- Doors and Seats
5 doors, 5 seats
- Engine
1.3i, 4 cyl.
- Engine Power
75kW, 120Nm
- Fuel
Petrol (95) 5.6L/100KM
- Manufacturer
FWD
- Transmission
Manual
- Warranty
3 Yr, 100000 KMs
- Ancap Safety
NA
Sirion GTvi gets a feed of beef
For: Nippy performance, high equipment levels, great city car.
Against: Frustrating auto, stereo horrible to use, tinny feel.
How it rates: 3.5 stars.
There's no doubt that the new performance version of the Daihatsu Sirion wears its heart on its sleeve. You only have to look at that big badge on the back. GTvi: it's a mixture of evocative names from Alfa Romeo (GTV coupe) and Volkswagen hot-hatch (GTi) that surely, once you've seen a Sirion, can't be replicated in 3.6 metres of lightweight Japanese steel.
Maybe, maybe not. What the Sirion GTvi does represent is some sort of boost for Daihatsu's image, which has languished somewhat with a stagnating model range and a virtual takeover of its usual territory (small, cheap cars) over the past 10 years by certain Korean manufacturers.
While it is unlikely that the GTvi - virtually a bigger-engined version of the existing Sirion five-door hatchback - is going to turn things around immediately, it's a car that injects some excitement into the range and will maybe get some younger buyers sniffing around Daihatsu dealerships.
The philosophy behind the Sirion's unlikely transformation from baby to beefcake is pretty simple, and involves ditching the usual 1.0-litre, three cylinder engine for an altogether more lusty 1.3-litre four. Bung on some huge - well, 14-inch - alloy wheels, give the option of an auto with sequential shift, upgrade the interior with better seats, lay on some fog lights and you have a new contender in the hot-hatch game.
None of this comes free, of course, and the price rise from $12,202 to $15,990 for the GTvi is a big one in percentage terms, even if it's still a cheap car by absolute standards. Also, go looking for a rival to compare the Daihatsu against and it's a difficult task. Some offer a little extra spark, maybe some more equipment, but none really have the GTvi's combination of enhanced attitude and performance with five doors for the price. You'll pay at least double for its nearest logical rival, the Mercedes A Class.
Engine power has bolted from a feeble 40kW in the three-cylinder Sirion to 75kW (an 88 percent increase, if you please) and torque has gone from 80 to 120Nm. Despite these bristling muscles, the GTvi has been kept to a fighting weight of 810kg in manual form, or just 10kg more than the triple, so it doesn't take Einstein to figure out this is going to be a swifter Sirion.
And indeed it is, although the caveat is that our test car came with the optional four-speed automatic (it costs $1,800 more than the manual), which dulls performance and driving pleasure to quite an extent. It's not that the automatic swallows too many Newton-metres of torque, because with the little throttle pedal nailed flat, the GTvi takes off with plenty of speed, if not a little noise and harshness from the engine as revs rise.
Things get a little less pleasant on the move, with the usual problem in small-engined autos that when left to its own devices the transmission has trouble picking the right gear for acceleration.
Operating the auto's manual shift is something of a nightmare: first the driver has to grope for a changeover switch near the right knee, then work out which of the steering-wheel buttons control up and down changes, while twirling the wheel itself. Adding to the mess is a beeper that tells you the car doesn't agree with your gearchange points. It's all far too hard: save $1,800, buy the manual and exercise the left leg a little.
Transmission aside, the GTvi is plenty of fun to drive around town. Despite its small size, the driver sits quite high up and upright, hunched over the (non-adjustable) wheel, a bit like in an old Mini. It will squeeze through gaps and into parking spaces few other cars can manage, and the ridiculously small turning circle of 8.8 metres means it will turn on a 10-cent piece.
All this while using half the fuel of a Falcon and Commodore and without sacrificing much in the way of straight-line performance. A word of warning is that the engine's high 11.0:1 compression ratio means it requires 95 octane premium unleaded, although with just a 40-litre tank, the extra few cents shouldn't cause too much pain.
Although the ride is quite firm and choppy, an inevitable legacy of stiffened suspension and a short wheelbase, if anything it's preferable to the standard Sirion's somewhat soggy, floating suspension set-up.
There's not a lot wrong with the handling or steering: the GTvi sits reasonably flat in corners, will push its front end wide on the limit and maybe start spinning an inside wheel, but the disc-drum brake set-up with ABS is easily up to the task of stopping the Sirion's 800-odd kilograms.
The interior looks the part, with touches of silver paint on the centre console to relieve the otherwise mainly grey color scheme, and the seats have plenty of lateral support. Equipment levels include a CD player, four-way power windows, electric mirrors and air-conditioning, and even though it has dual airbags there's enough space left for a glovebox big enough to store a bottle of red on the way to your favourite BYO.
Back seat accommodation is limited by marginal leg room and the doors are also small, even if quite tall passengers will find enough head room to make short journeys bearable. The boot is small, and its removable floor doesn't sit flat, thanks to the larger-than-usual 14-inch spare rim underneath.
In some ways the Sirion GTvi has plenty going for it: more performance than you'd imagine in a pocket-sized car, high levels of standard equipment and great road manners for the money. It is lobotomised by the unnecessary automatic transmission, but otherwise there's a big heart lurking in this car, which is a cut above much of the other dross available for less than $18,000.
All the details
Price: $15,990 (manual), $17,790 (auto).
Engine: 1.3-litre, DOHC, 16-valve four cylinder, 75kW at 7,000rpm and 120Nm at 4,400rpm.
Transmission: Five-speed manual or four-speed auto. Front-wheel drive.
Steering: Rack and pinion, 3.6 turns lock-to-lock. Turning circle 8.8m.
Brakes: Ventilated discs front, drums rear. With ABS.
Suspension: Front - Independent by MacPherson struts with stabiliser bar. Rear - Torsion beam axle with coil springs and stabiliser bar.
Wheels/tyres: 5 x 14-inch alloy wheels, 165/65.
How big? Length 3,660mm, width 1,595mm, height 1,450mm, wheelbase 2,345mm.
How heavy? 830kg (auto).
How thirsty? 7.2 L/100km. Fuel tank 40 litres.
Rivals
Ford Ka - $15,490
Proton Satria XLi - $14,990
Daewoo Lanos Sports - $17,000
Hyundai Accent GS - $17,590