You'd think that by now carmakers the world over would have developed a deep distrust of 'chick cars' - cars developed specifically to appeal to the female market. We've never heard of one that succeeded, mostly because women are as diverse in what they look for in a car as men are.
In fact, the only time that a major car company put together an all-female task team to design a concept car, what they came up with was the Volvo YCC, which went into production as the C30 - and a more macho little three-door would be difficult to imagine!
But that doesn't stop them from trying.
Here's the latest attempt, Suzuki's Lapin Chocolat (yes, Cyril, that's 'chocolat rabbit' in French), launched this week in Japan as the latest fashion accessory for design-conscious young women, a 660cc citycar that comes in a range of metallic nail-polish colours such as Champagne Pink and Mysterious Violet, with the option of a white roof a la Mini and Citroen DS3.
High-intensity discharge headlights and LED tail lights are grouped in cute round, silver-trimmed clusters, there's a special badge on the tailgate representing a chocolate mould of a rabbit and it runs on 14" alloy rims complete with 1960s-style chromed half-hubcaps.
The interior is trimmed in chocolate brown and cream, with quilted brown upholstery inserts, red piping and red trim inserts in the dash board, while the 160mm multi-information display shows an animated rabbit that stops running when the idle-stop function cuts in.
NOT ALL CUTIE-PIE
It's not all cutie-pie stuff, however; somebody has put real thought into this tiny car. It's the only one in its class with special glass in the windscreen and front windows that blocks 99 percent of both ultraviolet and infra-red light, while special hinges allow the front doors to open to 66 degrees and the back doors to a baby seat-friendly 80 degrees.
It'll hook up to most smartphones via an auxiliary port and cable, displaying your phone's nav system and favourite apps on the multi-information screen.
Standard kit includes remote central locking, auto aircon, power-operated retractable mirrors and rear-window wash/wipe, while options include driver's seat heating and a rear-view camera.
The naturally aspirated 660cc three-cylinder Suzuki engine is rated at 40kW and 63Nm and drives either the front wheels or all four (no, we're not kidding) via a constantly variable belt-drive transmission.
Suzuki quotes average fuel consumption of 4.5 litres per 100km and pricing in Japan starts from ¥1 291 500 (R133 000).