Дайхацу Шарман: История и особенности японского седана

The Daihatsu Charmant (ダイハツ・シャルマン) is a subcompact sedan built by Daihatsu of Japan, based on the Toyota Corolla. It was succeeded by the Daihatsu Applause two years after Charmant production ended. The Charmant was heavily based on the E20 Toyota Corolla; model changes paralleled those of the Corolla. All Charmants were fitted with Toyota inline four engines, ranging from 1.2 to 1.6 litres. The word charmant is French for "charming." When it was introduced, it was the largest Daihatsu sold in Japan, with the Charade/Consorte supermini, and the Fellow Max kei class car as the smallest. TOC

First presented in November 1974, the first generation Daihatsu Charmant was based on the E20 Corolla platform. Equipped with 1166 cc engines producing 66 PS (SAE) and 1290 cc engines producing 72 PS (SAE) at 5,200 rpm. This type of engines were coded as 3K (1.2 L) and 4K (1.3 L) Toyota engines and came with a four or five speed manual transmission, as well as a two speed automatic option. The new engines were the 4K U and the 2T U, while the van received the 4K J (while retaining the T J) these engines fulfilled the commercial vehicle emissions specifications. In July an automatic version of the 1.6 appeared. Unique to the first generation, a station wagon was also available. This was called "Van" in the Japanese domestic market, where it was classed as a commercial vehicle. The Van was introduced in December 1974, a month after the saloons. This model was exported to a fair number of countries, mostly markets without their own automobile industry. It was the first Daihatsu to be sold in Iceland, where a large number of surplus cars from the Netherlands were brought in the summer of 1979. Sold at a very low price, it was one of Iceland's most popular cars that year.