Post ko na dito para masaya..

What a blast. So many fond memories. But since this is an automotive forum, I thought I’d only share my observations of cars and car culture during my 1 week trip in the Philippines last week. Actually, it was partly our honeymoon (wedding was in Maui).

Not much to tell you about Maui, I mean it was awesome, but automotive and driver behavior wise, it wasn't too different. Except for some stunning views along the roads, and a crazy twisty stretch of route 30 towards the west side.

The Philippines (namely Manila) was a different story.
Firstly, the city driving is absolutely frickin insane. Because Manila is so densely packed (think New York city, but bigger and three times as crowded) it made for some interesting driving.

We were chauffeured around with my wife's aunt's personal driver, who is a seasoned pro. He's the driving world's equivalent to Bruce Lee and Luke Skywalker combined. We nicknamed him "Mace" behind his back cuz he's pleasant on the outside and deadly on the inside.

First off - traffic jams 24/7, I can't imagine having to drive through those each day, it would be suicide.
Secondly, the public learns how to deal with the constant traffic....by MAKING it move - at ALL costs.
3 lanes become 5. Driving on the opposing lanes. using shoulders. every inch of road used. making even Canada's most aggressive downtown traffic seems totally tame.
Road lanes and traffic lights were a mere serving suggestion and if you stopped at a red, and no traffic was coming on the perpendicular lanes, you get HONKED for NOT running the red light.
Horns are used like gas pedals, people honk just to let you know they are coming beside you, or behind you, anytime they CAN honk - they do.
And people cut each other off, forcing you into shoulders and you just have to deal with it.
And it's like this ALL the time - every car mere inches from each other - you can literally stick your arm out the window and touch the other cars. You begin to have a real appreciation for the way everyone in N. America obediently obeys signs, lights and lanes, and keeps our space.
But in Manila, they drive that way, cuz that's the only way the traffic will move, and they've adapted so well to the conditions that everything works like clockwork and I don't know what more to say except - traffic jams MOVE!!!
We were all on the edges of our seats the first day, by the end of the week, we learned how to filter it all out, you kinda have to or else you'll be a wreck.
Twice we were summoned to pull over by cops. Once, the driver successfully evaded the cop in traffic without breaking a sweat, and the other time, got off with a bribe (surprise surprise).

Boys and girls, I consider myself a keen, alert and assertive driver, but I can guarantee you that if I (or any of you exceptional drivers) were to try our hand at driving in Manila, most of us would be out of our league. It's a hostile environment for even the most confident outsider.

I also noticed that women drivers were very scarce and were mostly seen on public transit.
(BTW - some of those bus drivers drive even faster & more aggressive than most cars).

As for types of cars, here are my most obvious observations:
* Hardly any sleek sports cars (the only ones I saw were 1 Honda CRX, 1 older Tiburon, and 1 300ZX) Just 3 during our whole stay. Many modded cars though - almost entirely Honda Civics and Mitsubishi Lancers.
With that said, there was really no practical use for a sports car, you can't go fast anywhere, High speed and quick acceleration are practically useless. Sharp senses and fast timing is key.
Mind you, there were a lot of BMWs and even an M3, so I use the term "sports car" loosely, meaning cars with sleek sporty designs.
Almost every car on the road is a small sedan.
* Not a single Acura
* No large cars. The biggest cars I saw there were mid-size Accords and Gallants. (More practical compact sedans and small SUVs dominate the roads)
* There were many models we don't have here (Mitsubishi Pajero, Toyota Prado, Honda City, Nissan Exalta, and many more)
* More than half of all recent model SUVs and Minivans all have "Intercooler Turbo" stamped on them. At any given time, you can see at least 2 vehicles around you which had that stamp. Everything from Hyundais, to Mitsubishis and Toyotas. Everywhere you go, you see "Intercooler Turbo". I couldn't believe how common this was.
* pedestrians literally run and dodge cars, cars do not slow down for pedestrians
* even the dogs have gotten quite skilled at crossing streets and dodging cars.

My last and most important observation was, despite the insanity on those roads, I never saw a single incident. No accidents, no road rage - no matter how badly someone cut you off nobody waves a finger or a hand, or gives so much as a look. Cars do not have dents/scratches on them. People have learned to adapt perfectly to a much heightened state of road manner and alertness, that they have become really good at it.
Which was quite surprising, but makes perfect sense. In North America for example - it's so easy to cross a street with all the rules, and lights that you can cross the road in your sleep. Which often leads to fatal mistakes when people are not paying attention. Same with our drivers, driving gets TOO easy sometimes, that it becomes our downfall.

But I guess it's a tradeoff. I still wouldn't want to have to drive in those conditions (Manila) every single day.

I'll end this post by saying that the AWD turbo intercooled 4 cyl Mitsubishi Pajero was pretty bad-ass. It would probably give Forester XT a real run for the money.

Thanks for listening - long post. I hope it was at least a little interesting. Don't hesitate to ask any questions.