Daihatsu's major sales offensive continues as it strives to grow its retail network to 120 sites by 2005.

The company recently appointed its 60th new dealership since 2000, taking the network to 92 and putting it on track to have 100 retailers by the end of this year. And with the pint-sized Copen roadster set to go on sale in November, operations director Paul Hegarty is confident of topping 5000 sales next year.

“We are seeing a continuing rise in the number of dealers interested in Daihatsu as car buyers shift to smaller more fuel efficient cars,” he says. “Customer and dealer interest in Daihatsu is now greater than ever with the Copen and the new Charade set to prove a big success.”

The company rules out following Kia by owning retailers, but will keep “a close watch” on its progress.