What if Miata Wasn’t Always the Answer?

After the launch of the immensely popular first generation Mazda MX-5, any new lightweight roadster was always going to be judged against it. While not exactly the first manufacturer you think of when you think ‘lightweight roadster’, in the early 90s Daihatsu decided to have a go at this whole MX-5 rival thing. Despite the daunting challenge they were taking on board, Daihatsu made one hell of an attempt.

Debuting at the Frankfurt Motorshow in 1991, the Daihatsu X-021 was the result of this project. The X-021’s design was fairly simple, and definitely didn’t have the appearance of a car intended purely as a concept. The little Daihatsu was indeed very much little, even in comparison to the MX-5. Not only was it smaller, it was considerably lighter. The MX-5 isn’t exactly a heavy car, but the X-021 weighed only 700kg. That’s over 200kg lighter than the Mazda; a huge difference in such a small car.

The X-021 was powered by a 1.6 litre, 16 valve inline 4 that produced 140BHP. Top speed was 125mph, which in reality is probably one of the least important statistics in this type of car. The lack of weight was achieved via the use of fibreglass for the body and a spaceframe chassis underneath. A version of the car with no body was displayed alongside the completed car, although this second car would later be completed for future motorshows. Wheels were a 15 inch affair, wrapped in Dunlop Performa 8000 tyres. Beneath the body panels the X-021 was impressive; along with the previously mentioned space frame the suspension was very much race-derived, and all together the car was an impressive package.

Inside the X-021 didn’t exactly cater to anyone with much height or width to them. The cockpit was small with limited leg room and when paired with the Recaro bucket seats, there was somewhat of a lack of wriggle room. If you really, really wanted to cram yourself in and were of generous vertical proportions, there was at least the benefit of being able to remove the roof. Just hope it doesn’t rain, yeah?

After the 1992 Geneva Motorshow, the X-021 even made it to the cover of Road & Track and was reviewed positively. The prototype made a solid impression, and was praised for its aesthetics and handling. It seemed the real driving experience matched up with the impressive numbers, and it looked like Daihatsu had a winner on their hands. Naturally this increased interest in the little Daihatsu, and it looked like the only valid next move would be to head for production. Perhaps this would be the car that allowed Daihatsu to make their mark on the international scene.

Unfortunately, that never happened. The X-021 was left as nothing more than a concept. Daihatsu decided it would be a better move to focus on their domestic market, and began developing a car for the segment below the X-021. This would become the Copen, and while the Copen is a nice enough car, it really has nothing on the X-021. Supposedly elements of the X-021 were used in the Copen and it was referenced during the Copen’s development, but the X-021 could, and perhaps should, have been so much more.

Since then, Daihatsu has never really established itself to any major extent outside of Asia, and no longer sells cars in Europe or America. The MX-5 went on to develop a huge following, and the X-021 was promptly forgotten about. Like so many other promising concept cars that so-nearly made it, we’re only left to imagine what it would be like to have the X-021. I’m fairly confident if it had been brought into production, the MX-5 wouldn’t be the only well-loved 90’s Japanese roadster.