1994 Daihatsu Atrai Van on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Toyota's Daihatsu unit halts all vehicle shipments over widespread safety cheating

TOKYO — Toyota Motor Corp. said Wednesday its subsidiary Daihatsu will suspend shipments of all its vehicles in and outside Japan in a damaging safety scandal after an investigation found improper testing involving 64 models. The safety test irregularities earlier this year prompted an independent panel investigation, which found widespread and systematic problems. Toyota, citing results of the panel, said its probe found 174 new cases of irregularities in safety test and other procedures in 25 test categories, in addition to the problems reported earlier. “We are sorry to have betrayed the trust of our customers,” Daihatsu President Soichiro Okudaira told a news conference Wednesday. He acknowledged the cheating on safety testing and procedures is tantamount to neglect of safety certificates. “We take it very seriously as the problem that has shaken the foundation of an automaker,” he said. A lawyer and a member of the probe team, Makoto Kaiami, who also attended the news conference, said workers under pressure to meet management demands for tight development deadline resorted to cheating, and that the management should take the blame. The issue first emerged in April when Daihatsu reported improper testing on the door lining. Problems in the side collision testing also surfaced in May, officials said. The problems were found in 64 models and three engines of vehicles, including 22 models and an engine sold by Toyota, the company said in a statement. The investigation also found that the problems involved some models for Mazda Motor Corp. and Subaru Corp. sold at home, as well Toyota and Daihatsu models sold abroad. Daihatsu is Toyota's unit specializing in small cars and trucks that are popular in Japan. Toyota expressed “sincere apologies.” "We believe in order to prevent recurrence, in addition to a review of certification operations, a fundamental reform is needed to revitalize Daihatsu as a company,” Toyota said. Toyota said it will take a significant effort, including a review of management and business operations as well as the organization and its structure, as well as mindset of employees and that the company will provide full support to revitalize Daihatsu. Daihatsu Safety crash test

3D-printed car parts are now a real thing

Until now, 3D printing car parts has been somewhat of a homebrew affair. That's changing, as one automaker will soon begin offering custom-printed pieces for vehicle personalization. Daihatsu is pairing with 3D printing company Stratasys and industrial designers from Znug Design to bring customers new body panels for its adorable Copen model. The Copen is a small two-seat roadster-coupe that has swappable body panels from the factory, so changing them for 3D-printed versions should be relatively easy. Although this specific car is not sold in the US, it's easy to see how 3D printing could catch on here for all sorts of vehicle customization. The 3D parts are called "Effect Skins," and there is a reasonably wide variety of different combinations: 15 geometric and organic patterns available in 10 different colors. They are not completely locked down by the manufacturer, either; customer modifications are possible, thanks to the flexibility of 3D printing. Using a more conventional method, manufacturing plastic body parts to customer specifications would take months, but these parts will be available in just a couple of weeks, says Osamu Fujishita from Daihatsu's Brand DNA Office. The parts are being made available for 2017, and they are designed to dress up the Copen's fenders and front and rear bumpers. The panels are printed using Fortus Production 3D Printers with ASA thermoplastic, which resists both knocks and UV damage. The result can be a Daihatsu like no other, and it sure beats going to Pep Boys for stick-on chrome vents. Related Video: News Source: Stratasys via GizmagImage Credit: Stratasys Plants/Manufacturing Daihatsu Technology Emerging Technologies Convertible customization daihatsu copen

Daihatsu bringing retro Copen roadster, van-boat to Tokyo Auto Salon

Though its products are almost universally small (aside from its rebadged Toyota offerings), Daihatsu seems as though it'll have a fairly large presence at the 2023 Tokyo Auto Salon. It's highlighting eight main models with a few of them sporting some pretty extensive and cool modifications. The more interesting models are likely just concepts, but occasionally some of these customs result in production variants, such as a wild retro Honda S660 concept from a couple years ago. Copen Clubsport Daihatsu's sportiest offering of late is the Copen roadster. And it's celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. The kei-class roadster (shown at top) with its turbocharged 660cc engine has received drastic styling changes that put it more inline with the original. Those changes include round, retro headlights front and rear, and a much cuter round front grille. The cuter appearance is bolstered by racier appointments such as a roll bar, side skirts, rear diffuser and red-tipped exhaust outlets. As with the current Copen and the original, it still appears to have a retractable hardtop. Performance details haven't been announced, but we wouldn't be surprised if some suspension changes have been made at the least, if not any power improvements. This is also the car that had us thinking of the aforementioned Honda S660 retro model that reached production. We'd love to see it happen, as I'm sure would enthusiasts in Japan. Daihatsu Hijet Jumbo Extend View 4 Photos Hijet Jumbo Extend Designed as a hypothetical support truck for parts and more is the Hijet Jumbo Extend. It's based on the Hijet Jumbo, the extended-cab version of the Hijet kei truck. It's been fitted with a custom van box that can be extended for housing more stuff and maybe even people. The render also indicates that it will have an easily accessible fire extinguisher in a custom mount on the outside. Matching paint and a set of Volk TE37 wheels help it have the same racing-inspired look as the Copen Clubsport. Daihatsu Atrai Wildranger View 2 Photos Atrai Wildranger The third of the highly customized Daihatsu Atrai Wildranger. The company added chunky all-terrain tires and bedliner along the bottom half of its Atrai kei van. It also has suitably outdoorsy green paint. But the big attraction is what's on the roof. While looking like the van's roof, what's actually up there is a pop-off boat. That's why there are oars on either side. So this will get you both to the river, and down it.