This month in motoring

MANILA, Philippines - Welcome once again to our monthly round-up where we give you the highlights of the past month in the world of Philippine motoring. This month, several model launches were held and a ground breaking motorsport event was successfully staged by The Philippine STAR’s very own veteran motoring journalist Ray Butch Gamboa. As always, we managed to cover all the bases and have thus complied the most essential of the news bits in these pages. Folks, this is your month in motoring…

Mazda2 sedan debuts

While the Mazda2 five-door hatch has been in Mazda showrooms since late December, the Mazda2 four-door sedan officially made its way to local showrooms just last week. The Mazda2 sedan is powered by a 1.5-liter, DOHC 16-valve inline four. It is rated at a respectable 103PS at 6,000RPM with a maximum torque of 13.5kg-m at 4,000RPM. The Mazda2 four-door sedan is available with 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic transmissions, unlike its five-door hatch sibling, which is only available as an automatic. The Mazda 2 four-door sedan with 5-speed M/T retails at P725,000 while the 4-speed A/T costs P785,000. The five-door hatch is priced slightly higher at P795,000. Available colors are Cool White, Black, Metropolitan Gray, and Highlight Silver for the four-door sedan and Spirited Green, Aurora Blue, True Red, Cool White, and Black for the five-door hatch.

Isuzu’s new mission

To coincide with the launch of its 2010 N-Series light duty trucks, Isuzu Philippines Corporation also launched its Isuzu Diesel Mission. The Isuzu Diesel Mission is a four-fold marketing campaign consisting of: Dura Mission, Farthest Mission, Eco Mission and Dyna Mission. Each of these components highlights Isuzu’s widely accepted leadership in diesel technology both in the Philippines and around the world. Dura Mission reminds the public of Isuzu vehicles’ durability, toughness and power. Farthest Mission sees Isuzu’s various diesel vehicles undergoing actual demonstrations of its toughness and practicality. Eco Mission drums up awareness on Isuzu’s safety, economy and environmental-friendliness. And Dyna Mission is a diesel-engine awareness campaign designed to showcase the advantages of the diesel engines over gasoline engines. All four components will have activities that will be the backbone of the Isuzu marketing campaign for 2010.

Team Ford/Mazda wins Sampaguita Rally

Ford Group Philippines (FGP) received the award of Over-All Champion at the recently concluded 2010 Sunshine TV Auto Rally Corporate Challenge Awarding Ceremonies held at the Valle Verde Country Club. The combined team of Ford and Mazda Philippines received the title along with several other awards for the race more popularly dubbed as the “Sampaguita Rally”, which was held last March 6 in Subic.

The Sampaguita Rally, an “on time, all the time” motorsport event that promotes road safety and adherence to traffic rules, was participated in by 13 automobile brands and manufacturers who fielded in a record 63 cars to participate in the event. It was a popular discipline back in the 1960s and its revival was the brainchild of The Philippine STAR’s very own veteran motoring columnist, Ray Butch Gamboa.

UMC launches new Nissan Murano

The Nissan Murano invaded Philippine shores just yesterday. With its vaunted iconic styling, it speaks eloquently of cutting edge design as well as dynamism. With everything from an intelligent key to 8-way power front seats to an 11-speaker Bose audio system, it spoils its occupants the way any luxury car can. With its 3.5 liter VQ35DE engine delivering quick response, smooth acceleration and 265 horsepower and 336 Nm of torque it promises a completely exhilarating behind the wheel experience. Mated with Nissan’s exclusive XTRONIC CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission) with Adaptive Shift Control (ASC), the Murano provides virtually gearless shifting, effortless acceleration and outstanding fuel economy. Do check out the nearest Nissan dealership for a glimpse at the vehicle that promises to elevate the Nissan brand value.

All new Volvo C30

Volvo’s most radical model just got a bit more radical for 2010. While Viking Cars, Inc., official distributors of Volvo vehicles in the country, has been quietly planning the official launch of the redesigned C30 hatch, the company actually also quietly filled up its showroom with the all-new units. Volvo’s designers have given the C30 all-new front styling for 2010 with a radically altered fascia, fenders, trapezoidal headlights and honeycomb grille wearing an enlarged Volvo iron mark. The C30 continues to be offered in two models, one of which is the C30 2.0L that is offered at P1,788,888. The 2.0L is featured with a fuel-saving dual-clutch Powershift technology that reduces costs of up to 8%. Also available is the 2.5-liter turbocharged 5-cylinder T5 engine that delivers 230 horsepower which is offered at P2,388,888.