Words by Jose Carlo R. Sapera | Photos courtesy of Maruti-Suzuki
For those who went to the 2013 Manila International Auto Show (MIAS), some of you may have noticed two new small Maruti-made cars from Suzuki. Their little booth isn’t as noticeable as some since it was not situated in the the main hall like all the other major manufacturers were. It was also a rather lackluster display from one of their dealers, instead of being a full-blown fiasco funded by Suzuki Philippines Inc. (SPI). Still, our peering eyes quickly saw the all-new Alto 800 and Dzire.
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Newly Launched
15 April 2013
Nobuo Izumina to assume presidency of Isuzu PH on May 3
Words and photos by Christopher Kho
Ryoji Yamazaki took the top post at Isuzu Philippines Corporation (IPC) back in April 1, 2010 from his previous assignment as General Manger of Isuzu Motors Limited's International Department. But after three years as President, it's time for Yamazaki-san to move on and hand over the position to Nobuo Izumina, IPC's new President starting May 3, 2013.
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Industry Update
Words by Christopher Kho
Just yesterday, Honda Cars Philippines, Inc. (HCPI) issued a voluntary safety recall of some 9,743 units of 2001 - 2002 Civics and CR-Vs due to a faulty passenger side airbag. This was part of Honda's global campaign that involves more than 1.1 million vehicles world wide. Well, from the looks of it, they're not the only one with this problem because fellow Japanese giants Toyota, Nissan, and Mazda are also dealing with the same problem too.
You see, these four have been souring their airbag inflators from Takata - the world's second largest supplier of airbags and seatbelts. But due to a manufacturing defect, the airbags Takata supplied may not inflate correctly and cause injury. So technically, Toyota, Nissan, Mazda, or Honda are not at fault as some others would perceive.
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News
Words by Ferman Lao | Photos courtesy of Subaru of America, Inc.
By now, you should have seen photos of Subaru's new WRX Concept that was unveiled at the 2013 New York International Auto Show. If you still haven't, we've got a bunch of them for you to enjoy, so scroll down first and take a good look before coming back here. Now that we're all on the same page, I think we all will agree in no uncertain terms that it is indeed a stunner. Right?
But however the information presented, or rather, the lack thereof, it seems to indicate that Subaru is keeping a lid on things. Other than stating that the next-generation WRX will be heavily influenced by the design direction taken by the Concept, Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. of Japan is tight lipped. They did however say that it “will focus on sharp handling, AWD grip, and turbo power.” This leaves us guessing that it will quite possibly have it's own distinct model instead of being part of the Impreza lineup. So, will the WRX Concept ever hit production?
Published in
Concept
11 April 2013
HCPI issues Safety Recall for 2001 - 2002 Civic and CR-V
Well this is unfortunate. After Mitsubishi issued a recall for the all-new Mirage last Friday, this time, it's Honda's turn to send out a recall of their own. Honda Cars Philippines, Inc. (HCPI) just annouced a voluntary safety recall of 2001 to 2002 Civics (7th generation) and 2002 CR-Vs (2nd generation) because of a faulty front passenger airbag. This campaign affects 9,743 units locally and over 1.1 million vehicles worldwide.
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News
Words by Christopher Kho | Photos by Jose Carlo R. Sapera
After spending three years in the market, the Spark is sadly starting to lose its sparkle. Newer micro cars have emerged in the past few months that have outshined it. So, like what any other car manufacturer would do, they've given it a quick facelift to make it new again. We've first saw photos of the 2013 Spark as early as 2011, but at last, it's here. This, boys and girls, is the new 2013 Chevrolet Spark that made its debut at the recently-concluded AVID Innovation Congress.
The new facelift has changed the front and rear ends ever so slightly, but as they say, the devil is in the details.
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Newly Launched
While it might not be their best-selling model of the month, the all-new Focus was still able to help drive Ford Philippines' sales up by 61% in March 2013. That's because the blue oval brand was able to sell 101 units in March which is its strongest sales performance since the model was launched last year. Because of this, overall sales of the compact increased by 55% in the first quarter of 2013. Not bad Ford. Not bad at all.
On a bigger perspective, March's retail sales rose 61% year-over-year to 1,000 vehicles compared to 2012's mere 623. But do care to note that they were suffering from a supply shortage back then.
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Industry Update
Words by Jade Lu | Photo courtesy of Fung Yu of www.360journals.com
*UPDATE*
The Comelec has just published the list of 22 areas where campaign motorcased are prohibited. Motorcades on minor roads, on the other hand, while allowed, are required to submit prior notice to the MMDA so they can reroute traffic.
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has put a ban on candidates running in the May 2013 elections from campaigning on major thoroughfares through the use of motorcades. According to Comelec Chief Sixto Brillantes Jr, the resolution will most likely take effect within the week, with 18 major roads intended to be included in the ban including EDSA, C-5, SLEX, and Taft Avenue.
Although motorcades will still be allowed on all minor streets, banning them on these busier roads will help in preventing additional traffic during the campaign season.
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