Friday, 10 May 2013 10:50
Vaseline wants you to Be The Man and win Toyota 86
For those of you who have been out of touch, Vaseline nowadays makes more than just petroleum jelly that people use to lubricate their *ahem* unmentionables. Believe it or not, they also have skin care products for men such as facial washes and moisturizers. Yes, men need to feel clean and beautiful too. But if you disagree, then maybe this will change your mind.
Vaseline just launched the “Be The Man, Win the Car” promo. Simply put, you can win a brand new car by buying (and hopefully using) any of Vaseline's skin care products for men. And they're not raffling off just any other car like a Mitsubishi Mirage or Ford Fiesta. No! No! No! These guys want you to “Be The Man” when you drive home your very own Toyota 86 - a car we at Kotse.com consider as the latest quintessential rear-wheel-drive two-door sports car. Of course, there can only be one “Man” and thus, they're only giving away one Toyota 86.
Published in
Contest and Promos
Thursday, 09 May 2013 10:21
Point and Shoot | 2012 Toyota 86 TRD AT
Words by Ferman Lao | Photos by Christopher Kho
In 2012, we got the opportunity to field test one of the latest quintessential sports car, the Toyota 86.
It bears one of the most attractive modern interpretations of the classic sports car silhouette - a svelte low hood and roof line, steeply-raked windscreen, two doors, two seats (we don't consider the rear vestigial seats to be real), and a sweeping short rear end. Its character lines show the level of attention to detail that the designers put into the 86. One such example are the indents on the hood that wrap around the Toyota emblem and flow all the way to the roof. Not only does it look good, but also have an aerodynamic function. This is an indication that the engineers have been given free reign too.
Published in
Sportscar
Tuesday, 23 April 2013 09:36
Toyota Motorsport GmbH builds race-ready GT86 CS-V3
Words by Ferman Lao | Photos courtesy of Toyota Motorsport GmbH (TMG)
In case you haven't noticed, it's an open secret that the Toyota 86 was made for far greater things than just being a fun little sports coupe. It's not just for someone suffering from a midlife crisis or some yuppie who think that he's got it made. No sir! The Toyota 86 is so much more than that. Its mission in life is to remind all of us that we drive not just to get from point A to point B. Instead, driving is a skill that needs to be nurtured and the drive should be as much fun as the destination itself.
With that in mind, Toyota Motorsport GmbH (TMG) created a “cost-effective” motorsport version of the 86. After an auspicious development period, wherein it finished 1st in its class at the Nürburgring 24 Hours, the car dubbed the TMG GT86 CS-V3 is now available on sale as an entry-level race car that offers low maintenance and running costs at a price that won't break the bank - €38,500 excluding tax to be exact or P2.071 million. This makes it the perfect choice for anyone who wants to get into motorsports.
Published in
Motorsports
Friday, 12 April 2013 10:45
Toyota, Nissan, and Mazda entangled in a massive Global Airbag Recall too
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.
Published in
News
Wednesday, 27 March 2013 08:54
Toyota unwraps the all-new 2013 Vios in Bangkok (w/ video)
Words by Christopher Kho | Photos courtesy of Toyota Motor Thailand Co. Ltd.
Remember that pudgy kid back in high school? The smart straight-A student who always had a smile on his face and was everybody's friend, including the entire faculty. He was never quite popular with the girls though, that is, until college came along. It's as if he went through a complete makeover overnight. Now a lot slimmer, dressed sharper, and well-groomed, he's the nice guy everyone wants to be friends with in the university - all of which the all-new 2013 Toyota Vios wants to be when it made its world debut at the Bangkok International Motor Show.
Published in
Newly Launched
Thursday, 14 March 2013 08:30
Toyota's i-Road concept is a practical EV trike for two
Words by Jade Lu | Photos courtesy of Toyota Motor Corporation
Toyota is no stranger to unorthodox personal mobility vehicles. Thankfully, unlike their previous four-wheeled experiments, their latest concept is more geared for realistic street use unlike the old egg- or wheelchair-like drones. The name could use a sprucing, though.
The Japanese automaker recently debuted the i-Road at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show. With three wheels, two seats, and zero emissions, the i-Road is a totally electric concept vehicle meant to reduce the energy consumptions attached to transportation.
Published in
Concept
Tuesday, 12 March 2013 10:17
Toyota's FT-86 Open Concept is perfect for wives and comb-overs (w/ video)
Words by Carl Trocio | Photos courtesy of Toyota Motor Corporation
Still basking in the success of creating “THE” drivers’ car to have - the Toyota 86 - Toyota came to the 2013 Geneva Motor Show to unveil their most-probably-to-be-produced concept of a topless version of their new starlet. And similar to a child star who “grew up” in all the right places, seeing a topless version of that would get mixed reactions. Set your eyes on the FT-86 Open Concept.
Aside from the obvious loss of a roof, an automatic tranny, and interior cosmetics, Toyota says it’s the same banana. Instead of a fixed metal roof, they put in an electronic-folding multi-layered fabric top with a glass rear screen all stowed behind the rear seats - all while maintaining the 2+2 seating format. Some genius might say that the headless horsey will be lighter than the coupe, but the top mechanism doo hickies and additional chassis strengthening doodads might make up for the loss of sheet metal weight.
Published in
Concept
Friday, 08 February 2013 09:48
Toyota confirms debut of open-top 86 at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show
Words by Christopher Kho
How do you make the world's most thrilling front-engined rear-wheel-drive lightweight sports car even better? By chopping its roof off, of course and turning it into a cabriolet. Toyota has confirmed that the “FT-86 Open concept” will make its public debut at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show in March. While no exact details have been published, they did give us this sketch to contemplate upon.
According to Toyota, the concept is a “possible future development” of the Toyota 86 sports coupe. That means they're not exactly quite sure if it should go into production and they'll gauge the public's reaction to the model to know if they'll push through with it or not.
Published in
Concept
Friday, 01 February 2013 09:17
Toyota officially reclaims title as world's largest automaker
Words by Christopher Kho
This is it! The official numbers are finally in, and Toyota is once again the world's largest automaker. Its 2012 global vehicle sales report show that the Japanese giant sold 9.748 million vehicles, which means it dethrones General Motors - who sold 9.29 million vehicles last year - from the no. 1 spot. Coming in at third is the Volkswagen group, which includes VW, Audi, and Porsche, with sales tallying at 9.09 million vehicles.
Published in
Industry Update
Friday, 01 February 2013 07:28
Car of the Year 2012 - 2013 Day 9: The Last Hurrah
Words by Jade Lu | Photos by Hans Gerald Chua
Last Saturday, January 26, 2013, was the final day of the qualitative testing for the 2012 - 2013 Car of the Year Philippines (COTY-P). It was a day for big brutes once again, as Hyundai sent the Santa Fe R-2.2 GLS 6AT 2WD and Premium 4WD, which were matched by Toyota’s Fortuner 4x2 G DSL AT and Hilux 4x2 G MT and Mazda’s CX-5 and BT-50. The Honda CR-V made its reprise with the 2.0 S and 2.4 SX variant, this time made in Thailand with local specs (Honda sent the Japan-made CR-V last time).
It was the fitting ending for this chapter. The cars weren’t too exciting to leave us done and fulfilled at the end of the day; they were mellowed down to leave us wanting more. Of course, “more” would come to us during the technical testing at the Clark International Speedway on February 25 to 27, when the cars will once again converge for the acceleration, braking, and handling tests. But until that comes, we were satisfied enough with the cars we’ve driven to keep us at ease until the end of February. Hopefully, the sky will stay clear of rain clouds and strong winds until then.
With that last hurrah, here are some final words from our writers about the cars of Day 9:
Published in
Car of the Year
