It's been over 15 since I last visited this place. At the time the family didn't have a car so the only
mode of transportation was taking
public transportation, which consisted hopping on jeepneys, triccyles and buses. Times have changed the second time around.
One of the things I remember on my last visit to the
Philippines was the amount of
traffic congestion that was everywhere, especially when going thru
downtown Manila. Back then they were in the middle of a new freeway project so I thought things would get better.
I see it hasn't changed much at all. According to the relatives it's gotten much worse since I was last here, even though they built a new freeway system.
Taking a ride in a
Toyota Hi-Ace van. As silly as it seems, I always wanted take a ride in one since I seen some one nice ones at the
Tokyo Auto Salon a few years ago. It's quite roomy that could rival some of the large
American vans. Too bad they don't import them to the states.
This will be one of the main modes transportation i'll be taking during my stay. A Mitsubihsi L300 van. As you can see it's a flat nose van, just like the Toyota Hi-Ace I rode in earlier. I guess the flat nose is still popular in the Asian countries. Unlike in the states, flat nose gone out of style by the end of the 80's.
Columned shifted manual, was something i'd only seen in old American cars and trucks. But even then it was a rarity too see. And the ones I did see were only 3 speeds, hence the term 3 on the tree. This L300 was equipped with a 5spd on the tree.
What do they feed their vehicles in
the Philippines?
Petron: Made in the Philippines. No relation to
Petronas
Caltex it's a
Chevron company.
Shell, it's all about the V-power.
While I was here, I noticed there's 2 grades of diesel and gas . Though I was jealous they had 95 octane available, my cousin made the comment that the only thing he noticed with the higher octane is how much faster the peso leaves the wallet.
While exploring manil, I kept my eye out on old and interesting cars Though I wasn't really expecting to see any since the roads and the driving is just down right crazy. But interestingly enough I did see a couple.
80's Mitsubishi Lancer, don't think we ever got these in the states. Flanked a Mercedes G wagon and a Ford motorhome.
Toyota Corolla wagon TE72.
Suzuki Jimny, or a Samurai depending on where you're from. It's actually in really nice shape for it's age.
I took a ride on something called a Nissan Xtrail. Never heard of it before and it doesn't look anything like a Xterra. Though what I was digging was the drink cooler. Though make sure you close the top or drink at least 3/4's of it's contents before you try and put it back.
Random cars:
Toyota Alphard, too luxurious for the USA
HKS shop? Didn't check it' out cause real Filipinos roll with TRD.
Did you know Hyundai makes a van? Me neither.
Later model ford fiesta, dope. Sporting the PDRA (Philippine
Drift Drag Racing Association) sticker. Though what's the deal with cars sporting the EU (European Union) number plate behind the philippine number plate??? I seen a number cars, ones that look like they're ready for hot import nights and/or a car meet, sporting that style. Didn't matter if it was American or Japanese.
Toyota Innova, if you can't afford the Alphard you get one of these. Slghtly larger than a camry but not big enough to be a minivan. Maybe it's a compact minivan.
When traffic is light it's a much more pleasant drive. Ford expedition is taking a nice leisurely drive too.
Ford Everest, don't get those either. It's like a Ford Explorer since it's based of the current Ford Ranger that's also sold here. Why is it that Ford stopped selling the ranger?? It looks so nice, this is coming from a former ranger owner.
Next time, a trip to the province.
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