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

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

“In this business, you gotta have a tough skin.” This is what Visor.Ph Editor-in-Chief Vernon Sarne told me at last week's BMW M2 launch event. Chief, as I fondly call him to this day (he got me to join Top Gear Philippines magazine as a cover photographer and writer back in 2010), has seen it all and has been through wars ordinary people would have waived the white flag early on. The mental and physical stress this job entails can be too much for someone who cares about his craft. So when we he

GAC Philippines has reached another significant milestone in the Philippines, surpassing 1,000 units in total retail sales for 2023 - a record achievement for the automaker since being under the global mobility company Astara. GAC Motor achieved year-to-date retail sales of 1,017 units as of August. The figures are likewise reflected on the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) database. The 1000+ sales is evidence of the brand’s growing popularity in the country. T

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

Disclaimer, GAC Philippines lent us the GAC Emkoo GE with a full gas tank for 15 days with access to its two RFID cards. The GAC Philippines debuted the 2023 GAC Emkoo at the 2023 Manila International Auto Show. It's part of the brand’s growing crossover portfolio in the Philippines as it seeks to take a bigger piece out of the local market with Astara Philippines backing it up. The new Emkoo brought futuristic styling to the motor show, turbocharged power, and many new features to attract the c