GAC Philippines recently invited us on a quick media drive with the 2023 GAC Emkoo. We took the brand’s latest compact 5-seater SUV on a road trip from P to P (Pasay to Pampanga) within one day. It was a great opportunity for us to test out the vehicle to see if it was really Emcool enough for us as a long distance road trip car. 360 Cam: Parking made easy Before the road trip started, we had a quick activity with the Emkoo to test its 360-degree camera feature, wherein we had to park the vehicl

It's an all-woman-driven Dakar 2024 Astara campaign as the Spanish mobility company is set to field two entries in the treacherous desert race this coming January 5 to 19, 2024. Set to drive the Astara 02 Concept, Laia Sanz and Patricia Pita will have co-drivers Maurizio Gerini and Paolo Boggioni, respectively, to guide them through the 12 stages crossing the Saudi Arabian desert. Astara, for those who do not know yet, is the distributor of Peugeot and GAC in the Philippines. It also operates in

This year’s auto industry rigodon has new participants. Astara Philippines, the multinational mobility distributor that handles the local operations of Peugeot and GAC Motor, announced in an August 2023 press statement that it has appointed two well-renowned executives in key leadership positions. Timmy Naval-de Leon, who was formerly head of corporate communications of the Ayala Corporation’s automotive arm AC Motors for nine years, is now Astara Phiippines’ new marketing director. Naval-de Leo

What do you look for in a vehicle? Does it have to be aesthetically pleasing inside and outside? Maybe you are after your and your loved ones' safety? Or are you after a vehicle's stunning road performance, and you always have to drive a car that is always on top of its game? Your reasons for choosing a particular car over another come from your priorities. There are usually two schools of thought regarding finding the right car. Car enthusiasts don't settle for less; they typically look for a v

Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer, BYD and Toyota are collaborating on a new EV sedan called the Toyota bZ3. In what looks like the production version of the Toyota bz SDN concept unveiled in 2021, the upcoming EV will run on BYD's FinDreams Battery and electric motors. It will sit on Toyota's new e-TNGA pure electric platform. The rear-wheel drive bZ3 will be produced by FAW Toyota, the joint venture manufacturing plant of Toyota and FAW, based on information released by China's Ministry of

Mazda will be propelling a few unused SUVs starting 2022, and fair final week the Mazda CX-50 begun generation in North America. Presently, Japanese media have taken a shot and rendered the Mazda CX-80, an up and coming show that’s a small bit more important to us. One of the five new SUVs announced – alongside the CX-50, CX-60, CX-70, and CX-90 – the CX-80 will be sold in Japan and Europe, which gives it a good chance of appearing here, considering some of our Mazda models are imported from Jap