Motoring Today Column

Jul 17, 2019

Today, motoring is not only about cars and motorsports. It is not just for conversation, it has become an economic issue with traffic slowing down the productive time of people. Motoring now extends to advocacies on the environment, like clean air, cleaner sources of power and more efficient engines.

Motoring has also become a lifestyle, with the various models being designed to reflect how its owners would like to live - or be viewed by neighbors and passers-by. Last week - and the coming weekend - had a variety of events that did not only hint at motoring's significance in national development - they planted the milestones that will mark the changing motoring world.

First on our list of events - oh, how can any motoring enthusiast have missed that! - was the launching of the all-newToyota GR Supra. It is the first time that the GR Supra will be retailed in the Philippines. And it will be available only from Toyota's 16 certified GR Performance dealerships nationwide.

Toyota Motor Philippines First Vice President Ms. Cristina Arevalo said: "The Supra, above and beyond, embodies Toyota's pledge of making ever-better cars."

The new Supra is the first global Toyota Gazoo Racing model, with all units being manufactured at theMagna Steyr Plant in Graz, Austria. Toyota Gazoo Racing, or GR, is Toyota's performance development arm which aims to produce ever-better cars through motorsports. The Philippine variant of the All-New Toyota GR Supra is powered by a twin-scroll turbocharged, in-line six-cylinder engine that produces a maximum output of 335 hp and 500 Nm of torque. The GR Supra is a front-engine, rear-wheel-drive coupe that comes exclusively in 3.0L displacement and 8-speed automatic transmission.

This car is truly beautiful - inside and out. But it will take more than the space of this column to tell you about its exciting features. And I'm sure the one who is reading this must have Internet access to read all about the Toyota GR Supra.

Philippine EV Summit

During the week (July 17 and 18) theElectric Vehicle Association of the Philippines orEVAP, headed by its president,Edmund Araga, opened thePhilippine Electric Vehicle Summit at the SMX Convention Center at SM MOA, Pasay City. Its exhibits revolved around the theme - Modernizing the Transport Landscape: Driving Sustainable Growth.

''Infrastructure and government support to sustain the growth of the EV industry are now being set up," Araga said, citing how the EVs are becoming mainstream in the local motoring scene.

First, the 3,000 Bemac eTrikes of the Department of Energy now being deployed nationwide and are now more visible in various LGUs; the eJeepneys have been deployed in Metro Manila and Visayas and Mindanao through the PUV Modernization Program (PUVMP) which aims to upgrade some 200,000 PUVs in the next six years, to either Euro 4 diesel engines or to an electric motor.

In an earlier statement, EVAP said it has also partnered with the Philippine Nickel Industries Association to explore the possibility of locally manufacturing nickel metal hydride and lithium ion batteries for automotive application. The Bureau of Philippine Standards is now busy crafting a complete set of standards for EVs that will cover parts, components, testing parameters and procedures and safety features.

2019 Modern PUV Caravan

The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board or LTFRB recently started holding the 2019 Modern PUV Caravan to promote the PUVMP.

It started in on July 4 with a 5:00AM motorcade beginning at the Quezon Memorial Circle in Quezon City, with the convoy arriving at the main office of the Department of Transportation at the Clark Economic Zone in Pampanga province at 9:00AM for the launch program.

The motorcade, composed of modernized PUVs from Isuzu and other manufacturers, had representatives from the DOTr, the LTFRB, the Land Transportation Office , Development Bank of the Philippines, Landbank, the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc., the Truck Manufacturers Association, the Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors, the Automotive Body Manufacturers Association of the Philippines, the Electric Vehicles Association of the Philippines, and the Philippine Parts Maker Association.

5,000 Taxi Franchise Slots

The LTFRB is still accepting franchise applications under the PUVMP at the LTFRB Central Office to meet the increasing demand. There are 5,000 franchises that taxi operators can apply for at the LTFRB. Of the number, 100 taxi franchises have been awarded.

Each franchise application can cover a minimum of 100 brand new units and a maximum of 1,000 units whose specifications are compliant with MC 2015-004 and can carry a maximum of five persons, including the driver.

The units should have a garage in the area of operation and a repair shop to maintain the roadworthiness of the units. A taxi unit should also be Global Navigation Satellite System or GNSS-capable, has free Wi-Fi service, a CCTV camera that can operate 24 hours, a dashboard camera that can record 24 hours of operation, and compliant with Euro 4 emission standards.

New Rails for MRT-3

The Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) announced that brand new rails will soon be placed on the tracks with the arrival of the shipment at the Harbour Centre Port Terminal in Manila last July 9.

The shipment arrived several months ahead of the scheduled date of delivery. It comprised of 4,053 pieces of 18-meter rails that will replace all tracks along the MRT-3's 17-kilometer main line.

The rails, manufactured by Nippon Steel Corporation, were shipped from Fukuoka, Japan.

DOTr Secretary Arthur Tugade noted that the MRT-3 rehabilitation project is moving as planned, and on schedule.

Other rail parts will start arriving in Manila in October 2019. With this, rail replacement works will be conducted at non-operating hours at night startingNovember 2019, and for completion by February 2021.

With the repair of the MRT-3's wheel lathe machine last March, and the upcoming replacement of all of MRT-3's mainline tracks, trains will be running smoother and with less vibration.

Happy Motoring!!!

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