GAC launched the Emkoo at this year’s Manila International Auto show. It’s a 5 seater compact crossover with futuristic styling and a price tag that will make it compete directly with the Ford Territory. The Styling is very sharp with an abundance diagonal lines and acute angles.   It has Tesla type, hidden door handles that pop out when activated and 19 inch wheels. Seeing it in person, I can say with confidence that it has a high chance of turning heads. The interior looks premium with plenty of high quality materials on high traffic surfaces. Interior appointments include:   Power adjustable, ventilated front seats, rear aircon vents, ambient lighting, a 10.1 inch infotainment screen with apple carplay and 360 camera The Emkoo also has Full ADAS (Advanced Driver Assist Systems) which includes: Adaptive Cruise Control, Traffic Sign Recognition, Autonomous Emergency Braking, Lane Keep Assist among others. Under the hood is a   1.5L turbocharged engine which puts out 177hp, a

The GAC Empow is the quickest sedan in its class. It has an official 0-100kph time of 6.9 seconds. I tested it at 6.78 seconds. That puts it in a club that includes sports cars and high-end, 3+ million-peso sport sedans. Not bad considering the car's 1.3 million price tag. It's also pretty well equipped for the price with advanced driver assist features like adaptive cruise control, lane keep assist, Automatic Emergency Braking, a wireless phone charger and power leather seats Watch my full review below

The Jetour T2 may launch in the Philippines in the not-so-distant future. It's unlike most Chinese SUVs that you'll see in the Philippines. It's shaped like a Land Rover Defender with styling that successfully merges retro and modern. Watch the video below for my full feature  

Toyota subsidiary, Daihatsu admits rigging Safety tests. Models affected are the Toyota Yaris Ativ (known as the Vios in the Philippines) the Toyota agya/perdua axia (known in the Philippines as the Wigo) 88,000 cars are affected in total, 76289 units of the Vios and 11,834 units of the Wigo. Daihatsu admits it rigged the crash tests by modifying the inner lining of the front seat door to minimize the risk that the door interior could break with a sharp edge causing injury. Toyota Chairman, Akio Toyota has apologized and promised an investigation into the matter.

My 8-day trip to China has been a rollercoaster ride both literally and figuratively, traveling From the bright lights of Shanghai to the biggest theme park in Wuhu China to an ancient, 1000-year-old Chinese village, to the majestic mountain of Huangshan. None of the places that we visited looked quite like Binondo's Chinatown. The China that I saw was modern, efficient and forward-looking, in some ways a parallel to what I've seen in their automotive industry. An entire building, flying Jetour's colors China's blitzkrieg into the local automotive market is impressive. In the last 3 years, they have managed to transform their image and grab an ever-increasing slice of the Philippine motoring pie. Not all Chinese brands are created equal of course. But those that are intent on succeeding here have really made their presence felt. They quickly respond to feedback and criticism and update their products accordingly. These updates can be in a matter of months, not years l

 Shanghai, China. Jetour unveils the T2, a 4x4, off-road oriented SUV at the Shanghai auto show. This one should get us particular excited because it has a good chance of making it to our shores this year at a price that may just disrupt the market. The T2 is based on a body-on-frame chassis - the same skateboard chassis that the T3 uses albeit with a shorter wheelbase. It will come in 2 powerplant options, a 2.0L turbocharged petrol variant and a PHEV variant. It comes with disk brakes and double wishbones on all four corners, and 20inch wheels wrapped in all terrain tires. The interior is premium and modern looking, featuring large screens, alcantara and leather all around and power seats.  The Jetour T2 shares the same chassis with the T3, albeit with a shorter wheelbase Expect a video walk around on my youtube channel soon #jetourt2  Jetour Auto Philippines

Shanghai, China. Jetour unveils the T3, an off-road focused, 4x4, body on frame, hybrid SUV at the Shanghai Auto Show. It features a 2.0L turbocharged engine coupled to dual electric motors which send power to all four 22inch wheels. Currently we dont know the total power output or the battery capacity but Jetour did show-off the naked chassis of the T3 and the battery appears to be quite massive, as well as the dual electric motors. Total range in EV mode is 200Kms. The body sits on a steel ladder frame chassis. It has a robust double-wishbone suspension setup on all four corners. It also appears to have air suspension, at least from what i can tell visually ( there was no english spec sheet at the time of this writing)   The T3 has a pretty innovative steering system which can rotate the wheels in different directions and allows it to achieve a very tight turning raduis or even to rotate in place -A useful feature in tight off road situations.   When you open the t3's suici