The Daihatsu Copen is a 2-door roadster with an aluminium retractable hardtop built by the Japanese car company Daihatsu. It first debuted at the 1999 Tokyo Motor Show, as the Daihatsu Copen concept. In two years, the OFC-1 was also completed as a precursor to the Copen, based on Daihatsu's front-wheel-drive light-car platform.
The Copen was originally designed with a 660 cc turbocharged engine in order to meet Japanese kei car regulations. However, it no longer meets environmental emissions standards in several other countries, and so in these markets the Copen is fitted with a more powerful 1.3 L engine.
At the 2005 Frankfurt Motor Show, Daihatsu revealed two new trim levels of the Copen, the 1.3l and the 'ZZ'.
On January 13, 2011, Daihatsu announced that it would withdraw the Copen from the European market effective from 31 January 2013 due to the ongoing strength of the Japanese Yen. Then on April 2, 2012, Daihatsu announced that Copen production would cease in August 2012 with the final 500 cars being limited 10th Anniversary editions.
The Copen has been featured on the UK show Top Gear where James May attempted to find the best convertible car. The contestants were the Mercedes-Benz CLK, Audi A4, Citroën C4, Volkswagen New Beetle, and the Copen. James loved the Copen, but he had one small problem: it felt "toy-ish". For that reason, the Audi turns out to be his favorite.