Daihatsu became a wholly owned subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corporation in 2016.
Daihatsu is one of Japan’s oldest surviving internal-combustion-engine manufacturers and is especially associated with kei cars, Japan’s compact class of small, tax-efficient vehicles. Its product range also includes kei trucks, vans, and other compact cars, making it strategically valuable to Toyota in Japan and emerging Asian markets.
Toyota had owned a controlling 51.2 percent stake in Daihatsu since 1998. In August 2016, Toyota purchased the remaining shares, converting Daihatsu into a wholly owned subsidiary. The move gave Toyota direct control while preserving Daihatsu’s specialist expertise in compact-car development and production.
The relationship continued through joint engineering and product programs. In 2017, the companies established an internal organization for emerging-market compact vehicles, and Daihatsu developed the Daihatsu New Global Architecture, or DNGA. The common mix-up is to confuse Daihatsu with Toyota’s other Japanese partners: Subaru remained an affiliated company, while Suzuki and Isuzu were separate automakers. Daihatsu is the only option that matches the 2016 full-ownership change.