Here's a buyers guide I've written up for the 659cc Copen, however some points are applicable for the 1.3 engine. Daihatsu Copen (L880K - 659cc Turbo) Buyers Guide Common Issues: Engine: The 659cc turbo engine (JB-DET) needs to be well looked after. Regular oil changes are required every 3000miles/6 months. With an oil filter change required every 6000miles/12months. If this has not been adhered to turbo failure is a possibility. Turbo’s are very expensive to replace with dealer prices for a new turbo around the £1100 price. Second hand turbo’s are very rare. Turbo’s can be sourced direct from Japan, but with import costs prices are about £800. Common failure points of the exhaust are that the chrome end trims rust off (this isn’t an MOT failure, just a visual thing). The joint to the baffle is a weak point, look under the car just behind the driver’s door. Replacement systems are expensive from the dealers. Common option is to replacement with a custom made stainless system. A price for a system is @£350, equal to if not cheaper than a steel system from the dealer. Body: The Copen was designed for the Japanese market. Salt is not used on Japanese roads during the winter. Hence only minimal corrosion protection is used. When sold in the UK the corrosion protection was not increased enough to handle a UK winter with salt on the roads. The main problem area is the rear wheel arches, usually on the top trailing edge. Some Copen’s have had warranty work carried out to replace the effected panels. Check the leading face of the sills (just behind the front wheels). The half way point in the sill, where the plastic cover for the sill panel joint is can also show signs of rust. Rust can appear any place where a paint chip has been left un-treated. Alloy wheels corrode, moisture gets under the lacquer. The Copen alloy wheel has a polished face with painted inserts in the holes. To be refurbished back to the original finish will cost @£100 per wheel. If you not bothered about keeping the original finish a simple full face powder coating can be done for @£50 per wheel. Check in the boot underneath where the jack & tools are kept. Moisture in the boot can collect here causing surface rust. The centre brake light on the boot lid can allow water through into the boot if the seal has failed. Check the boot carpets for moisture. Roof System: The roof system us generally reliable. Most common gripe is a squeaky or rattly roof. There are adjustment points that can help tighten things up. A quick spray of lubricant (WD40) on all the hinge points can help too. Water ingress through the roof is uncommon. Treating all the roof seal rubbers yearly with a silicone lubricant will help preserve the seals & help prevent any leaks. Servicing/Spares: Although Daihatsu garages are closing, any ex-Daihatsu dealer can still get spare parts for you. Common parts can be got within a few of days. However if the parts are un-common you will be in for a couple of weeks wait as the parts come from Japan. Service parts & brake parts can be bought from any local motor factors or off eBay. It’s advisable to always buy the genuine Daihatsu oil filter though. None genuine oil filters tend to be too large & cannot be fitted through the front engine mounting. Check electrical contacts of any failed electrical part under the bonnet. Sometimes the failure is a simple issue of corroded contacts. Such examples are failed horns, these are positioned behind the front grill so get attacked by the salt in winter. Also the magnetic clutch on the air-con compressor, can suffer the same problem. Check the tyre sealant bottle in the boot, by now it’s date has expired. New bottles are available from Daihatsu but are very expensive. It’s cheaper just to buy a bottle of Tyreweld from Halfords. Please add your experiences to this thread that you think would help other prospective Copen owners.
Fantastic advice Adam - thanks. I wish this was on here before When I purchased my Copen back in April it 'looked' absolutley spotless but .. Since, I have noticed the wheels deffo need attention. I have had the WaxOyl treatment done to the underside prior to winter as I will need to use the car everyday. I have found one bit of rust rubble on of the wheel arches but its nothing major so have touched it up for now Leather seats are a little worn on the edges and it should cost about £70 to have sorted. Rainy day money Finally the roof was very rattly so the ex dealership who did the WaxOyl treatment tightened it up for free Having my first service done mid October so finegrs crossed
dwayner i didnt know that about replacing the tyre sealant - ive never used mine ever in the 10 years ive had the car - I was told by the diahatsu dealer only use it in extreme cases, like on a deserted road in the middle of know where - and that if i could, have the car towed to a tyre dealer instead, as the sealant causes damage that is hard to fix. So in 10 years, ive only ever had one punture to the tyre, and i had it towed to diahatsu garage for replacement - have you heard anything about that with sealant?
I've only read that with any tyre sealant it's fun to clean off the alloy wheel once the tyre's off. Also some garages will not want to clean the tyre out to repair it. Easier for them just to fit a new tyre, but costs you more.
I'd strongly suggest to prepare a cheap tyre repair kit instead, which would be useful for perhaps 90% of puncture cases. The tyre dealers use the exact same thing to fix a puncture anyway. For example, http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_nkw=car+tyre+repair+kit
Tyre puncture kit I had cause to use mine yesterday! had my car about 6 years and no need. Then yesterday - a flat Tried to pump it up, but could hear the air hissing out. Also, the tyre looked dubiuos so I used the sealant. Worked a treat! Sealed the cut - as it appeared quite a big one! managed to drive home and hubby got a new tyre fitted today for me. Was looking on here for a replacement kit and read your post. Sounded a better buy - as I expect the Diahatsu stuff is pricey and like you say, you can't use the wheel after. Anyone used the repair kit you are advertising? Any probs?? Thanks
I have come across a couple of people who report that their 'blipper' will open the boot, but will not open the doors. Also, the interior light won't turn off automatically when the door is closed. This is an easy fix. Locate the little button half way down the door jam which 'feels' when the door is shut. It is tucked behind a rubber stopper. This button wears over time and if it doesn't go right in when the door is shut the car thinks the door is open and will therefore not lock or turn the light out. Simple fix was to add something to the end of the button (I used a little nut pushed on). Job done and everything worked again.
Excellent advice, thanks Adam. The only thing I'd add is get a close up of the driver's seat before you travel miles to see the car. They all wear, it's just a question of how much. A bit of scuffing isn't the end of the world but I drove (fortunately only 30 miles) to see one car to find that the leather had worn through to a large hole with stuffing sticking out. ... and when you've bought your dream car and possibly touched up the scuffing, always push the seat right back before getting out so it doesn't get any worse.
Copen 2004 - Rust Thanks for your post Adam. Your rust information has been of great value and understand now why my 2004 Copen is riddled with in. Helpful thank you. David
Hello all with special thanks to Adam for the splendid write on the buyer guide. Indeed i am cross checking on his good experience to allow a 'mitigated' risk taken in my 2nd hand purchase of a 2010 659cc reconditioned Copen from Japan. Had paid for the bookings last week and now waiting with anticipation for all documentations to complete. Have been following with eager interest on the fun and good drive of all members here. Could not find any similar community of interest in Malaysia but certainly hope there will be some probably later. Noted that some of our good members are in our neighbouring Singapore . For the information of all, i had never planned for the Copen's purchase but after picking up Paul Guinness 's good account of Copen in his Haynes 'The sport car book', had me more than intrigued to allow myself some fun. I certainly have picked -up some good pointers for some peace of mind. This morning i came accross a post in the daihatsu-owner uk , some issues on Copen's sudden loss of power. Well, though that was posted in 2010,it certainly is the first time that i indeed came across anything equivalent .Certainly hope my Copen would offer fun and not otherwise. Cheers all!
Hi Thanks a lot is verry helpful for me the tips of Roof System (The roof system us generally reliable. Most common gripe is a squeaky or rattly roof. There are adjustment points that can help tighten things up. A quick spray of lubricant (WD40) on all the hinge points can help too. Water ingress through the roof is uncommon. Treating all the roof seal rubbers yearly with a silicone lubricant will help preserve the seals & help prevent any leaks.) My roof open very slow and a little noise in same time but now is better
May be worth noting a lot of Copen's are sold as the 'Vivid' model and it's pretty much untrue. Daihatsu Launches Limited Edition Copen 'Vivid' See above link for what the Vivid package meant.
Helpful guide thanks New to copen ownership of the weather was better today I would be working on the little beauty.
