Photos courtesy of Toyota Press

In a series of slideshows before the unveil of all-new 2012 Toyota Avanza, Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation (TMP) was keen to show that the MPV segment is growing at a steady rate in the Philippine market. At the same time, the SUV segment is down while passenger cars in general have remained fairly steady. According to TMP, this is due to the propensity for Philippine buyers to prefer a car that can fit their extended family while remaining fuel efficient for everyday driving. In short, TMP sees huge potential in their Avanza, a vehicle that's been one of the brand's best-selling since its introduction in 2006.

From the outside, the all-new Avanza is clearly handsomer than the model it replaces. The front facia alone puts it in sync with the global Toyota design language while the swept headlights, curved wheel wells and doors make it look modern. The window line remains large and straight, giving optimal comfort for all passengers. The top-of-the-line model receives 15-inch alloys while the mid and base models make do with 14-inchs (either alloys or steel wheels depending on the trim level).

Despite the small stature, the all-new Avanza offers livable seating for 7 adults (the only 5-seater Avanza is the base J model). The second row actually folds and tumbles via a single-action lever and offers a sliding base to properly distribute the available knee and leg room. Besides this addition, the Avanza now receives a much more modern dash design and an easy-to-read instrumentation cluster. The 1.5 G model receives a two-tone beige-and-black motif while the 1.3-liter models make do with a monotone black-on-black design. Other changes that round out the Avanza include a tilt adjustable steering wheel (with audio controls on the G model) as well as an integrated audio unit complete with USB and aux interface (again, the J model receives a basic CD/MP3 unit).

Though dubbed all-new, the Avanza still shares the first-generation model's hard points so the MacPherson Strut/4-Link Coil Springs set-up still remains. However, changes were done to improve the ride and handling. An electric power steering (EPS) system is now standard across the line which promises better fuel economy and low-speed steering response. Under the hood, the same 3SZ-VE 1.5-liter and K3-VE 1.3-liter engines remain. With 102 horsepower and 90 horsepower respectively, it won't necessarily make the Avanza fast, but Toyota does promise at least 12 km/L for the 1.5 and 12.6 km/L for the 1.3-liter. In addition, TMP has unveiled a 1.3-liter AT variant as well, the first time this choice was made available.

Prices for the all-new Toyota Avanza are as follows: 1.3 J MT (5-seater) - P 620,000; 1.3 E MT - P 703,000; 1.3 E AT - P 743,000; 1.5 G MT - P 828,000; 1.5 G AT - P 868,000.

Photos courtesy of Land Rover Press

The premium compact crossover segment is now going to get even more crowded. A couple of days after winning the North American Truck of the Year award, the Range Rover Evoque lands in the Philippines with a subtle media launch last Wednesday at the Land Rover Activity Centre in Bonifacio Global City.

Dubbed as the most fuel-efficient Range Rover ever produced, the Evoque offers bold design and state-of-the-art technology while keeping in touch with Land Rover's multi-terrain capability. Priced at a not-so-affordable P 5.350-M for the 5-door version and P 5.50-million for the 3-door coupe, the Evoque counters that by offering premium levels of craftsmanship and high-degrees of personalization--something its rivals cannot match.

Personalization aside though, the Evoque comes with just one engine: a 2.0-liter 4-cylinder engine with direct-injection. Coupled with a turbocharger, this engine pushes out 240 horsepower. Together with its six-speed transmission as well as all-around independent suspension with MagneRide (tm) magnetorheological damper technology, the Evoque will certainly be as comfortable and capable both on- and off-road.

Photos courtesy of Honda Press

Honda Cars Philippines Incorporated (HCPI) has unveiled the 2012 City sub-compact sedan last Tuesday. As expected in previous reports, the 2012 City is a minor refresh of HCPI's best-selling Philippine product.

With over 24,000 units sold, Honda's direction for the 2012 City is: "why fix if it isn't broke?". And true to form, the City continues on with the same powertrain/suspension configuration as before (a choice of 1.3-liter and 1.5-liter i-VTEC engines and 5-speed manual or automatic 'boxes). Safety features (dual SRS airbags, anti-lock brakes with EBD) is now standard across the line. It continues to ride on 15-inch alloys albeit with new, snazzier designs.

The biggest change with the City is the schnoz which now features three thick horizontal chrome strips replacing the shiny gunmetal gray finish of the pre-facelift City. The new grille puts the Honda design lingo into the City (something shared with the CR-V and to some extent, the Accord). Along with the new grille, the City gets new front and rear bumpers (with sporty diffusers) as well as a new pattern for the tail lamp. A new color dubbed Sparkling Brown has been added for the 1.5-liter variant as well.

Inside, the City swaps the gunmetal accents for higher sheen metallic accents. This change is further differentiated with new interior fabrics, new instrument gauges as well as a leather steering wheel (with audio controls) for the top-of-the-line 1.5 E. The 1.5 E also gets a new 'Eco' light.

Prices for the 2012 Honda City are as follows: 1.3 S M/T - P 746,000; 1.3 S A/T - P 786,000; 1.5 E A/T - P 836,000. The 2012 Honda City is now available for viewing at all Honda showrooms nationwide. Deliveries start in February. 

Hyundai must be feeling a bit of pressure from the Scion FR-S/Toyota 86/Subaru BR-Z that it's chosen the 2012 North American International Auto Show to debut a mid-cycle refresh of its best-selling Genesis Coupe as well as its entry-level Veloster coupe.

The Hyundai Genesis Coupe, with its 300++ horsepower V6 engine and rear-wheel drive found its way to the heart of every car enthusiast. For the 2013 model year however, the love has grown. The same 3.8-liter V6 engine on the range-topping Genesis Coupe now makes 348 horsepower thanks to direct-injection technology. Meanwhile, the entry-level forced-induction 4-cylinder model sees a power bump to 274 horsepower from 201 thanks to a modified and improved turbo and intercooler set-up. Hyundai is retaining the 6-speed manual transmissions as standard on these two models while offering a new 8-speed automatic as an option.

This mid-cycle refresh also features a new front end, an improved interior with better materials and finishes, a revised and quicker steering rack, new front strut settings and a revised damper setting as well.

Meanwhile, the best-selling Veloster coupe gets an engine the looks deserved. While the 1.6-liter 4-cylinder engine was okay, the sporty looks of the Veloster dictated that it needed more power under the hood. The result? Hyundai has shoehorned a twin-scroll turbocharger upping the output to 201 horsepower. According to Hyundai engineers, the overall power combined with the Veloster's light curb weight bests the likes of the Volkswagen GTI and Honda Civic Si in power-to-weight ratio. In fact, it's pretty darn close to that of the Mini Cooper S. Capping of the upgrades is a quicker steering rack.

The Veloster Turbo also gets unique exterior upgrades such as a revised grille, front and rear bumpers, tail lamps and center-exiting exhaust.

More photos after the break.

At a press conference held at the launch of 2012 Honda City, Honda Cars Philippines, Inc. (HCPI) has announced that they are ready to put 2011 behind them. After suffering from supply problems that affected both cars and spare parts, HCPI President Tatsuya Natsume said that car supply and spare parts are beginning to regularize. He expects regular supply within "the next few months".

As a side note though, Mr. Natsume has announced that due to Honda's Thailand plant still being renovated in wake of the recent Thai floods, HCPI will import selected models from Japan in order to reduce their backlog of orders. Among the models Mr. Natsume has mentioned are: Jazz, Accord and the all-new Civic.

Though Mr. Natsume declined to comment, HCPI will also be bringing some "unexpected surprises" within the next few months. He added that a formal announcement will be made next month.

Speculations dictate that aside from the all-new Civic, HCPI may very well bring in the all-new CR-V which is already being sold in Japan as well as North America. And with Mr. Natsume coming from Honda Siel Cars India, Ltd. (HSCI), the likelihood of the Brio city car coming to the Philippines also seems likely.

Photo courtesy of Ford Press

Ford has debuted the all-new Fusion at the 2012 North American International Auto Show. Though this car is intended for the Americas only, buried in the press kit is an interesting tidbit: "This car will appear in Ford showrooms in North America and South America later this year. Mondeo will be introduced next year in Asia and Europe."

Thanks to Ford's global product strategy, the car you see on these pages will very well be basis for the all-new Mondeo which in turn, will finally come to Asia and most likely, the Philippines. Though 2013 is still a full year away, let's look at the basis for Ford's return to the executive sedan market in the Philippines (cross your fingers).

You can't start a year brighter than this: winning the North American Car and Truck of the Year. And for 2011, the honor has been bestowed on the Hyundai Elantra and the Range Rover Evoque (coincidentally, will be launched in Manila this Wednesday).

The Hyundai Elantra bested over 30 rivals including the Ford Focus. On the other hand, the Range Rover Evoque had to beat out the likes of the BMW X3 and even the all-new Honda CR-V.

For Hyundai, this is their second North American Car of the Year award. In 2009, the Genesis (the sedan and not the Coupe) trumped the competition. Last year, the Sonata was one of the three finalists. As for Range Rover (and its parent company, Land Rover), this is their first North American Truck of the Year Award.

It's officially 2012. Though car launches are still a bit slow during these past few months, we've already managed to update our Philippine Car Price Guide to reflect some new models that have entered the country below the radar. This includes two new Chinese brand entries: Geely and Haima as well as the 2012 Kia Rio.

See details after the break.

Photo courtesy of Hyundai Press

Hyundai Automotive Resources Inc. (HARI), the official distributor of Hyundai vehicles in the Philippines is sharing news about their recently concluded CSR efforts with the HARI Foundation Christmas Party.

Press Release
A Day of Caring and Sharing with Hyundai

Photo courtesy of Ford Press

Developing countries seem to be the way to go for Ford. It's predicting tremendous growth in these regions and as proof, has developed a design plan to introduce "eight all-new global Ford products in five years". The fruits of this 8-in-5 plan can already be seen with the likes of the Fiesta, Focus and Ranger. And now, we have the all-new EcoSport.

If the name seems vaguely familiar, the EcoSport actually made it to the Philippines before as a "concept" at the Ford Centennial event. Unfortunately, Ford Group Philippines decided not to sell it and alas, it was only enjoyed by our South American brethren.

This time though, it's different. Ford is promising that the all-new EcoSport will be part of its global product initiative and as such, will be made available in the Philippines soon.

The Manila Bulletin has revealed the areas and dates to be closed to vehicular traffic for the filming of Bourne Legacy.

These areas include portions of San Andres St. from January 11 to 15; J. Bocobo corner Remedios streets, January 18 and 19; Leveriza Street, from Balingkit to San Andres, January 15; San Andres corner Quirino and Taft Avenue, January 14); Riverside Road, Real and Sta. Lucia Streets in Intramuros, January 25 and February 17 and 18; Jones Bridge, February 5; and Ramon Magsaysay Boulevard, February 8 to 15.

Best to avoid these areas on the said dates.

Source: The Manila Bulletin

Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Francis Tolentino revealed that the fourth film in the Bourne Franchise, "Bourne Legacy" will be shot in several locations in Metro Manila.

In an interview conducted with ABS-CBNNews.com, Tolentino said that producers of Bourne Legacy intends to shoot its key car chase sequence at the Pasay Taft Rotunda. Other locations for filming include: Marikina City Market, San Andres Market, Navotas Fishport, Ramon Magsaysay Boulevard, Nagtahan, Intramuros and Jones Bridge. Some scenes will also be filmed on EDSA as well as Ayala Avenue.

Though Tolentino cannot confirm the filming schedule of the latest Bourne film, he did say that the film makers will be here for a month to shoot the scenes. Some sources indicate that filming may start as early as Saturday, January 14.

Bourne Legacy is based off a 2004 novel by Eric Van Lustbader. Written and directed by Tony Gilroy, the events in the novel takes place right after the events chronicled in The Bourne Ultimatum. However, because Matt Damon dropped out of the project, The Bourne Legacy was re-written as a spin-off or "sidequel". The film stars Jeremy Renner as CIA operative Aaron Cross. Alongside Renner, Edward Norton and Rachel Weisz will star. The film is set for release in August 2012.

Source: ABS-CBN News

Photo courtesy of Hyundai Press

Typically, it's hard to coax car makers to reveal their 2012 plans so early in the year. It comes as a big surprise that Kotse.com was able to reveal that HARI (Hyundai Automotive Resources, Inc.) will be unveiling the all-new Santa Fe and possibly two other vehicles this year.

Though details about the all-new Santa Fe are still not readily available at this time, different spy shots reveal that it will gain a similar facia found on the Sonata and Equus sedans. Speculations also point to revised engine choices including the possibility of a turbocharged mill as the range-topping variant.

In the same report, Kotse.com did mention that the new micro car, Eon and Veloster are set to be launched but according to HARI executives, these two vehicles are still "being considered" at this point. But as Kotse.com points out, with the reduction of tariffs between Korea and the ASEAN countries, there's a big, and we mean, big possibility of seeing a more robust (and affordable) line-up from Hyundai.

Source: Kotse.com

Photo courtesy of Kia Press

Our friends at Kotse.com has reported that the all-new 2012 Kia Rio has finally landed (albeit silently) onto Philippine shores this past weekend.

In what could be described as the lack of fun fare, Kia's new sub-compact offering (starting price at P 678,000) can now be viewed at all Kia dealerships nationwide. Currently, there's only one body type available: a 4-door sedan. Kotse.com reports that the 5-door hatchback will arrive by mid-January (in two weeks time)--perhaps in line with a bigger launch.

In any case, the all-new Kia Rio has a 1.4-liter 4-cylinder engine (shared with the Hyundai Accent) and can be mated to either a 6-speed manual or 4-speed automatic (you have to add P 90,000 for the slush box). In terms of features, the all-new Rio's been stripped for battle only getting the basic goods of a 1-DIN in-dash CD player with USB input shared with all things, the micro Picanto!

That said, a driver's airbag, anti-lock brakes and rear back-up sensors do come as standard meaning the Rio has something going for it against its nearest competitor (the aforementioned Hyundai Accent).

Source: Kotse.com

Photos courtesy of Toyota Press

Photos courtesy of Sakchai Lalit/Associated Press

The effect of Thailand's worst flood in 50 years is now only beginning to rear its ugly head.

The claimed damage has been in the billions of US dollars, but it's only after AP Photographer Sakchai Lalit snapped these photos at the Honda assembly plant in the Ayutthaya province that the extent of the damage can be seen.

Rows upon rows of completed and ready-to-be-shipped Brio, City, Civic and Jazz cars (from what we can tell based on these photos) are now being sent to the scrap heap. As a result, Honda is expected to destroy around 1,055 vehicles all in all.

Photo courtesy of Hyundai Press

Any eagle-eyed motorist will begin to notice signs being placed at all Philippine Honda dealerships starting today. In it, they're announcing that they're taking in pre-orders for the all-new Honda Civic as well as the re-freshed City.

This is a bit of good news considering Honda Cars Philippines has suffered tremendously in 2011, especially in the latter half thanks to supply problems because of the wide-spread floods in Thailand.

Click after the break to find out more details about these two new cars from HCP.

Photo courtesy of TOTAL Press

Our friends at TOTAL has sent us the follow press release to tout their success in the motorsports scene for 2011.

Press Release
TOTAL Reigns in 2011 Motorsports

Photo courtesy of Ford Press

A new year means new cars...and apparently, Ford is the first one to come bursting out with its all-new B-segment crossover which will debut at the 2012 Auto Expo in New Delhi, India.

The all-new crossover which is teased by this headlight/grille shot is based off the popular Fiesta sub-compact. Details are still scares at the moment, but from what we know it will have an Ecoboost (perhaps with a 1.4-liter displacement) under the hood.

With Ford Philippines bringing a delegation to cover this new small crossover's debut at the Auto Expo, it's a safe bet that we'll see this new crossover plying the streets of Manila some time soon.

It's the start of the New Year! 2012 will have tons of exciting stuff for carguide.ph. Thanks for all the support and continue reading!

To all our readers, a Merry and Blessed Christmas to you all! Take extra precaution driving where ever you're going and remember, don't drink and drive!

Photos by Ulysses Ang and Hyundai Press

At carguide.ph, we don't mince words and though we've existed for less than two months, we just had to come out with our very own Top 5 picks for 2011. Take note...these five cars were launched in 2011. At the same time, these are the cars we've managed to spend some seat time in--so Ferraris and Lamborghinis don't count.

Anyway, continue after the break to find out our Top 5 picks in preferential order.