Daihatsu, a company instrumental in popularizing small vehicles in Japan through diminutive offerings such as the Midget (1959) and Hijet (1960), yesterday celebrated its 100th anniversary with a raft of minor announcements.
Rather distressingly, the first of these admittedly rather dull proclamations announced the demise of Daihatsu's endearing catchphrase, 'wonderful small', the yelling of which, in an unfeasibly spirited voice, had been a regular fixture during Daihatsu commercials here in Japan for the last few years. In embarking on their next hundred years in the automotive business, Daihatsu have however, in their wisdom, decided to ditch this catchy little epithet in favour of, 'Innovation For Tomorrow', which is allegedly more apposite in expressing the company's desire to become 'a global brand, loved by people around the world.' While 'Wonderful Small' remained solely a Japanese phenomenon, the new group slogan looks set to become the calling card for Daihatsu's activities across the globe.
On a more serious, and indeed charitable, note, the company also divulged that it is to donate 100 specially adapted vehicles to local authorities throughout Japan, to be utilized in assisting aged and handicapped members of society in their daily lives. Although undoubtedly this philanthropic gesture is in part a means of garnering publicity, it is good to see Daihatsu showing a genuine social conscience to back up the environmental credentials of its vehicles.
Rounding off this series of special anniversary announcements, was the news that Daihatsu plans to open a Museum adjacent to company headquarters in Ikeda City, Osaka. This facility, known as Humobility World, is due to open on the 7th May, and will house a variety of historical vehicles which chart Daihatsu's first hundred years of business.
The icing on the cake of Daihatsu's centenary celebrations however, came as the Japan Mini Vehicles Association released its monthly sales figures for kei mini vehicles during the month of February . The data from the JMVA showed that Daihatsu managed to shift 59,138 (an 8.7% increase over the same period in 2006) kei vehicles in the month of February, duly giving the company the largest share (32.4%) of the ever-expanding kei vehicle market, for the third consecutive month. Meanwhile, Suzuki, Daihatsu's main rival in this fiercely competitive market, saw sales down 3.2% on the same period in 2006, selling only 57,502 vehicles. If current trends continue, 2007 may well see Daihatsu usurp Suzuki as the king of annual kei vehicle sales, a title which Suzuki, often cited as the founder of the kei car niche, has held for some 34 successive years. However, certain industry analysts have put Daihatsu's recent run at the top of the sales tables down to the fact that Daihatsu renewed its core line-up of kei vehicles at the very end of 2006, with the introduction of brand new Move and Mira (Charade/Cuore) models, while Suzuki's latest offerings in the kei sector have been on the market a little longer. Another possible explanation for Daihatsu's sudden dominance, is the fact that Suzuki have been ramping down production of kei vehicles, allegedly to concentrate on the manufacture of slightly larger compact vehicles for the lucrative export market. Perhaps, however, Suzuki are just being chivalrous, and allowing rivals Daihatsu to have their cake and eat it during their centenary year.
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