Daihatsu Gran Max

The Daihatsu Gran Max retains the basic and cost-effective appeal of the exterior in its cabin as well. The overall interior of the Gran Max has an all-black appeal with cheap plastics everywhere, which instantly makes you feel that you are inside a workhorse and not a passenger vehicle. Though, the Daihatsu Gran Max impresses with its good ergonomics and space management.

The driver’s cockpit of the Daihatsu Gran Max is basic with a two-spoke steering wheel and a bare-bones analogue instrument console behind it. The centre console of the Daihatsu Gran Max’s dashboard looks big with vertically-laid AC vents on its sides and a 1-DIN audio system stacked in between. The buyers can also opt for a touchscreen infotainment system in place of a 1-DIN audio system. The lower half of the centre console looks bulbous and has manual dials for the AC and transmission lever placed on it.

For the segment to which it caters, the Daihatsu Gran Max is a decent-looking vehicle with all the body panels styled aptly and in the right proportions. The overall styling looks a bit dated and old-school, but there are very few people who buy a utility van for its looks rather than the practical purposes it fulfills.

At the front, the Daihatsu Gran Max has a typical Japanese flair in its design. The front profile of the van has a slanted design to it, with the upper half of the van covered entirely by the angularly placed windscreen. The lower half of the Daihatsu Gran Max’s front profile also has a slanted design, comprising the front apron which has large box-shaped halogen headlamps positioned on the lower corners. The outer part of these headlamps comes with clear lens turn indicators, while the headlamps have a sleek grille with horizontal slats inside it. The front bumper too is body-coloured and has a large air dam in the middle of it with horizontal slats inside it.

The side profile of the Daihatsu Gran Max has a conventional essence of a van, the highlights of which include sliding rear doors and large window panels. Since it is a cost-effective van priced in the budget end of the market, the Daihatsu Gran Max comes with basic-looking blacked-out door handles and rearview mirrors, and steel wheels without wheel caps. The boxy-looking Daihatsu Gran Max has a simple-looking rear profile, where the hatch opens upwards to gain access to the cabin from the rear. The rear profile also has vertically-laid tail lamps on the outer edges at the back.

Being a boxy van, the driving dynamics of the Daihatsu Gran Max are nothing much to talk about. However, the suspension setup of the Daihatsu Gran Max, comprising of Macpherson struts with coil springs at the front and a 5-link coil spring at the rear, is rugged enough to take on all the beatings of rougher roads.

The Daihatsu Gran Max is powered by a 1.5-litre four-cylinder naturally-aspirated petrol engine, which is available with a 5-speed manual gearbox as the only choice of transmission. This engine produces a maximum power output of 96.5 PS, while the peak torque output of this engine is rated at 134 Nm.

The Daihatsu Gran Max is equipped with bare-basic safety elements like ABS and a reverse camera.

For the price at which it is available, the Daihatsu Gran Max comes across as a durable and reliable workhorse, which might be basic in its appeal, but fulfills the job of a goods carrier decently.