For quite a lot of us, Initial D was our first taste not only of Japanese automotive culture, but also of cars in general. The highly popular manga (Japanese comic) and anime spanned the 1990s and 2000s, following the life of tofu delivery driver turned street-racing sensation Takumi Fujiwara. Initial D is based loosely on the life of legendary racing driver and “Drift King” Keiichi Tsuchiya, who served as editorial supervisor. And now, the “GenZ” is about to get a taste of Initial D’s magic on

Toyota wants to make electrification fun as the Japanese automaker has announced that it plans to reveal a performance electric vehicle (EV) soon with a virtual manual transmission option. The brand has also revealed plans to create regular EVs with the stick shift transmission that would mimic the feel and action of an actual manual by 2026. The announcement comes from Toyota chairman Akio Toyoda who revealed before last week’s 100th anniversary 24 Hours of Le Mans that the Gazoo Racing sub-bra

It is the last Sunday of May! And this time, we start with an important message – stay safe and stay home, if possible. This is amid the fly-by of Super Typhoon “Betty,” which is pouring heavy rains in various parts of the country. While you’re staying nice and dry, here’s this weekend’s edition of the AutoFun Philippines Rearview Roundup, where we picked your five favorite stories from May 22 to 28, 2023. A new boss is coming SAIC, as many of you know, is the mother company of the Chinese car b

Shared DNA is what the Toyota GR86 and the Subaru BRZ have. Having been jointly developed by Subaru and Toyota, they are almost identical, sharing as much as 90 percent of the components that make up each one. But when it comes to marketing, Toyota seems to have an upper hand because of its close connection to the iconic 80s-era Toyota AE86, as popularized by the Initial D anime. On the other hand, Subaru might not have any anime-related references, but both cars utilize the Subaru-derived “boxe

If you’re one of the people who miss the little Toyota MR-S, a revival may be in the works. A report from Japanese publication BestCarWeb said Toyota is teaming up with Daihatsu and Suzuki to develop a mid-engined sports car that may be launched in 2025. All three brands will likely have their own versions. The MR-S successor will likely use the same Toyota New Global Architecture platform on the Toyota GR Yaris, with the front end reportedly using the GR Yaris’ suspension. Meanwhile, Daihatsu a

We don't usually write about watches here at AutoFun Philippines, but this new Casio timepiece got us excited. The Japanese watch maker recently released the Casio ECB-2000MFG-1A – the name of this red-and-black watch already offers a clue of its relationship to one of the most popular works of motorsports literature. It is the result of a collaboration between EDIFICE, which is Casio's motorsports line-up, and the two street-racing manga (Japanese graphic novels in English) of renowned Japanese