that was likely more expensive and lacking size, features, and power over a Domestic.
@PearComputingDevices They kinda do don't they? I think the 3 door Charade looks like a Wal Mart "Great Value" version of a Civic Hatch then from certain angles.
Here's the problem. Daihatsu should have offered the Charade with just four cylinder engines. Three cylinder engines are a complete joke. Also, the Rocky would have sold better here with an optional automatic.
@@autochatter i know, bunch of their small cars are daihatsu based stuff. For example, raize-rocky subcompact crossover, avanza-xenia minivans, all toyota's super tiny kei cars are daihatsu based stuff, rush-terios compact SUVs, the current vios sedan is basically avanza's sedan sibling (same platform & motor), the town ace is built on 1 of daihatsu's indonesian factories & sold as gran max, etc.
@@autochatter i live in indonesia, & i've seen daihatsu-affiliated toyotas out here. My cousin drives a raize (rocky's twin), bunch of people including me own an avanza (xenia's twin) & my friend drives a mk1 agya (ayla's twin), & many angkots (budget bus transport), delivery blind vans & pickup trucks are gran maxes.
![[LIVE] : ONE ลุมพินี 89 | คู่เอก "ยอดไอคิว vs คิริลล์"](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Z3vYkHJ_5Ig/mqdefault.jpg)
I was a 12-year-old kid reading car magazines when the Charade was first introduced for the U.S. It was unusual looking and underpowered (the Subaru Justy and Chevy Sprint were the only 3-cylinders I knew of at the time). But all the reviews raved about the quality and there was some degree of optimism that they might do okay here. In 1988, the idea of a Japanese brand NOT being wildly successful was unthinkable!
I think there were three Daihatsu dealerships in the Atlanta area. When I saw the one on the north side of the city (about 30 minutes from my tiny rural town), it did not bode well for the future. It was located in a former power equipment showroom that had been empty for several years. It was about 100 yards off the main highway at the front of an industrial park. I never saw more than two cars for sale during the four years they were open.
Looking back, it's hard to imagine ANY Japanese car failing in the late 1980s! But somehow they managed. It probably didn't help that in 1988, a Civic DX 3-door and a Charade CLX 3-door were priced identically. Only with the Honda, you got a much more powerful 1.5L 4-cylinder and the overall Honda fun-to-drive personality. You also picked up an extra foot of length and wheelbase in the Civic.
They missed out on what could have been a great opportunity! By 1988, everyone was realizing just how horrible the Yugo was. They could've dropped the price of the Charade and tapped into that market! Oh, wait, that was Hyundai's move...and it worked out very well for them.
I'll be 50 in a few months and it's sad to think back on all the car brands that tried to make it here in my lifetime, but failed. Some were so promising in concept, but failed miserably in execution (Rover, I'm looking at you....who else could f-up a car built on an Acura Legend chassis and powertrain?). Then there was Peugeot, Renault, Isuzu, Suzuki, Daewoo (crap cars, but that marketing plan was the real stroke of genuis....let's hire college kids to advertise by word of mouth)! Alfa and Fiat tucked and ran for decades and probably shouldn't have returned. Then there's Yugo...enough said.
@@IgoZoom1 Excellent post and pinned!
We have an 86 sprint in our garage rotting away 😆 it was peppy
@Stormtrooper_98Trd I havent seen a Sprint in forever!
Poor Diahatsu , Hickory NC had the nation's best selling dealer. Downtown Diahatsu. A former used car lot in a bad part of town . They actually advertised and sold really well around here. They would have 200+ cars on the lot at all times . When they left the market t hey got the Isuzu dealership but they never sold well. It's now a plumbing supply warehouse. Sad
My hometown is Elizabeth City NC. We would have had to drive to Norfolk VA to find a Daihatsu Dealer...Same goes for Isuzu.
When I was stationed in Japan in while I was in the U.S. Navy, I had 1992 Daihatsu Applause. It was a cool little four door sedan that was a hatchback.
Awesome! Navy Vet myself!
@@autochatter Hey, can you do a video on the fox body For/Mercury Thunderbird/Cougar?😝 (cause I actually own one of these - ‘81 Cougar XR7 - now on my third)…
@Stevenimich Yeah..They are on my future radar...I tend to rotate the Big 3 and a import. Oh you have the rare shortlived boxy ones. I've done one Cougar so far technically in my Ford Probe Chatter. Emails in my description. Shoot me some vids of the car and I'll be happy to make it famous!
Great vid as always, well done! This is the good stuff, the “ones that got away”.
@@robl7532 Thank you! Yeah...Would be nice to buy a new Rocky today.....
@@autochatterhow do we get ahold of you “non YT comments”? Also no joke, the Rocky is a little stud lookin toy!
@robl7532 Me?...Email is in my description. Zcarnut04@gmail.com
I had a 1993 Daihatsu Charade with a 4 cylinder that made 100 hp and it had an automatic transmission. I got it for 10 hrs labor, because it needed a water pump. I changed that, and drove it for years, all across the US. I actually got it up to 115 once. At one point, I pulled a homebuilt tiny camper behind it, and I vagabonded all along the I-10 corridor for almost a year in it. I pulled a small boat back and forth from Florida to Ohio many times. It was a great little beater car.
@SuperWooba Yeah they were actually pretty solid cars you could buy CHEAP used after their demise here.
Always was a fan of the Rocky ever since I seen one as a kid. I think I read somewhere that the reason Daihatsu didnt make it was Americans weren't interested in small cars like in the UK and Europe. Sad, I think they would have been a good alternative to the other options. Especially today. Great video. 😊
I appreciate that! Yeah I guess alot of us "Muricans" like bigger rides, but there's plenty that like smaller ones ( I drive a MX5). The Rocky was cool....But it was kinda pricey and just a unknown commodity here. I really think if it was rebadged as a Toyota, it could have been a hit then. I see the current Suzuki Jimny,and wish we could have the Samurai back again!
The Rocky may have been named after Rocky Aoiki, which would lend the vehicle a determined daredevil aura.
@@Rick-S-6063 Interesting!
While the unfortunately named Charade seems like any other throw away small Japanese econobox, the Rocky may have been more. I've watched some current reviews on the Rocky from some other TH-cam channels and it seems like a damn decent off-roader. It sounds like it was more than a Samurai or Tracker. I think the square shouldered honest styling holds up too. I'd definitely take one.
@arieljones4595 Oh I agree they are next level in terms of what they offer. I just saw a Suzuki Jimny pickup concept I think that's coming out...I want it!
I am in the UK,driving a Daihatsu Copen 1.3, and a Piaggio Porter diesel truck,(Italian assembled Hijet). I also own a Hijet camper. A friend runs a Sirion. The Charade was a great car,and the Rocky is called the Fourtrak in Europe.All great,reliable vehicles.Much missed brand.
Yes...I think they left Europe around 2012?
A great video. Don't really remember them much. I did guess this one right on their not so long time in the USA
@@Scottj2011 Thanks! Wasn't sure how much interest this Chatter would have, but I'm pleasantly surprised.
I bring up Daihatsu to from time to time to my online car nerd homies, and most of them think I'm crazy and either have no idea what they were or tell me that they were never sold on the US. I'm going to show them your video 😂
I remember seeing them from time to time when I was a kid, I haven't seen one in a few years but oddly ills see them more often then cars like old 80s/90s Isuzus or Hyundais. Seems that they were pretty solid cars for what they were. I remember that Toyota got involved with them at some point and I think they still own them or hold a large stake in the company if they're still around. I hadn't heard anything about them in many years before your video. Great vid as always man keep it up
@weegeemike Thank you! Yeah they are still around and Toyota owns them 100 percent nowdays.My future sister in law had a 4 door Charade she bought used in the mid 90s...and prob got it cheap, as the resale value fell off a cliff with these by then.
I can't recall there ever being a Daihatsu dealership here in Michigan, yet there have been a few Charades and a Rocky on the roads over the years.
@Rick-S-6063 I would guess there was at least one in the State.
Great video as per usual. This was informative and very well made.
@MotorMaster_Stunticon Thanks Rob!
I remember these, and I remember the jokes:
"What kind of car do you drive?"
"Daihatsu."
"Bless you!"
😀
The rocky looks pretty good and a friend of mines just got a Mimi truck
Cool! I like the kei trucks.
Gung Ho was a *great* movie
Yes it was! Have a shout out to you in this one!
Such a hidden gem of its time.
I need to watch it again.
@GeeEm1313 Me too...Its been too long
Hmmmm, I was a wrench at the time and remember these things. I honestly thought they were around longer than that.
@highwayman1218 Yeah...They were not here long. The only one I was ever up close and personal with then, was a Charade sedan my future Sister in law drove.
@@autochatter Good job on this. 👍
Its funny watching the commercials.... Actors tapping their heads like they were smart buyers.... I never realized Daihatsu sold for that much money. I always considered them econo boxes much like Yugos and prices low. I wouldnt have spent that kind of money for anything from them.
@highwayman1218 What???? You wouldn't pay the modern equivalent of 25k today for a loaded up car with 53 hp? Shocking! Daihatsu was asking near Toyota or Honda money😜 Glad you liked it!
Isnt like every small GM product over the last 30 years just Dhiatsu and or izuzu with a chevy/gmc/ saturn/buick etc etc badge slapped on it?
Thinking specifically the Spark and Trax mini suvs
@DanoFSmith-yc9tg Pretty much everything after the Cobalt and G5 were discontinued yeah. Not Daihatsu though..GM bought Daewoo and renamed it GM South Korea. I think the Trax was built in Korea and rode on a Opel designed platform. GM hasn't used Isuzu for small cars since the early 90s. Isuzu stopped making small cars back then.
Did that Mazda have a Mitsubishi logo?
Apparently Mitsubishi was in charge of sales and distribution for Mazda. As was the style at the time.
@donnie2832 Yeah..I think it did! When I do Mazda eventually I have to research that LOL. Maybe it was a cloaboration of some sort?
Toyo Kogyo made products from cork, firearms and electrical components including the license in Japan for General Electric's Mazda light bulbs. They also invented the motorcycle-based cargo vehicle. In 1931 Toyo Kogyo didn't have a sales apparatus for the Mazda-Go so it was sold through Mitsubishi Auto dealers.
@@stanwbaker Thank you!
I have a Mitsubishi!
The fact you are willing to do a video on a brand owned by Toyota says something. It was a good little video. I do recall the brand. I was laughing when you made the joke about the Chevette out powering it. The Chevette had a LS 4 cylinder engine( LOL! ). That is why it had more power. I am joking, but they were all coming to the United States for a while. Hyundai is still here in 2024 and expanding. You were working that GM angle in this video. The video was interesting.
@OLDS98 I'm glad you enjoyed it! Was just trying to paint a picture of the times and circumstances. Daihatsu was having a uphill battle from several fronts coming here.
@@autochatter They did struggle here and they thrive in Japan in 2024 under Toyota. I thought you would find this video interesting. I watched it the other day. This guy covers some of the GM models sold globally under many of GM's form brands. It was not all of them. I saw one I did not know sold under GMC: Same Car, Different Badge: The Craziest Cases of Rebranded Cars: th-cam.com/video/-ZDAnyks4U8/w-d-xo.html
@OLDS98 Thanks! Sounds interesting and I'll give it a look.
@@autochatter Please do. You did a good job on your video.
@OLDS98 Thanks again and I will!
Good video 🥰
@@michaelcoffey7362 I appreciate it!
Imagine asking for a Civic CSX but getting a CHARADE CSX! 🤣🤣🤣
@@raymond_sycamore 😀
I will never understand how the Y Tube algorithm works. This Daihatsu vid is currently outperforming my last two....and I thought Firebirds and Jeeps would be more popular!
Well we as US dwellers didn’t have to bail out Daihatsu. Maybe thats why?
@robl7532 Can't argue with that!
I think this video is doing so well in comparison to the other two *because* those two vehicles (Firebird & Jeep) have a substantial following. There's already so much content on those models. The unlamented models (or brands, in this case) don't get much fresh content.
@doug6191 Could be..Let's put that to the test. Doing the Lincoln Verasailles this week!
@@autochatter Here's how I imagine the product planning conversation for the Versailles.
Lincoln and Ford were out shopping. A Seville passed by. Lincoln asked Ford for a Seville.
Ford said, "We have a Seville at home."
The Seville at home is the Versailles.
something I found weird about import (for the US) econobox from the 80's/90's Is their body style availability compared to the rest of the world, almost always available as 3 door hatchback and a 4 door sedan but almost never a 5 door hatchback (and no I'm not talking about wagon ) even when that brands did made one for other market, can someone explain ?
@TheQuirkyGarage1999 I've read more than a few articles over the years about that.The U.S. market just preferred 4 door sedans over hatch versions. The first gen Geo Prizm for example offered one, but it was dropped. I always liked hatchbacks myself, but alot of people preferred the security of a trunk.
It was probably about cannibalizing sales, where 5 door hatchbacks would impact sedan sales instead of finding their niche.
@@LouisSubearthCould be!
Really surprised at the prices - how close were they to, say, a Plymouth Reliant or Sundance, both of which were way larger and more powerful.
@jeffreywoods4040 They were not cheap, but many were happy to pay alot for a Toyota that was likely more expensive and lacking size, features, and power over a Domestic.
they're suv's i like.
@@kc0lif Me too
never heard of it
DAIHATSU MIDGET 2
@@orkoto6057 Those were kinda neat.
It sounds and looks like cars that would be available in GTA 3 and 4.
@PearComputingDevices They kinda do don't they? I think the 3 door Charade looks like a Wal Mart "Great Value" version of a Civic Hatch then from certain angles.
@@autochatter lol agreed! It's uncanny naming to boot.
@PearComputingDevices Yeah..I know it was called that even in the 70s, but I think it was terrible.
@autochatter Absolutely agreed but I love your channel, I think you do a good job here. I look forward to every new release.
@@PearComputingDevices Thank you! Wasn't sure how this one would go over, but she's off to a decent start!
Here's the problem. Daihatsu should have offered the Charade with just four cylinder engines. Three cylinder engines are a complete joke. Also, the Rocky would have sold better here with an optional automatic.
@@johnnymason2460 Agreed. The lineup wasn't taylored well for this market.
Chinese cars manufacturers should expand into the USA market
@dylanjimenez1952 They have a enormous car market that's grown there in recent years.
And now Daihatsu is Toyota's tiny car lackeys.....
@mrdaykurutakuchannel Toyotas been part of them for so long now.
@@autochatter i know, bunch of their small cars are daihatsu based stuff. For example, raize-rocky subcompact crossover, avanza-xenia minivans, all toyota's super tiny kei cars are daihatsu based stuff, rush-terios compact SUVs, the current vios sedan is basically avanza's sedan sibling (same platform & motor), the town ace is built on 1 of daihatsu's indonesian factories & sold as gran max, etc.
@mrdaykurutakuchannel Thats pretty interesting! You obviously have alot of knowledge about the Kei Car industry over there!
@@autochatter i live in indonesia, & i've seen daihatsu-affiliated toyotas out here. My cousin drives a raize (rocky's twin), bunch of people including me own an avanza (xenia's twin) & my friend drives a mk1 agya (ayla's twin), & many angkots (budget bus transport), delivery blind vans & pickup trucks are gran maxes.
@mrdaykurutakuchannel Cool! My firsthand experience with Kei cars is limited. I know Suzuki has built several for other Japanese manufactuers.
I think the comedy inserts Suck! Thumbs down.
Thanks for the input
12:39 hey, that's me
Yes it is!