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By
EWAN KENNEDY
19 February 2007
Daihatsu Charade is a small Japanese car that has been a
big favourite with Australian used-car buyers for many
years. Fully imported, Charade has a well-deserved
reputation for reliability, with many owners reporting years
of running with nothing other than routine servicing being
required. So it comes as no surprise this is a very
economical car to run.
Three and five-door Charade hatches are offered, all
sedans have four doors. Because this Daihatsu is about half
a size down on many other small cars, the back seat and boot
space are fairly limited. The boot can be extended by
folding down the rear seat backrest. Sedans’ boots are
considerably larger than hatchbacks, they are relatively
rare but are worth hunting down.
The smaller size also means the Charade is less refined
than most of its larger rivals, not always a problem for
owners, but try one in comparison with a larger car to see
what you think.
Charade is very easy to drive and to park. Being designed
mainly as a city/suburban runabout, driving in the back
blocks can be a hassle if the roads are harsh. Charade can
keep up with country road traffic without any real hassles,
but may struggle on long hills if heavily loaded. A
three-cylinder 1.0-litre carburettor engine was the mainstay
of the Charade for many years, but is much less common in
later models.
Overtaking can be difficult in the smaller-engined
versions. The engine can get harsh on acceleration or when
working hard.
Some are turbocharged for a bit of extra oomph, but even
those don't go all that hard - and tend to attract big
insurance premiums, a problem that’s aggravated if you are
young and/or inexperienced.
Four-cylinder engines are fuel injected and are smoother,
quieter and have considerably more torque than the
three-cylinder units. They come with sizes of 1.3 and 1.5
litres with the latter being restricted to the more
expensive models in its early days, though coming down
through the range as the years went by.
Manual gearboxes are the better bet with the
three-cylinder engine but the four-cylinder units can handle
an automatic transmission without too much loss of
performance. The manuals all have five ratios, the automatic
was hindered prior to 1994 by only having three speeds.
Road handling tends to safe, but uninspiring, understeer.
However, the small Daihatsu responds well to suspension
changes and quality tyres if you see yourself as being an
enthusiast and want to make it more interesting to drive.
Daihatsu pulled the Charade off the Australian market in
June 2000, then surprised us by bring it back in October
2003. However, the latter ‘Charade’ is a bit of a
charade as it’s really a Daihatsu Centro, thus it’s a
fair bit smaller than the latter models in the Charade range
it nominally replaced. The Charade-Centro really didn’t
catch on and was in turn taken off our market at the end of
2005.
Daihatsu then pulled up stumps in Australia in March
2006. These days importation and servicing of Daihatsu
models are handled by Toyota, Daihatsu's parent company, so
spare parts are generally affordable and reasonably easy to
obtain. It’s wise to check with a Toyota dealer in your
local area before making the decision to buy a Charade.
The good amateur mechanic can do a lot of the work on
these little Daihatsus, but the small underbonnet area makes
for skinned knuckles and frustration at times.
Insurance is usually towards the lower end of the scale
as these cars appeal to the conservative driver rather than
the enthusiast. Having said that, some Charades have been
worked over as small street machines and may have led a hard
life.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
The engine should start quickly even when cold and should
have a relatively smooth idle from start-up. Four-cylinders
are smoother than three.
Check there is no smoke from the exhaust tailpipe when
the engine is accelerated hard after idling for a while.
Gearchanges should all be light and easy, with the clutch
taking very little effort to operate. If the gearbox baulks
or crunches when you do a fast change down, there could be
expensive troubles. If the clutch is heavy, or sticks during
its movement, it could be on its last legs.
Drive the car at low speed with the steering on full lock
in one direction and then the other and listen for a
clicking sound at the universal joints. Not an overly
expensive repair, but take the cost into account when
haggling for the car.
Look over the complete interior, paying special attention
to sun damage on the dash top and rear shelf. Check for
tears in the seats and damage to floor and boot mats.
Rust is rare in Charades but if it does get a hold it can
run through the light car quickly. Major corrosion repairs
can write off an older model. Look for rust in the lower
body areas, as well as the doors and hatchback. Also check
the floor of the cabin and the boot.
Look for signs of crash repairs, these little cars spend
a lot of their time in the hit-and-miss world of shopping
centre carparks so may have suffered lots of little scars.
If you think a Charade has been in a big crash call for help
from a professional inspector.
CAR BUYING TIP
Never be afraid to haggle over the price of a used car,
the chances are it has been loaded in anticipation of buyers
doing exactly that.
© Copyright
Marque Publishing Company
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