(first posted 3/13/2018) The first cars to disappear from our roads tend to be the cheapest. No matter how reliable and well-built, A- and B-segment vehicles are thanklessly used up and thoughtlessly thrown away. When I spied this Daihatsu Charade in the corner of my eye, I quickly spun around and went to take photos of it. It wasn’t just because it was one of the last surviving examples of a trusty yet forgotten car, it was because it was a fixture in my childhood.
Growing up, our street was a mixture of retirees and young families. Across the street lived two elderly friends (sisters?) with a beautiful garden that I spent a lot of time in. Their car was a white, second-generation Honda Accord hatchback, a base model that I’m sure had very few miles on the odometer. I remember being impressed even as a child at how “new” it looked, like it had just rolled off the showroom floor.
A couple of doors down was a family with a second-generation Mitsubishi Nimbus (aka Expo, Chariot and Space Wagon) which, despite its three rows of seating, seemed to be a squeeze for the family.
Further up the street was, from memory, a Fiat 131. That homeowner also had a Series 1 or 2 Jaguar XJ that sat in his driveway, almost entirely concealed under a tarp. I still remember being scared by what I perceived to be a menacing scowl formed by the taillights and chrome bumper, peeking out from under the tarp. I was too young to know the word ‘pareidolia’ but to this day, that generation of XJ still creeps me out.
Directly next door to me lived Dorothy, a nice, older lady who kept a clean home. I distinctly remember the first time I saw the inside of her house and I marvelled at how clean it was. That’s not to knock my mother’s housekeeping abilities but, rather, my father’s ability to accumulate stuff. My childhood drove me to regularly declare from a rather young age, “When I have my own place, I want it to look like a display home!” For the most part, I’ve eschewed clutter ever since.
As is common with older people in Australia, Dorothy drove a small and economical car: a second-generation Daihatsu Charade. When I saw this example in Alderley, I had flashbacks. Her car was the same color, although it was in better condition (of course, this was 20 years ago), and in fact this could be the same car and it simply changed hands. To give perspective to our North American readers (as most of the rest of the world received these), the second-generation Charade was dimensionally almost identical to a Chevrolet Sprint/Suzuki Swift.
While looking through old photo albums at my parent’s place the other week (I may or may not have been looking for photos of the parents’ old Mini Moke), I saw a photo of me taken on Christmas Day when I was 5 or so. In the background, you can see Dorothy’s Charade.
Photo courtesy of Vauxford
The brownish-grey colour of the Charade, if I recall correctly, was a similar shade to the Triumph 2000 owned by… her ex? Her partner? Her friend? This was 20+ years ago and I barely remember the personal details of my former neighbours (I can’t remember how many kids the Nimbus family had!) but I certainly remember the cars. Later in the decade, Dorothy finally traded the Charade in for a brand new, bright turquoise Daewoo Lanos. If the quality and reliability weren’t up-to-par, the Giugario-designed Lanos certainly made up for it in style.
That’s not to besmirch the second-generation Charade, one of a long line of utterly reliable, dependable small hatchbacks and sedans. Maybe I’m misremembering, like I might have when reminiscing about my old substitute teacher and his Mazda 121, but it always seemed like Daihatsu’s buyers skewed older here in Australia.
Maybe that’s because the sporty variants were driven to death and scrapped before my inquisitive child eyes could spot them. If old A- and B-segment cars disappear quickly from our roads, sporty A- and B-segment cars are even quicker to vanish. In addition to naturally-aspirated 1.0 three-cylinder powered models, this generation of Charade was available with a turbocharged 1.0 three-pot that produced 68 hp (up from 55). Turbo Charades also had a stiffer suspension and thicker anti-roll bars, making for a sharp-handling and rather sprightly little hatchback. It was like a more modern, Japanese Mini Cooper.
Interestingly, there was a Mini connection as Innocenti’s rebodied versions of the little Brit switched to using Daihatsu Charade components in 1982, making the Charade almost a spiritual successor to the Mini. That Daihatsu-infused Innocenti, known as the Minitre, had a Daihatsu-powered, turbocharged De Tomaso variant…
…like the Charade. Alejandro sure didn’t mind having his name applied to all manner of subcompacts, including the Dodge Omni 024.
Those brash, little pocket rocket Charades were niche offerings, however. The vast majority of Charades sold throughout the world were much like Dorothy’s, with unassuming looks and naturally-aspirated engines. Toyota has been involved with Daihatsu since the 1960s (the Charade’s predecessor was the Toyota Publica-derived Consorte) and has had a controlling stake in the company since the 1990s. The quality and dependability of these little cars are certainly Toyota-esque. Perfect for the lovely older lady next door…
Nice find, William! With no direct exposure to this generation of Daihatsu, these seem like sturdy little cars. A college roommate of mine had a (new) Charade of the generation we received here in the states, it was a very solidly built, comfortable, and genuinely fun car to drive, even with its diminutive 3-cylinder engine and left me with a very favorable impression of Daihatsu. It was wrecked a couple of years later in a memorable collision with a bear, of all things.
BTW, I’m older than you and I had never heard the word “pareidolia” until now. The things one learns on CC…
The U. S. got a generation of the Charade, though I can’t say for sure if it is the generation profiled here. IIRC, most of the U. S Charades were red 3 door models…or so it seemed. Though at some point I think I remember a trunked sedan joined the line up with an (optional?) 4 cylinder engine.
Having visited Japan 3 times in the 80s, I can’t say that I saw all that many Diahatsu cars, their mini trucks seemed to be more numerous.
Weren’t these cars a victim of Voluntary Import Restrictions and a high price for a small car, even if the quality made them a reasonable proposition?
I haven’t read all that much about this brand over the years, but apparently THE model to own is a Turbo Charade….and maybe a Rocky, especially if it’s diesel powered (another combination the U. S. did not get).
It was the next generation that was available in the US and my former roommate’s was in fact a red three-door model.
Paul did a CC on that one – https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-asian/curbside-classic-1989-daihatsu-charade-treat-and-retreat/
All of these Charades seem a more solid car than their competitors, but I don’t have any real experience with them. This model was a bit smaller than the Suzuki/Geo competition.
On the Rocky, if you want an automobile get the petrol/gas engine. If you want a tractor with a 2-seat cabin, get the old school non-turbo diesel!
There was also a more modern little 4×4 sold too, a competitor for the Suzuki Sidekick (aka Vitara)
I remember seeing a few Charades and Rocky back in the day in Northern California. They were both considered well-built and reliable.
And I only wish I would’ve waited for a Rocky instead of buying the Suzuki Samurai!
I’m not especially knowledgeable regarding Daihatsu’s history, but they appeared at one point to try to mimic the styling of more popular Japanese competitors with some of their own styling efforts. This generation Charade looks very much like the earlier Mazda GLC (323) released in 1980. While the next generation Charade released in 1987 bears a close appearance to the third generation Honda Civic released in 1983.
I Wonder if Toyota is still Using that 1000 CC motor on their IQ?
Good question. The 1KR-FE engine in the iQ was designed by Daihatsu according to Wikipedia, but is several generations newer than the CB10 in this car. I don’t think there is anything in common, the bore and stroke are very different – quite oversquare here (76 x 73 mm) and a much longer stroke on the new engine (71 x 84 mm), let along iron vs aluminium block, and different number of cams and valves.
Jeff Nelson who wrote here back in the early days was a big fan of the Charade. I had never paid much attention to them until then but have come to respect them as tough, well built little cars.
My mother always told me to never mix stripes and plaids. But you, Will, pull that look off quite well. 🙂
Ah, when you’re young you just sort of wear whatever is handy. My sister found a picture of me, taken when I was 8 or 9, wearing a plaid shirt with contrasting plaid shorts. Naturally she showed it to my wife and the picture now hangs on the living room wall. And no, that picture will not be posted here for the CC world to see.
Hah, I didn’t even notice.
Don’t worry, my brother taught me how to dress properly when I was in my teens. I now know how to coordinate and avoid sins like clashing patterns, black shoes with white socks, jeans with sneakers, etc.
The G11 Charade – a popular car here in its day, and there are still a few completely stock models, like this one, on the road. The Charade, and the Suzuki Forsa (Cultus/Swift/Chevy Sprint etc.) were both popular ‘first cars’ among my schoolmates and work colleagues in my younger days.The boy racers took a shine to the Turbo models so I think they have virtually disappeared, and I saw the De Tomaso model on another website, Japanese Nostalgic Car, only last week (Daihatsu displayed it at a show in Japan recently).
When I was in college circa 2002 I often saw one of the late 80s/early 90s Charades we got in the US parked in front of an apartment building. The thing I remember most about is was that the passenger’s side door was obviously damaged in an accident. So the owner had apparently permanently fastened the door shut somehow (or maybe it no longer opened at all) and sealed up the gaps around the door with that expanding aerosol foam you can buy at the hardware store.
Growing up in Maryland, I saw a few Charade on the road or parked and a few Rocky SUVs out there but they were few and far between. The local parks and rec had a small fleet of the HiJet trucks for duty on the miles of bike paths and other county land. I remember looking one over near the Columbia Mall and it had a sticker stated that it could not be driven on the highways.
Years later I got to drive one of those HiJet trucks and this made the Beetle seem like it actually was a fast car.
That first picture? Looks like someone put a desk and a chair out on the curb for free pickup.
Oh. And a Daihatsu too.
Well here’s where one of the Turbos ended up – on a relative’s farm, hiding behind the Dodge.
I don’t have the time for some google-fu to try and work out what the vintage car is, but it certainly looks like it was cut down to make a ute as so many of them were!
Loved reading this. The last Charade I’ve seen here in the states was about four years ago in Vegas, parked over by the Huntridge Theater. It looked like it was still mobile, but it was the first one I could remember having seen in years.
Interesting vehicular tour thru your childhood neighborhood, William.
Recollections of our early automotive observations might be a good topic for a column here.
I’ll make a brief start – there was our ’49 Star Chief, and neighbor’s ’48 torpedo-bodied Buick & a clunky ’37 Dodge. ……
Then, there was a horse (or mule?)-drawn wagon that came thru in the summer, whose driver would call out:
” WAAAA-termelons !!! ”
OMG, where could this have been !?!
ANS: Bronx, NY, early 1950’s.
It’s been a while since my last Charade sighting. I think they’re getting mighty scarce.
They were never common in the northeast, having not reached the point of building out their dealer network to here before pulling the plug.
Dragged a friend’s old Charade home quite a few years ago. It was pass saving but I thought it would do nicely to get up and down the 1 Km dirt track where I lived. And it would have, had my wife not invited the scrappy over to tow it away on an occasion when I was out working.
Being the owner of a 91 Rocky, I can attest that these were very well built vehicles. It’s a little tricky to find parts for them, but there are a few suppliers that still specialize in them. Now the Charade on the other hand…..
Here is something hilarious for you folks- I used to love and drive a 1988 Chevy (Suzuki) Sprint Metro and I thought, “What a sad little car.” I can look down on the Charade- if only a few inches down. This is irony.
We can sure use new Charades, Festivas, Metros, Sprints, 121s today – if anyone would buy them! Their size was off-putting in the late 1980s, so I’d think that on today’s roads with massive SUV brodozers speeding around, they’d look even more off-putting.
But they were good cars. Light. My Festiva weighed under 1900 pounds fully loaded. Easy on gas, easy on brake pads, easy on everything. Cheap. My Festiva LX was $6,666 with every option. Shame that they just didn’t sell. They lasted years and years.
Remember “Click and Clack” Tom and Ray Magliozzi on PBS’ Car Talk? A running joke they told was, “for every new Festiva, you got a free funeral wreath”. So imagine how much they’d have wailed about the size of these minicars in light of the average tonnage on today’s streets.
But they were good cars. Daihatsu was legit.
I saw a US generation Charade not too long ago. I think they were almost all that tan color.
I drove a friend’s one of these 30 years ago, and, would you believe, it was a delight.
On starting it, it did sound as if a mild bar-room brawl had begun under-bonnet, and the participants were rattling the dash as they struggled, but as I accelerated, it all became an almost-agreeable shouting match, and finally, in a most unlikely conclusion as the rev counter climbed, damned if a faint Porsche flat-six racket wasn’t imitated! Noisy as it all was, the little thing went with remarkable vigour, and most striking of all, dirty great gobs of torque everywhere. From a litre! I guess it weighed about two feathers, of course.
The final party trick was fifth: as soon as that was attained, an entirely agreeable amount of silence. And given the torque, there it could be left.
Add in slick gearchange, very good high-set seats, mildly classy dash for the time and really nice (if rolly) handling – something not at all guaranteed in small Asian cars then – and you really had a quirky car with all the brio and charm usually attributed to little Italian jobs.
Funny that the elderly bought most of them here, as mild runabouts. They were a far more interesting car than that.