Disclosure: GWM Philippines kindly lent me a 2023 Haval Jolion Supreme HEV for eight days. It arrived with loaded RFID cards and a Shell fuel card. AutoFun Philippines paid for a carwash. When I was a kid, I swore by one specific brand of orange juice (which I shall not name, but it’s a brand that’s beloved by many). I simply could not have a meal without this overly sugary beverage that greatly contributed to my, shall we say, “portly” physique in grade school. And it had so many artificial ing

From Audi to Weltmeister, it seems that every major carmaker is offering a battery-electric vehicle (EV) in the Philippines. Of course, these companies are taking advantage of the zero duties on imported EVs and parts, which has led to huge price drops for many EV models like the Nissan LEAF. There’s also Republic Act 11697 or the “Electric Vehicle Industry Development Act,” which not only offers non-financial incentives for EV owners, but also provides a roadmap for infrastructure like charging

I’m more of a tuning kind of guy, and I purchase aesthetic and functional mods to make my driving more satisfying. I want my cars to ride smoothly for everyday driving while handling sharply on sweeping bends and tight corners. I like to lower a vehicle to reduce car lean while cornering hard and to make them look good to my eyes. But I'm also not too fond of crashy suspensions and those that hop over bumps because they lack travel and have springs that are as stiff as a sore neck. In the same w

Lexus Philippines has officially launched its first battery electric vehicle (BEV) in the Philippines in the form of the 2023 Lexus RZ 450e. And you can purchase one for a hefty ₱4,828,000. Its arrival in the local market is a milestone for the Japanese automaker, and it is an important step toward the brand’s carbon neutrality goal of offering 100% BEVs globally by 2035. Lexus Philippines is no stranger to electrification as most of its local lineup of vehicles already comes with a hybrid varia

Many carmakers often use “mules” to test their own prototype components under complete secrecy. In some cases, they go to even greater lengths by utilizing the bodyshell of a car from another brand. For instance, Jaguar famously tested the turbocharged V6 engine of its XJ220 supercar by shoving it into the back of an old Ford Transit van – creating one of the fastest commercial vehicles in the world in the process. It seems that automakers are back to the same old tricks, as Carscoops reported o

If you think Lexus is a brand that caters only to middle-aged men, loaded car enthusiasts, and company CEOs, then you must not have heard of the UX yet. Lexus considers the UX subcompact crossover as its gateway model, meaning it is the most affordable crossover in the lot. It still showcases the brand’s design and technologies despite being in the lower tier of the lineup. But there’s nothing much lower-tier about the Lexus UX as it now sports a Hybrid Electric powertrain under the hood for 202