2011 Daihatsu Charade revealed

The 2011 Daihatsu Charade - an old model Yaris with a new badge

Yes, we know. Daihatsu has announced it’s leaving Europe to the Koreans and won’t be in the business of selling last generation Toyotas with a new badge on this side of the world any longer. But they’re sending us one last car – the 2011 Daihatsu Charade.

The clue that the new Daihatsu Charade was coming could probably be found in the launch in Japan of what will be the 2012 Toyota Yaris for us, just before Christmas. Old model Toyota equals new model Daihatsu.

It also won’t be a shock for you to learn that the new Charade looks like the old Yaris with a new badge. It also gets the 1.33 litre petrol lump from the Yaris – actually, it only gets the 1.33 litre lump from the Yaris – which delivers a bit shy of 100bhp, but is enough to move the Charade around quite adequately even when you opt for the auto ‘box.

Daihatsu will be offering two levels of trim on the Charade and doubtless be charging a bit less for their version of the 2005 Yaris than Toyota did. Although they haven’t yet declared how much less.

All of which could lead to a veritable boom; a last hurrah; out with a bang time for Daihatsu’s 90 UK dealers. Between them they managed to shift just 170 cars in 2010. Maybe, just maybe – if they try really hard – they could manage to sell two 2011 Daihatsu Charades each in 2011, and break the 2010 sales figures.

Or maybe not.

By Cars UK