Category: Superminis 
Price Range: £10,775 to £10,775
Roomy, good value, makes quite a statement.
Loses its composure at speed or on poor road surfaces. Horrible gearchange.
If you like the looks, this is a neat way to stand out without compromising on practicality.
The Materia drives a lot like a Sirion - Daihatsu's slightly smaller and considerably more conventional supermini - which is no bad thing. The Materia's just fine on the road if you recognise and respect the limits imposed by the laws of physics on a little - but tall - car with small wheels and a reasonably lively engine.
The steering is hydraulically assisted - too much so in some circumstances, when it feels very light. There's a rear anti-roll bar designed to reduce body lean and it's successful up to a point. MacPherson struts at the front are meant to provide a plush ride, although the Materia gets very crashy once the bumps go above a certain size.
The engine responds well to the accelerator, but the manual gearbox has an extremely sloppy action and the clutch can be a bit jerky, so one way and another good gearchanges and clean getaways are elusive. We've not yet driven the automatic.
It's terrific if you're just breezing around town, taking advantage of its brisk acceleration and easy steering. Other tasks, such as attacking a B-road or trying to cover long distances on a motorway, make it feel out of sorts. It doesn't have the communicative steering or body control you'd want for spirited driving and it's slightly too noisy for sustained high speeds. Top speed is 106mph for the manual, 102mph for the automatic.
