Four girls tell what it's like to drive four of our smallest, cheapest cars
Note: The original article (as it appeared in Wheels) featured reviews of four small cars: Subaru Sherpa, Daihatsu Handi, Suzuki Alto and Suzuki MightyBoy. Only the MightyBoy portion of the article is reproduced here.
Spending a week driving around in a Suzuki Mighty Boy taught me a lot about what a small car has to offer. I don't own a car and all I have previously driven is just the family V8 Valiant.
The Suzuki certainly had its advantages. It was great for zipping around Sydney, especially in city traffic, and it was very economical to run — I covered about 470 km for approximately $18 worth of fuel. Finding parking in the city was a breeze. I was able to park in places most people wouldn't attempt. The tray came in handy for helping friends transport half a dozen bags of belongings to their new unit.
I would rate the interior as at least "satisfactory." Leg room is was sufficient, controls were within easy reach, visibility was 100 percent, the seats were very comfortable, and the cabin had carpet throughout. Passengers all remarked that it was reasonably comfortable despite its overall small size.
Small Talk
Wheels magazine
October 1987
Words
Caryl Wiggins
Photos
Robert Doran
But the disadvantages were many. Lack of power was my biggest complaint. It took a while for the car to get up speed from the traffic lights, for example, and on hills it was very slow indeed. Oh, for a V8 engine!
It's quite a noisy little car, too. This began to irritate me after my first outing. "A mixmaster on wheels" was how a friend so aptly described it. A smooth ride was non-existent. You feel every rut and bump in the road and the bumps even tend to steer the car. The braking was not smooth — the brakes came on rather suddenly.
The size of the car made me feel unprotected. I got the feeling there would simply be nothing left of the car if it was hit at a fair speed by anything else on the road. As well as that, only seating two people was inconvenient, and it's just not practical for me for weekend and social use. Anything big has to be stored in the tray and that's not acceptable, even with the tonneau cover on, if it's rainy weather.
In terms of appearance, the Mighty Boy attracted many funny comments. I felt like I was driving a toy for a week. Visually it's the cutest car on the road, but, like other Japanese cars, the styling is bland. Comments included:
"Where's the rest of it?"
"Now you can deliver pizzas."
"It would fit in the boot of a Chrysler."
"It's a box on wheels."
"An apology for a car"
"You put your dog in the tray"
After a week I decided the Mighty Boy is not for me. I much prefer a four or five-seater vehicle with power to match, and more storage space.
It's a fun city car but not practical for me. The price is a good point at $7,750, but I don't feel it's worth that much money. I'd rather spend my money on a good second-hand car, but I would have to give it a great deal of thought before I bought any type of car at all. Though a Triumph Stag would do!