I'm scanning old film & found this pic from the 2003 Tokyo Motor Show. First Copen with a 1300 cc engine? Big wing, grill, wheels & blue sticker are obvious changes. Details from Daihatsu Copen SARD Special Daihatsu - Copen SARD Special Original name: ダイハツ コペン SARDスペシャル - Engine & performance: Position: front, longitudinal Type: 4-cylinder, in-line, turbocharged Capacity: 1300 cc Power: 140 hp @ 6000 rm Torque: 130 Nm @ 3200 rpm Drive: FWD - Dimensions: Length: 3500 mm Width: 1600 mm Height: 1260 mm Wheelbase: 2230 mm Weight: 860 kg While car shopping several years ago I sat in a similar Copen - yellow with the orange Recaro bucket seats. Smiled so hard it hurt. The car suited me. Decided if I downsized my main car I could maybe get a fun 2 door. Loved options from Mazda & more, but came back to the Copen. I like its design, don't need a lot of power (though it'd be fun), easier on my budget & the red leather seats all won me over. Looking forward to more road trips with my toy.
Well, 104NM & 130Kw is roughly double that of the standard 659 turbo. I'd say that was a lot of power in a Copen, even with a 40kg weight penalty. I only can wish. But as it's all over the front axle wouldn't it tend to plow a bit at 9/10ths in a corner/roundabout? 9/10ths is my typical roundabout commitment level here in Canberra, Capital of Australia & World Capital of Roundabouts. But now I want a SARD! The Daihatsu 1.3, as used in my past GTvis in 78Kw form, is a great engine & very tuneable, but 104Kw is about the most I've ever heard of. Even by adding a straight through 2" exhaust (with a custom 2.5" hotdog for sound only) right from the manifold and a direct K&N cone air intake (I'd recommend that, the OEM item is dreadful), I'd still only be getting what it came with new, ie 57Kw. Re-mapping my ECU seems tempting at first, but the engine is already super highly strung & that would probably kill it very quickly. 104Kw would need a different 6 speed gearbox to get anything much more out of it tho'. The close ratio 5 speed already runs out of gears too fast. If you bought it, I'd hang on to that, it will only go up in value. PS Why do you mix Imperial & metric in power/torque? It was a Japan only model I'm guessing and they don't use HP, despite that link. I needed Google convert to get Kw.
