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November 5, 2015

Suzuki Philippines Welcomes 4 New Outlets in September

Suzuki Philippines Inc (SPH) had a full calendar of events in September, inaugurating no less than three dealerships and holding a groundbreaking ceremony of another outlet across four key cities in Luzon, to continue to bring the Suzuki Way of Life to more Filipinos nationwide.

Review: 2016 Mazda MX-5 2.0 Skyactiv A/T

Photos by Ulysses Ang

It’s amusing how carmakers become obsessed with whoever can build the fastest, most powerful, or best handling car out there. Often, they’ll start quoting things like horsepower, torque, and even Nürburgring lap times. That’s all well and good, but unfortunately, in their quest to build what factually is the best car disregards the most important aspect: the driver. In their plan to build a car with blistering acceleration and rib-hurting lateral g’s, it becomes cold and distant to drive. Yes, it’s fast, but it doesn’t feel enjoyable to the man behind the wheel.

Review: 2015 Toyota Hilux 4x2 G M/T

Photos by Ulysses Ang

Sometimes, you just don’t see the point of pickup trucks especially if they’re used for more than just hauling stuff. Consider this: our roads are overly crowded and then you just had to drive a five-plus meter long vehicle that offers about the same level of interior space as a compact and a versatility factor reduced by about 40 percent given the cargo bed isn’t useful in the urban jungle (unless you want your stuff getting wet or stolen). It makes you think: you should have gotten an SUV in the first place.

Nissan Philippines Adjusts Patrol Royale Price

Nissan’s flagship large SUV, the Patrol Royale is getting a price adjustment for the 2016 model year. Meticulously honed for over five decades, the Patrol (now known as the Patrol Royale) is the first four-wheel drive vehicle, according to Nissan, designed to take on the climatically demanding Middle East region. It packs a 5.6-liter V8 gasoline engine mated to a 5-speed automatic with a 4WD system with a rear locking differential.

Toyota and Lexus Top Auto Focus People's Choice Awards

The Philippine automotive market’s best-selling standard midsize SUV, the Toyota Fortuner and Lexus’ luxury compact SUV, the new NX200t, nailed the prestigious “Automobile of the Year” title in their respective categories at the Awards Night of the “2015-2016 Auto Focus People’s Choice Awards” (AFPCA) held last Friday, October 16, 2015 at the Grand Ballroom of the Valle Verde Country Club in Pasig City. Both are first-time winners of the top award.

Mazda customers from Central and Northern Luzon now have a new home as Mazda Pampanga opens the doors to its latest full-service showroom along Jose Abad Santos avenue in San Fernando, Pampanga.

Subaru, known for its rally-bred sporty handling showed off a very different side at the Eco Challenge Adventure Drive: fuel efficiency. Subaru brought out their entire AWD line-up (sans the Impreza) on a fuel economy challenge that spanned more than 100 kilometers through a mix of both city and highway driving conditions.

Volkswagen Passat Now Officially in the Philippines

After 42 years and 8 generations in production, and with more than 22 million vehicles in its series sold worldwide, the Passat is finally available in the Philippine market (this is after a preview done a month ago).

No other vehicle out there is synonymous with power and prestige as the Toyota Land Cruiser. As Toyota’s flagship SUV since 1951, the go-anywhere and do-anything quality of the Land Cruiser combined with its uncompromising mix of power and comfort has earned it diehard fans everywhere (it’s actually sold in all global Toyota markets barring three—Canada, North Korea, and South Korea). The latest iteration, the Model 200 has been around since 2007 but now sees a substantial upgrade that makes it worthy to be called an all-new model. In other words, power gets an upgrade.

Known for their stellar comfort, reliability, and durability, both the Isuzu D-Max and mu-X are adding a new adjective to their name: powerful. In response to public clamor for a bigger engine, Isuzu Philippines Corporation (IPC) has finally introduced new variants of its well-received D-Max and mu-X fitted with a 3.0-liter VGS Turbo engine.

The Road to Roland-Garros Begins at Peugeot Philippines Tennis Open

Peugeot Philippines announces the first ever Peugeot Philippines Tennis Open (PPTO), a nationwide tournament aimed to discover Filipino tennis champions who may, one day, represent the country in international competitions.

R.G. Manabat & Co. (RGM&Co.), the Philippine member firm of KPMG International, partnered with the Car Awards Group, Inc. (CAGI) as the official tabulator of the Car of the Year-Philippines (COTY-P) Awards and Truck of the Year Philippines (TOTY-P) Awards 2015. RGM&Co. will conduct an independent validation of the scores and aid in refining the process and methodology of the awards. The awarding ceremonies will be held on 13 November 2015 at the Fontana Hot Spring Leisure Parks & Casino in Clark Field, Pampanga.

Established in 2004, CAGI is an organization of motoring journalists from the country's leading print, broadcast and online publications. Since its incorporation, the group has strived to find the best vehicles in the country through comprehensive testing involving quantitative and qualitative analysis of the vehicle's performance, design, safety, value and other relevant factors.

October 20, 2015

UPDATED: Reborn: The All-New Honda Legend Arrives in Manila (w/ Specs)

UPDATE: Added photos from the launch event (10/21).

Car enthusiasts of a certain age will remember the Honda Legend from the 1990’s. Locally, it was Honda Cars Philippines (HCPI)’s first (and at the time, the only attempt) to crack the premium sedan segment. Although it didn’t really translate to strong numbers on the showroom floor, it did pave the way towards the realization that Honda wasn’t just about pocket rockets and screaming VTEC engines; they could build a car that can challenge the best that the world has to offer. Fast-forward to today and HCPI is once more challenging the norm by introducing the all-new 2015/16 Legend—the brand’s new crown jewel poised to deliver an unprecedented mix of driving pleasure, refinement, comfort, and environmental performance.

Photos by Ulysses Ang

Repeat after me: turbocharged wagon. That should be reason enough why you should consider getting the Subaru Levorg over any other executive car offering out there, but allow me to explain further. See, the executive tourer/shooting brake/wagon segment was pretty much cornered by Subaru with their Legacy GT wagon a few years back, but its demise meant you could only get that fix with a Mazda6 Sports Wagon or an Outback. Sure, these are pretty good machines in their own right, but they’re not turbocharged wagons. Now though, everything is back to normal and you finally get a sort-of-Legacy wagon.

Uber Manila Announces Partnership with Lifeline Rescue

Uber Manila has announced a partnership with Lifeline, the country’s only dedicated Emergency Quick Response service with US-certified life-saving medical equipment and staff. Starting today, Uber users can avail of free Lifeline Rescue (only in the event of actual medical emergencies) in the rare event you encounter a medical emergency while on an Uber ride.

Earlier this month, we took a closer look at Foton’s first-ever SUV, the Toplander, in, of all places, the USA. Though their venue to globally launch the Toplander or Sauvana as they call it elsewhere seemed odd, it merely cements the Chinese brand’s strong partnership with American diesel specialist, Cummins. In fact, Foton is single-handedly the biggest customer of the 2.8 ISF light-duty diesel engine, accounting to about half of Cummins’s annual output (200,000 out of 400,000 units). But what makes the Cummins 2.8 ISF so special? Well, that’s what we found out next.

After giving us a taste of its upcoming Levorg sports tourer, Motor Image Pilipinas (MIPI), the official distributor of Subaru vehicles in the Philippines is showing even more wagon love with the introduction of a new variant of its flagship Outback crossover.

Nissan Celebrates 2nd Anniversary in the Philippines

The glory days of the 80’s and 90’s saw Nissan become a household name in the local automotive scene, ingraining itself in the Filipino psyche through their iconic vehicles like the Nissan Sentra, California, and Stanza. However, over the years, Nissan slowly took the backseat in the minds of the market because of shifting consumer preferences.

SOLAR Transport and Automotive Resources Corp. (STAR Corp.), the exclusive distributor of BYD vehicles in the Philippines, has announced its BYD Tulong Tuesdays Campaign, which offers Emergency Roadside Assistance to motorists and car owners plying the streets of the City of Mandaluyong. The service is open to all types of cars and brands, and is STAR Corp.’s way of extending the same 5-Star service commitment it provides to BYD customers to the motoring public.

Ferrari unveiled a new limited edition model, the F12tdf which pays homage to the Tour de France. Though unveiled in a striking shade of yellow, the F12tdf isn’t referring to the annual cycling race, rather a grueling GT race that took place in the 1950’s and 1960’s where Ferrari, particularly the 250 GT Berlinetta won four consecutive times. The F12tdf features technical innovations to its aerodynamics, engine, and dynamics and only 799 will be built.

Kia begins early countdown to one of tennis’ most awaited tournaments with Kia Lucky Drive to Australia!

Established in 2010, the annual promo for Kia test-drive participants gives a once-in-a-lifetime prize of a trip to Australia to watch the Australian Open, live. Since then, Kia fans and tennis enthusiasts fervently anticipate the contest.

The Car Awards Group, Inc. (CAGI), successfully completed the first test day for the search of the 2015 Car of the Year - Philippines and Truck of the Year - Philippines. Held last Saturday, October 10, 2015, the Fontana Convention Center served as the staging area for the qualitative testing, as well as part of the technical testing. A total of 15 vehicles joined the first day of trials, and were driven by CAGI jurors around a pre-determined route, inside the Clark Freeport Zone.

UPDATED: Subaru Confirms Levorg for Philippines, Sales Start January 2016 (w/ Specs, Brochure)

UPDATE 4: It has just been launched for the Philippine market (12/16).

UPDATE 3: We added the official brochure below (10/25).

UPDATE 2: Read our first drive of the Subaru Levorg 1.6 GT-S here (10/20).

UPDATE 1: Motor Image Pilipinas has confirmed a price range of the Levorg (indicated below); we have also included more photos from the launch (10/17).

The end of the turbocharged Subaru wagon is greatly exaggerated as Motor Image has finally confirmed the arrival of the Levorg for the Southeast Asia region, including the Philippines with ~~reservations~~ sales to start by January 2016 at all Subaru dealerships nationwide.

While you wait for our First Drive impressions, here’s what we can tell you.

Volkswagen PH Extends Financing Promo to End of October

Volkswagen Philippines is extending the zero percent down payment, zero percent interest promotion on its popular Tiguan, Touran, and Polo Sedan models for the month of October. Touareg customers on the other hand will enjoy zero percent interest for 36 months. The promo, which began in September, has been extended due to insistent public demand.

The first of the full Skyactiv line of vehicles, the Mazda CX-5, first introduced in 2012, is still at the top of its game. It delivers a driver-centric experience without sacrificing practicality and efficiency. It’s a rare breed of car that’s both a personal and popular choice; something the husband and the wife won’t disagree over. Simply put, Mazda didn’t need to revamp it. It’s good as it is and still sells briskly. Except, the Mazda3 happened and since then, the company has had to sprinkle the same sort of updates particularly because the CX-5 commands a price premium over its non-crossover stable mate.

Showing Your School Spirit Can Win You Big

With the school year coming into full bloom, students of the country’s select universities get another way to show their love for their schools in the Hyundai i20 Cross Sport University Tour. Hosted by Hyundai Asia Resources, Inc., the exclusive distributor of Hyundai cars in the Philippines, the University Tour gives students a chance to cheer for their schools while showing their talents through the i20 Cross Sport “Show your School Spirit” Decal Design Contest.

Philippine Car Price Guide: September-October 2015

We sort of missed the September 2015 update for the Philippine Car Price Guide. Still, don’t panic since here’s the October 2015 edition. In this update, we’re highlighting the following:

Chevrolet Trax
Foton Gratour
Foton Toano
Foton Toplander
Haima S5
Hyundai i20 Cross Sport
Hyundai Tucson
Mitsubishi Mirage Special Edition
Nissan Juke
Nissan NP300 Navara (price increase)
Nissan NV350 Urvan (price increase)
Nissan Patrol Royale (price decrease)
Toyota Avanza
Toyota Land Cruiser 200

In the span of a week, two new sub-compact crossovers have entered the Philippine market, the 2016 Nissan Juke and the 2016 Chevrolet Trax. Now, how do these two sub-million peso offerings fare against the current segment leader, the Ford EcoSport? How does it do (theoretically) against the Mazda CX-3 and of course, the in-between sized Honda HR-V.

Wonder no more as we have our usual comparative chart after the break.

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