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View all search resultsTest riding Daihatsu’s mira e:S – the king of fuel economy
The old words adage goes “don’t judge a book by its cover”
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T
he old words adage goes “don’t judge a book by its cover”. But for Daihatsu Motor Co. Ltd. (DMC), the saying is, “don’t judge a car by its [engine] capacity”.
The Japanese carmaker has shown to the world that it is able to produce a compact, low-cost, economical car called the mira e:S. The new mini vehicle was launched in Japan on Sept. 20 at a price of ¥795,000 (US$10,192). It immediately captured the hearts of domestic customers, and more than 50,000 units have sold in the two months since the launch.
Daihatsu claims the efficiency of the car – dubbed the “third eco car” as it is neither hybrid nor electric – can reach 30 kilometers per liter.
During a visit to the carmaker’s 600,000-square-meter Shiga Technical Center in Shiga, Japan, a group of Indonesian journalists were given the opportunity to test the mira e:S to prove that its economical fuel consumption was not just a bluff. Each of us maneuvered the four-seat car through different challenges – from a big U-turn to narrow bending lanes – to check the car’s fuel consumption efficiency and the best result was 27.6 kilometers per liter.
Journalists test drive a Daihatsu Copen, a two-seater customized sports car, at the carmaker’s technical center in Shiga, Japan. The car only carries a 659cc engine but is powerful enough to produce horse power of 64 at 6,000 revs per minute (rpm).
What surprised us was that the car only has a 658cc-engine, quite small compared to cars produced in Indonesia, of which the smallest engine is 1,000cc.
As the car is designed as a compact city car, the emphasis is on its low fuel consumption. Whenever we slowed down, without braking, the charge feature on the dashboard would turn on, indicating that the battery was being charged.
Due to its light weight – Daihatsu reduced its weight by approximately 60 kilograms – the car was easy to handle even when we had to make turns through narrow corners.
However, this car will not enter the Indonesian market, said Astra Daihatsu Motor marketing director Amelia Tjandra.
“There will be a transfer of technology which is now being applied to the Mira e:S to our cars produced in Indonesia. However, it won’t happen next year. It takes time for further study,” she said. “Maybe we need at least five years because we just launched the All New Xenia.”
During the visit, journalists also had the opportunity to test the Copen. The customized two-seater sports coupe has a 659cc engine that produces 64 horse power at 6,000 rpm. As it is customized, those interested in purchasing it have to place a special order and the price varies depending on customers’ demand.
DMC executive chief engineer Nobuhiko Ohno said that the carmaker preferred to focus on small engines.
“Sixty percent of Daihatsu production cars have engines with less than one liter capacity,” he said.
The carmaker has won the International Engine of the Year for four consecutive years from 2007 to 2010.
And as DMC President Koichi Ina said: “... such an economical car is needed for urban people. They need fuel efficient cars that are still enjoyable to drive.” — Primastuti Handayani
