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Build It the Way Middle-Aged Men Think, and You'll Usually Miss
Yoshihiko Kanamori led the development of both the Vitz and the Passo, which were improved at almost the same time. Both have many women users, but what they look for is quite different, and he says the Passo is the so-called cute type. The Passo's soft, gentle feel is popular with people in their 40s and 50s too, and pretty pink body colors get chosen. Because women choose a car with the same feeling as choosing clothes, Kanamori laughs that if you build it the way middle-aged men think, you'll usually miss. The Passo, which competes with kei cars, had a hard time when fuel economy was brought up, but with this improvement it could answer that it was no worse. The women-oriented grade "+Hana" was made a soft, soothing type that used many pearl-finish parts, in contrast to the Vitz's chrome.
