A MYVI FOR NOT A LOT OF LOLLY

A MYVI FOR NOT A LOT OF LOLLY

Richard Hammond 8/09/2006

Good-looking, versatile - and it's so cheap too

HERE'S how to gauge a car's desirability. Imagine you are in a fashionable bar.

The jazzy mood music dips and the barman shouts: "Will the owner of the green such-and-such a car move it because it's blocking the cellar doors."

If the car is yours and you leap up to claim it, then it's passed the test. If you hide under your stool hoping the thing will be taken away on a lowloader and crushed, it's failed.

Aston Martin, Maserati, Alfa Romeo - these are makes that pass this test. Some people jump up even when they don't own them.

Perodua is not one of those. Many people have never even heard of them. It doesn't help that no-one is ever sure how to say it. When I try, it sounds like I'm sneezing. Well, it is a Malaysian company and they make really cheap cars.

The Perodua Kelisa currently retails at about 4.5 pence and uses so little fuel I can't see why they bothered fitting a filler cap.

The Perodua Myvi - again, how do you say the name? - is their flagship vehicle. And it looks it.

No jokes, this is a good-looking car. But if it looks familiar, that's because this is a Daihatsu Sirion in all but name. You see it costs billions to develop a new car - you design them on computers then build lots of them to crash into walls. So Perodua let someone else do it and spent their money sticking a new badge on it.

But they kept a bit back to spend on styling. Which is why, even though it shares bits and pieces with the Sirion, the Myvi is better looking.

Inside, there's a ton of space. It's versatile too - the rear seats fold to make a huge loadspace. The 1.3-litre engine means 0-60mph takes 13 seconds - hardly sports car territory, but it handles so well you can just get it up to speed and keep it there with ease.

The Daihatsu Sirion, on which the Myvi is based, is itself partly based on the Toyota Yaris - still one of the best small cars.

It has air-con, electric windows, and remote central locking and when it goes on sale soon will cost £7,799 - around £300 cheaper than a Sirion.

But I've heard that Perodua will also give £1,000 cashback for the first few weeks to get us in the mood.

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