About Daihatsu
Daihatsu Motor Co., Ltd. (ダイハツ工業株式会社 Daihatsu Kōgyō Kabushiki-gaisha ) is a Japanese manufacturer of cars, well known for its smaller models. Many of its models are also known as kei jidosha (or kei cars) in Japan.
The name "Daihatsu" is a combination of the first kanji (Japanese character) for Osaka (大) and the first of the word "engine manufacture" (発); when put together they are pronounced "dai hatsu".
Company history
- 1907 – Hatsudoki Seizo Co., Ltd. founded
- 1951 – Company renamed: Daihatsu Motor Co., Ltd.
- 1967 – Started cooperation with Toyota Motor Corporation
- 1988 – Daihatsu USA launched with the Charade and Rocky
- 1992 – Daihatsu USA shuts down in February, Toyota is now known for Daihatsu models to the US
- 1999 – Toyota gains a controlling interest in (51% market share) Daihatsu Motor Ltd.
Recent market withdrawals
It was reported on 31 March 2005, that Toyota would exit Daihatsu from the Australian market, after sales fell heavily in 2005, in spite of the overall new-car market in Australia growing 7%. Daihatsu wound up its Australian operations in March 2006 after almost 40 years in the market.
Daihatsu's operations in Chile – where Daihatsu is a well-known brand for its 1970s models such as the Charade or Cuore – were also threatened after very low sales in 2004 and 2005. However, Toyota has stated that it intends to persist in the Chile market for now.
