Eagerly awaited by both the motoring public and the automobile industry, Sunshine Television (STV) will again launch its annual awards program to seek out the Philippines’ most popular automobiles. The 3-month public poll for the Auto Focus People’s Choice Awards (AFPCA) gets underway on July 1, 2014 with a banner field of candidate models vying for much-coveted honors.

The AFPCA will be marking its milestone 10th year with this year’s undertaking. It is the country’s only award system for the automotive industry that determines the winning models based on a unique selection process that combines on-line public votes and unit sales. The on-line poll will be again be hosted on a dedicated AFPCA page on FACE Book, a popular social networking site as well as on the Auto Focus website, Auto Focus ONLINE (www.autofocus.com.ph). After a simple procedure of “Liking” the page and registration, the voter will be prompted and guided through a convenient process of selecting individual models in the designated categories, and from these, choosing a particular model as the “Automobile of the Year” pick. Within seconds, any submitted vote will appear on the Results Page which will rank Total Scores accordingly. This tally can also be publicly viewed on the AFPCA page at Auto Focus ONLINE. Like last year, a 40% weight factor on on-line votes will be applied in calculating a particular model’s total score.

For Unit Sales, a value of 60% will be factored in. STV will again work hand-in-hand with the Stradcom Corporation with official sanction from the Land Transportation Office (LTO). To be created and referenced is a data base of new motor vehicles reported as sold by dealers to LTO Regional & District Offices via the Manufacturers, Assemblers, Importers, Dealers Reporting System module of the LTO IT System. No second-hand or grey market vehicle will be included in the count which will factor in monthly unit sales from January thru end September of 2014.

However, some key amendments to the Awards classification and the on-line poll will be implemented this year.

“Since unit sales are now integral to the selection process, we wanted the AFPCA to become a more equitable merit program by leveling out the wide disparity between low volume top end cars and high volume lower priced models.” explained Ray Butch Gamboa, STV’s President/CEO. “If the Awards were kept at status quo, the high-priced automobiles would stand little chance of gaining the prized “Automobile of the Year” award simply because their off-take is understandably at a much smaller scale. A company that’s happy to sell 5-10 high end units a month will be overwhelmed by models selling at over 1,000 units in the same period. We strongly felt that the Standard and Luxury distinctions already in place in the Model of the Year categories had to be extended all the way to the top. And as such, the AFPCA will have separate “Automobile of the Year” awards for the Standard and Luxury classifications. That’s probably fair as fair can get for all the industry’s players!” added the veteran producer/host of long time TV shows, Motoring Today, Business & Leisure and Auto Focus.

“The second amendment to the AFPCA selection process involves the frequency of votes.” cited Gerry Aquino, AFPCA Awards Committee Chairman. “From one vote a week, participants in the on-line poll will now be able to vote once every day throughout the 3-month period. Although the monitoring and oversight roles associated with this will be tougher for the Awards Committee and STV’s systems provider, we’re happy to welcome the heightened interest and public participation that this can generate. Also, we foresee tighter contests and constant nip and tuck battles within the various Model of the Year categories. There’s no model that will a cinch for a Automobile of the Year win.”

 On tap are “2014-2015 AFPCA Model of the Year” awards in such mainstream categories as: Sub-compact, mid-size & large sedans; sports/performance cars; multi-purpose vehicles (MPV’s); pick-ups; vans; compact, midsize and large sports untily vehicles (SUV’s) and an Open category for models that cannot be classified in the preceding classes. There will be separate “Luxury” classifications in model categories with significantly distinct pricing scales. From these categories, which currently comprise over 140 base models, will emerge the popular pick for the key “2014-2015 AFPCA Automobile of the Year” prize in separate Standard and Luxury classifications.

A tandem component of STV’s annual industry merit program, the “2014-2015 Auto Focus Media’s Choice Awards” or the AFMCA will also get underway. Involving the motoring media, the AFMCA has also increasingly gained stature within the auto industry since it was first held in 2008. Awards are voted on by the media for performance and features based categories such as: engine performance; safety features; value-for-money; and design. These have provided the public with additional reference in opting for particular models to buy. STV’s Gamboa said: “The media picks emanate from more learned and knowledgeable scrutiny by people who actually evaluate and test-drive various models available in the market. Their views and opinions are of real value to both motoring public and the industry.”
Come October 17, the movers and shakers of the Philippine automotive industry will gather for the culminating Awards Night during which the final winners of the 10th AFPCA and the 7th AFMCA editions will be officially known and proclaimed.