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

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

GAC Motor Philippines is expanding its presence by opening a new dealership in Cainta Rizal. The opening of the new facility took the esteemed presence of top executives from the GAC Management Group (China), its local distributor Astara Philippines, and the Gateway Group. Astara Philippines Managing Director Raoul Picello, who was at the event, thanked the Gateway Group for their support, investment, and belief in the GAC brand. “It's through a partnership like ours that we can achieve great th

Resurgence is the word that perhaps best characterizes how GAC Motor Philippines is doing nowadays. Ever since multinational automotive distributor Astara took over local operations on December 2022, the Chinese car brand’s image and vehicle lineup have gotten a huge boost amid the surge of new cars from the People’s Republic. GAC Motor Philippines’ improved fortunes are also being helped by the recent appointment of highly respected industry veterans Franz Decloedt and Timmy De Leon, who serve

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

Hybrid vehicles are becoming popular in the Philippine market, with more and more automakers bringing their examples to the car-buying public. We have recent entries into the segment from the Chinese such as the Haval Jolion (Specs | News) and Haval H6, and even more from the Japanese, such as the Toyota Corolla, Corolla Cross, RAV4, Zenix, Yaris Cross, and Nissan Kicks, each trying to get a piece of the lucrative pie, especially with the ever-increasing fuel prices. While many are curious about