Daihatsu Applause
Encyclopedia
Compact car
A compact car , or small family car , is a classification of cars which are larger than a supermini but smaller than or equal to a mid-size car...
manufactured by the Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese automaker Daihatsu from 1989 to 2000. It is most notable for its unusual body style, which, despite appearing to be a 4-door sedan, is in fact a 5-door liftback with a notchback
Notchback
Notchback is a styling term describing a car body style, a variation of three-box styling where the third distinct volume or "box" is less pronounced — especially where the rear deck is short or where the rear window is upright...
-shaped 412-litre trunk and a tailgate.
Background
As Daihatsu firmly established itself as Toyota's small car specialist brand, compact cars were the biggest vehicles marketed by the company. When replacing the long-running CharmantDaihatsu Charmant
The Daihatsu Charmant is a compact sedan built by Daihatsu of Japan, based on the Toyota Corolla. It was replaced by the Daihatsu Applause. The Charmant was originally a spin-off of the Toyota Corolla of the 1970s; model changes paralleled those of the Corolla. All Charmants were fitted with Toyota...
, the company decided to try a unique approach at the segment, with the intention to capitalize on the preferences for sedans, while at the same time offering the flexibility and convenience of a 5-door body. Resulting from such concept, the Applause was presented at the 1989 Geneva Motor Show
Salon International de l'Auto
The International Geneva Motor Show is an annual auto show held in March in the Swiss city of Geneva. The show is hosted at the Geneva Palexpo, a convention centre located next to the Geneva Cointrin International Airport...
.
Initial problems
In the first year in the market, Applause's reputation was tarnished by widely publicized incidents of gasoline spurting under excessive air pressure while refuelling, which could lead to very hazardous accidents. Daihatsu fixed the problem in the 1990 model, named Applause Theta, to highlight the improvement.Further history
In 1992, the Applause was mildly facelifted, with a subtle alteration of the front and rear fascias and slight increase in length. The "Theta" designation was dropped. The carburetorCarburetor
A carburetor , carburettor, or carburetter is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. It is sometimes shortened to carb in North America and the United Kingdom....
engine was not available anymore. The 1994 saw the cancellation of the AWD
AWD
AWD may refer to:* AWD Holding, , a German company* Acute Watery Diarrhoea, a symptom associated with cholera* Afghan War Diary, a collection of thousands of US military documents that were leaked to the public via Wikileaks in July, 2010* Agency Worker Directive * Air Warfare Destroyer* All-wheel...
version, rear fascia upgrade and slight grille alteration.
Major facelift
Facelift (product)
A facelift is the revival of a product through cosmetic means, for example by changing its appearance while leaving its underlying engineering or design intact....
in hope of reviving weakening sales.
It was not sold in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
after 1996.
The refreshed Applause debuted at the 57th Frankfurt Motor Show
Internationale Automobil-Ausstellung
The Internationale Automobil-Ausstellung , also known as the Frankfurt Motor Show or Frankfurt Auto Show, is one of the world's largest motor shows. It is held biennially in Frankfurt, Germany. The show occupies 12 buildings.The IAA is organized by the Association of the German Automotive Industry...
in September, 1997. Totally new front and rear fascias provided for a much more "formal" appearance, along with a small increase in length. However, the car remained the same with regard to all other measurements, including cargo capacity.
The facelift did not help sales result much, so the model was discontinued altogether in May 2000, without a direct replacement for export markets. In Japan, the Daihatsu Altis, which was in essence a rebadged
Badge engineering
Badge engineering is an ironic term that describes the rebadging of one product as another...
Toyota Camry
Toyota Camry
The Toyota Camry is a series of mid-size automobiles manufactured by Toyota since 1982, and sold in the majority of automotive markets throughout the world...
, took over its role as Daihatsu's largest sedan.
Drivetrain
The Applause was a FF layoutFF layout
In automotive design, an FF, or Front-engine, Front-wheel drive layout places both the internal combustion engine and driven roadwheels at the front of the vehicle.-Usage implications:...
car with transversely-mounted engine. For some time, a full-time AWD
AWD
AWD may refer to:* AWD Holding, , a German company* Acute Watery Diarrhoea, a symptom associated with cholera* Afghan War Diary, a collection of thousands of US military documents that were leaked to the public via Wikileaks in July, 2010* Agency Worker Directive * Air Warfare Destroyer* All-wheel...
version was sold.
Engine
Daihatsu HD 1589 cc straight fourStraight-4
The inline-four engine or straight-four engine is an internal combustion engine with all four cylinders mounted in a straight line, or plane along the crankcase. The single bank of cylinders may be oriented in either a vertical or an inclined plane with all the pistons driving a common crankshaft....
DOHC
- HD-F carburetorCarburetorA carburetor , carburettor, or carburetter is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. It is sometimes shortened to carb in North America and the United Kingdom....
, 97 PS - 1989-1992 (domestic market) - HD-F carburetorCarburetorA carburetor , carburettor, or carburetter is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. It is sometimes shortened to carb in North America and the United Kingdom....
, 91 PS - 1989-1992 (Europe market) - HD-E EFIFuel injectionFuel injection is a system for admitting fuel into an internal combustion engine. It has become the primary fuel delivery system used in automotive petrol engines, having almost completely replaced carburetors in the late 1980s....
, 120 PS (89 kW), 140 newton metre of torque - 1989-2000 (domestic market, compression ratio increased in 1997) - HD-E EFIFuel injectionFuel injection is a system for admitting fuel into an internal combustion engine. It has become the primary fuel delivery system used in automotive petrol engines, having almost completely replaced carburetors in the late 1980s....
, 90 PS (66 kW), 123 newton metre of torque - 1992-1997 (export markets) - HD-E EFIFuel injectionFuel injection is a system for admitting fuel into an internal combustion engine. It has become the primary fuel delivery system used in automotive petrol engines, having almost completely replaced carburetors in the late 1980s....
, 105 PS (77 kW), 134 newton metre of torque - 1992-1997 (export markets, FWDFWDFWD may refer to:* Front-wheel drive, a common method of vehicle propulsion.* FWD Campaign from USAID* Free World Dialup , a non-commercial Voice over IP network....
or AWDAWDAWD may refer to:* AWD Holding, , a German company* Acute Watery Diarrhoea, a symptom associated with cholera* Afghan War Diary, a collection of thousands of US military documents that were leaked to the public via Wikileaks in July, 2010* Agency Worker Directive * Air Warfare Destroyer* All-wheel...
) - HD-E EFIFuel injectionFuel injection is a system for admitting fuel into an internal combustion engine. It has become the primary fuel delivery system used in automotive petrol engines, having almost completely replaced carburetors in the late 1980s....
, 99 PS (73 kW), 138 newton metre of torque - 1997-2000 (export markets - replaced both former engines, increased compression ratio)
Transmissions
- 5-speed manual (not available with 120 PS after 1997)
- 3-speed automatic (105 hp engine, FWDFWDFWD may refer to:* Front-wheel drive, a common method of vehicle propulsion.* FWD Campaign from USAID* Free World Dialup , a non-commercial Voice over IP network....
setup) - 4-speed automatic (97 hp, 120 hp engine, FWDFWDFWD may refer to:* Front-wheel drive, a common method of vehicle propulsion.* FWD Campaign from USAID* Free World Dialup , a non-commercial Voice over IP network....
setup)