Korean Cars Fast Becoming a Force in Philippine Market

Korean vehicle manufacturers are fast making a dent in the market currently dominated by Japanese brands.

Kia and the relatively newer entrant Hyundai have in fact been aggressively expanding, and their sales are growing despite the slump being experienced by the market.

Both brands still maintain separate businesses in the Philippines despite the fact that they have common ownership under the Hyundai Automotive Group. The Group in 2008 was the largest automaker in Asia and one of the top five in the world.

Locally, the two hype up on their price competitiveness, quality and innovative features to make the discerning customer bite.

Kia traces its beginnings in the Philippines to Columbian Autocar Corp. (CAC) which was named sole distributor of Kia vehicles and manufacturer of Kia light commercial vehicles in the Philippines. Its foray into then People’s Car program was through the Kia Pride subcompact car which drew rave reviews when it was launched locally. Read more

Mitsubishi tops Philippines survey

Mitsubishi jumped positions from last year to rank highest in overall new vehicle sales satisfaction in the Philippines, according to a JD Power sales satisfaction survey.

Mitsubishi scored 841/1,000, doing particularly well in the delivery process. Honda and Mazda followed, with both brands improving on 2008 scores. Chevrolet, Kia and Toyota were above the industry average of 833, a 10-point decline from 2008.

Delivery timing from order placement to keys in hand was the biggest gripe though the average was down about a day to four days. Read more

Honda City Posts 71.5% Sales Growth for First Half of 2009

Honda Cars Philippines Inc. announced 71.5% sales growth for its Honda City during the first half of year 2009. According to the report released by the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines (CAMPI), total City sales from January to June reached 4,393 units, a significant increase from last year’s sales of 2,561 units. Out of the total 8,683 units Honda sold for the year, 51% are City models.

With City sales averaging to 3,400 units per year, the 4,000 unit sales mark just for the first half of this year indicated a new milestone for the City.

Essential in attaining such feat was the entry of the 3rd generation City in January. With cutting-edge styling and technologies, the City has indeed reshaped the industry standards for its class. It simply changes the rules on how subcompacts should be like. Read more

Club Feature: Miata Club Philippines

The Miata Club Philippines was established in August 1997, not long after the Mazda MX-5 better known as the Miata was introduced to the Philippine market in 1996. The objective of the club is to give its members the opportunity to enjoy their cars together with other Miata enthusiasts.

The Miata was launched in 1989 and was already hugely successful by the time it was made available locally. In the US, Miata enthusiast have been racing their Miatas in a one make series sanctioned by the Sports Car Club of America called Spec Miata.

The lead foots of MCP staged the first Miata Cup race in 2000. That makes 2009 Dunlop Miata Cup Championship (sponsored by Bosch and Dolan) the 10th edition of the clubs racing tradition. The Miata Cup has been blessed to have as its most distinguished competitor, the legend, Pocholo Ramirez. The first race for the 2009 will be called the Pocholo Ramirez Memorial Race in honor of our beloved friend and mentor. Read more

Goodyear Philippines Assures Continuous Business Despite Impending Closure of Manufacturing Operations

In response to unfavorable market conditions and to ensure long-term business viability, Goodyear Philippines, Inc. will close its manufacturing facility in Barangay Almanza, Las Piñas City, effective September 30, 2009. Products manufactured from the plant will be sourced from other manufacturing facilities in the region to ensure continuous supply in the market.

The cessation of manufacturing operations will not affect Goodyear’s business and supply arrangements with its customers as it remains highly committed to upholding the level of customer service and product quality that characterizes the Goodyear brand. Read more

Subaru Philippines Grows 96% in 1st Half of 2009

Sales of Motor Image Pilipinas (MIP) for the first half of the year reached 399 units, marking a 96 percent growth in performance. The exclusive distributor of Subaru in the country also reported the biggest sales jump among all major automotive brands based on the latest figures from the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines (CAMPI). Subaru is coming off from a 100 percent increase in sales in 2008 and continues to sustain its strong performance in 2009.

Motor Image’s sales from January to June of this year marked the strongest sales performance in the Philippine automotive industry which registered a modest growth of 4.4% based on the latest CAMPI figures. Subaru’s 96 percent growth in performance is the biggest so far in the automotive industry followed only by Mitsubishi which posted the biggest growth among CAMPI members at 27 percent. Subaru’s total sales of 399 units for 2009 almost doubled its sales during the same period in 2008. The strong sales performance of its compact SUV, the Forester keyed MIP’s growth despite the economic slowdown that has affected the automotive industry. Read more

Mitsubishi Dealers Accredit Local Company for L-300 Bodies

Authorized dealers of Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. (MMPC) have accredited Centro Manufacturing Corp. as one of their body builders for the fast-selling Mitsubishi L300 FB passenger van.

With this accreditation, MMPC dealers both inside and outside Metro Manila can now source their L300 FB bodies from Centro.
“We are happy that we have passed the MMPC dealers’ very tough quality, cost, delivery and safety (QCDS) requirements,” Centro president Raphael T. Juan said.

“We are confident that with the systems we have in place, we will be able to deliver quality L300 FB products at a price and time that these are needed.” Read more

Honda Cars Opens 26th Dealership in Nueva Ecija

The province of Nueva Ecija plays host to Honda Cars Philippines, Inc.’s 26th full-service dealership in the country, Honda Cars Nueva Ecija (HCNE).

This is in line with Honda’s commitment and dedication in bringing in bringing world-class products and services closer to its customers for ultimate customer satisfaction. Already the third dealership in the region, the opening of HCNE strengthens Honda’s presence in Central Luzon.

As in any Honda dealership, HCNE houses state-of-the-art facilities and prides itself with competent service technicians, well-trained sales associates and accommodating customer relations officers. HCNE is now ready to sell the latest vehicle models, parts and accessories, and to provide general repairs, preventive maintenance and body and paint services. Read more

Unioil Petroleum Cuts Gasoline Prices by Up to P4.75/liter

Independent oil player Unioil Petroleum Philippines Inc. Monday slashed the prices of its gasoline by a hefty P4.75 a liter, diesel by P3.50 a liter, and kerosene by P1.50 a liter—the biggest rollback yet this year.

Unioil general manager Chito Medina-Cue Jr. said the drastic drop was due to the continuous downward trend in world crude prices and the company’s commitment to sell high quality petroleum products at fair prices.

With the rollback, Unioil’s unleaded gasoline will retail at P35 a liter; its Quantum Premium gasoline at P35.44; regular unleaded, P34.66; Pure Diesel Plus (B1), P27.54; and kerosene, P38.44 a liter.

Medina-Cue said the company decided to bring back its “big-time rollback” strategy, which it started last year, to help the public weather the high prices of everything. Read more

C! Awards Honors the Philippine Auto Industry

Now on its fifth year, the C! Awards honors the country’s finest automobiles and the industry behind them on July 15th at One Esplanade, Pasay City. A total of 26 awards will be presented to the optimum in each vehicle class, from compacts and sedans to SUVs and supercars.

The awards cap another year of extensive instrumented testing and reviewing of all things automotive. Nominees are selected among cars sold in the Philippines from March 2008 to March 2009.

Last year, 19 manufacturers garnered awards, and this year promises to be even more exciting with 23 companies in the running. Mercedes-Benz was 2008’s big winner, taking home three awards including the C! Drive award for the CLK3 AMG Black Series. Mitsubishi, Audi, BMW, Hyundai, Kia and Toyota won two awards each, with the Toyota Vios 1.5 named as last year’s Consumer Choice. Read more

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