Minute dimensions, generous ground clearance, and no clutch pedal. These three ingredients form the recipe for sales success in the Philippines. And no car has done it quite as well thus far as the Toyota Raize subcompact crossover. But the little Toyota faces stiff competition from the Chinese carmaker that’s always full of surprises – the new Geely GX3 Pro is priced close to the Raize E CVT, while offering more generous equipment levels. Let’s pit these two in a Spec Showdown to see which come

The sun may have returned last week, but there are still those occasional downpours that make me always have an umbrella ready. Nonetheless, the last few days have remained hot as ever in the car scene, largely with the launch of all-new models in the most important automotive segments in the country. Check out your top five stories from August 7 to 11, 2023, in this Sunday’s edition of the AutoFun Philippines Rearview Roundup. Honey, I shrunk the Corolla Cross It’s been pretty much everywhere i

Many carmakers often use “mules” to test their own prototype components under complete secrecy. In some cases, they go to even greater lengths by utilizing the bodyshell of a car from another brand. For instance, Jaguar famously tested the turbocharged V6 engine of its XJ220 supercar by shoving it into the back of an old Ford Transit van – creating one of the fastest commercial vehicles in the world in the process. It seems that automakers are back to the same old tricks, as Carscoops reported o

After the Mazda CX-5 scored the lone “Good” rating out of 20 SUVs tested by the US Insurance Institute for Highway Safety with its more stringent side-impact test published last year, another model from the Hiroshima brand was likewise given the only “Good” rating in the upgraded side-impact test conducted on small cars. The IIHS announced that only the Mazda 3 sedan and hatchback received the “Good” rating among 11 car models tested by the safety institution. The Nissan Sentra, Toyota Corolla s

Mazda's booth at the Philippine International Auto Show (PIMS) had the MX-5 Miata as its centerpiece, but its CX-8 all-wheel-drive Exclusive six-seater crossover stablemate piqued some curiosities. This was because the family crossover has had minor changes to its exterior. The front grille (precisely the space behind the telltale wing-shaped Mazda logo) had redesigned slats resembling interlocked zippers. Additional chrome adorned the front bumper. A somewhat shiny silver (Mazda calls it Bright

Rare and riveting is the roadster constructed for those that revere Mazda's two-seater performance runner. This is what transpired at Mazda's presentation during the opening day of the 2022 Philippine International Motor Show (PIMS). Mazda released a limited edition variant of the MX-5 sports car, to commemorate the 25th year of the Miata/MX-5 worshippers known as Miata Club Philippines (MCP). Priced at Php 2.3 million (six-speed automatic transmission) and Php 2.25 million (six-speed manual tra