New member here - greetings to all. Is there a Copen buyer's guide anywhere? Any comments regarding the pro's and cons of the 660 turbo vs 1.3 models please? How DIY friendly are they to look after? Thanks.
A few pointers from a recent 660 owner. I am not a mechanic nor expert! 660 is the most complex obviously due to turbo, 1.3 has more power. Something like 68 vs 87 bhp. 660 revs to 8000 rpm, 1.3 doesn't. 660 will be older as the 1.3 replaced it. 660 has more power tuning options although very little available in the UK. 660 has in tank fuel pump and single line feed to engine bay so it's not possible to jack the fuel pressure as per usual turbo tuning. Turbo is week with 15psi limit, maybe 18psi short term. Loads of 660 tuning options from Japan if you have deep pockets and overcome the language problem. IMHO the 660 is WAY more fun! 660 is truer to the Kei concept. All can corrode, rear wings, front wings, sills, front end of sills inside the wheel arch, boot floor. Spares are expensive, turbo is circa 1K+++. Although if I had a turbo failure I'd do a cut and shut with the knackered turbo and make a much cheaper and better hybrid. Everything is tight under the bonnet, took me a week to find the oil filter and even lamps are tricky to change. That said there is nothing that should tax a competent DIYer, jobs just take a little longer. Electrics, suspension etc are simple enough as is engine management and turbo system. A knackered turbo brings a Copen more or less down to scrap value, some bargins for a good DIY guy when buying one with a knackered turbo. All rattle, not hard to stop most the rattles but they will return. Putting mostly anything in the boot leaves you susceptible to roof damage. Engine oil service every 3000 miles on the 660. 660 engine is tough, our is 112000 miles and fine. Engine, gearbox, differential failure is extremely rare. Both quite rare cars, 2200 registered in the UK and now less than 1800 on the road. Scrap cars come up fairly often but again parts are pricey from dealers. Works manuals available on this site. Comprehensive manuals but no where as detailed as say 1970 Jaguar manuals. Certainly enough to get by. All have a hard ride, handling is very very good unless you drive to extremes at which point you have worn out dampers and it lets you know big style, front corner slams down to the stops and it massively understears. Very much a go-cart ride. Front is independent and coil overs, possible Bilstein. Rear is coils with adjacent dampers on a torsion bar arrangement. Braking is good with a quite few full blooded decelerations before progressive brake fade. All are sadly front wheel drive, 3000rpm starts are beyond the traction capability Buyers guide below. Daihatsu Copen Buyers Guide Ohhh, did I say 660 is way more fun. It will put a large grin on your face! And welcome
Put it together nicely, but the 1.3 engine has been around since the 90s. First appearance was in the Toyota Yaris P1 as far as I know. The 1.3 is far more reliable, needs servicing only once a lear and is a lot faster. As long as you take good care of it (oil changes, rust prevention etc.) both will be fine.
Thanks for our replies. There is a 660 turbo for sale locally. I'm considering it amongst other vehicles. Your advise has been valuable, but I am still undecided as to the wisdom of it. I'll see if I can download the manual and handbook from this site in a few days which might be useful.
Have you driven it? If not, do it, might make the decision a bit easier. Copen in general are pretty DIY friendly. No complex technology under the hood. You might need small japanese fingers though to get into tight spaces
