Hello from Down Under

Hi everyone. The Copen is my third Daihatsu. First I had a 1991 Charade, then a 2003 Sirion. Both had the 1L. 3-cylinder engine. I really liked both of them, and said to myself "If Daihatsu made a sports car, I would probably buy one". Later, I saw a picture of a Copen, and I was never the same again. Years went by before I couldn't stand it anymore and went looking on Gumtree. I found the one I wanted in Brisbane, about a day's drive from me. I had it all lined up to go up and get it, and then the whole thing fell through. Back to Gumtree, and I found another one in Townsville, also in Queensland, but much further north.

Long story short, I flew up to Townsville the day after New Year's this year (2017) and bought it. That's when I began to realise that Townsville is 2,000 km from where I live, a bit north of Sydney. Took me 2 1/2 days of full-on driving, stopping at cheap flop houses for a sleep, to get home with my new pride and joy. Pretty steep learning curve for me, I had no time to get acquainted with the car, just get in and drive. Besides, there was something seriously wrong with the engine; it would cough every time I hit a bump, and the Queensland Bruce Highway is composed of nothing but bumps. This problem got worse, and sometimes the engine would cut out completely and I would coast to a stop, sometimes in less than ideal places.

It wasn't until I got to Rockhampton that I realised the trouble was a broken wire in the engine loom. I was able to locate the section of the wire bundle where the problem was, and tie it to the air conditioner low side pipe, which stabilised it and it gave me no further trouble the rest of the way home.

After an inordinate amount of trouble registering it, I finally was able to start enjoying being a Copen owner. At the same time, I had to find a new owner for my Sirion, as I cannot sustain the luxury of owning two cars. And the carport only accommodates 1 1/2 cars. I waited for the regrets and recriminations to descend, but they never did. I am a Copen owner, and happily so. Driving as it should be. That's the motto of one of our members, and how true it is. I still look for reasons to go somewhere just so I can get in it once more. I must say, it's in remarkably good condition for being 14 years old, though it's only got 89,000 km on the clock. The only "defect" is that the console bin lid doesn't stay closed; part of the latch is missing. I glued a magnet in the bottom part, and a piece of steel in the lid, so now it stays shut.

So, here is a photo of me and my pet, taken by my daughter at the local McDonald's.

 

@baobab68
That would be criminal, to own a Copen and never put the roof down. It becomes a different car with no roof. Only time I put it up is when it's raining, or it's cold. There's no winter here to speak of, (unless you live in Tasmania, like 2 of my daughters) so even in "winter" you can sometimes drive with the roof down. I'm just worried about wearing the roof out. There must be a design limit on how many times it can go up and down. I've lubricated all the pivot points I can find with silicone spray. I want this car to last a LONG time!

 

@baobab68
You're not wrong. This is more rain than I've ever seen. Breaking all the records, I think.

@lex schotel
Yes, white cars are definitely not rare around here. Even more so up your way. I drove most of the way from Townsville with the roof down, except for some of the motorway bits. Yes, I was a little burned by the time I got home. Then again, the a/c didn't work, so it was pretty stuffy with the roof up.