“Road Trip” (2012) by Monnar Baldemor
BACK IN the ’70s, car buyers basically had three types of automobiles they could buy: a car, a pickup, or a van. You can then break down the car category into three more subcategories: sedan, coupe, station wagon. Back then Toyota, Mitsubishi (still called “Colt”), and Ford offered all three body styles in their Coronas, Galants, and Cortinas. Nissan (then “Datsun”) and GM’s Opel had sedans and coupes, but no wagons. People bought a lot of two-doors back then. Even the Isuzu Gemini was available as a two-door — yes, Isuzu made sedans and coupes back then.
The ’80s saw passenger cars transitioning to front-wheel drive and the appearance of hatchbacks. That was when we had the three-door and five-door hatchback Colt Mirage and the Ford Laser and Telstar, which came as sedans or as five-door hatchbacks. Toyota also had the Starlet three-door/five-door hatchback, albeit still with rear-wheel drive. The pickups and vans back then were much smaller than they are now. Buyers were initially skeptical about front-wheel drive, finding the cars too prone to rattles and torque steer, a condition wherein the steering wheel tugs in one direction when the accelerator is pressed deeply (or floored). Almost none of the locally available cars back then were available with an automatic transmission.
THE SWITCH TO FRONT-WHEEL DRIVEThe ’90s saw an almost complete transition to front-wheel drive. From a design curiosity, it had now become mainstream. Still, it was mostly small sedans that plied the road, with the big sedans being the Mitsubishi Galant and the Toyota Corona and Crown. They were joined by the Honda Accord, which quickly became the executive sedan of choice. SUVs were still not a thing, with only the Mitsubishi Pajero and Nissan Patrol being available for the 4×4 set. A major change during this period was the wider availability of automatic transmission.
It would be the late ’90s when the country saw its first car-based 4x4s — the Honda CR-V and the Toyota RAV4. But it would be more than a decade after these two pioneers’ appearance when the terms “SUV” and “crossover” would be coined. The CR-V and RAV4 changed the 4×4 game with their user-friendly all-wheel drive, which didn’t need a 4×4 transfer case. More importantly, their car-based chassis made them very easy and carlike to drive, sparking the transition (which seems to be almost complete today) to crossovers and SUVs.
RISE OF SUBCOMPACTS, FALL OF MIDSIZE SEDANSThe turn of the millennium saw the emergence of the subcompact class. Staples like the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic slowly grew larger while increasing in price, resulting in the appearance of the Toyota Vios and Honda City. Subcompacts would rule the market for close to two decades. Over that period, the market bristled with the Ford Fiesta, Kia Rio, Hyundai Accent, Chevrolet Aveo and Sonic, Nissan Almera, Peugeot 301, and the Suzuki Ciaz. The first decade of the new millennium was also the time when the Korean brands, Hyundai and Kia, became more widely accepted.
As subcompact car sales grew, the market for compact cars contracted. The same was happening with midsize sedans, which were being quickly taken over by pickup-based SUVs like the Toyota Fortuner, Mitsubishi Montero Sport, Ford Everest, Isuzu Alterra/mu-X, Nissan Navara, and the now discontinued Chevrolet Trailblazer.
In the ensuing years, the CR-V/RAV4 duo was joined by the Ford Escape, Mazda Tribute, Suzuki Grand Vitara, Nissan X-Trail, Hyundai Tucson, and Kia Sportage, among others. By the 2010s, the biggest segments were composed of subcompact cars, crossovers, and (thanks to the government’s tax incentives that made their prices comparatively lower considering their size), pickups. Yet another spark that ignited car sales in the new millennium are the vastly lower interest rates for car financing, making it much easier for a greater number of consumers to bring home that shiny new car.
CHINESE BRANDS AND ELECTRIFICATIONIt began in 2018, with the formal relaunch of MG. The brand had been locally available under a previous importer, but hardly made a dent then. This was followed the next year by Geely, Chery, and GAC.
We all know the success stories of the MG ZS and Geely Coolray. Filipinos quickly gravitated toward them, entranced by European styling, low prices, and long list of standard features that the newcomers offered.
The pandemic of 2020 hardly dampened the momentum of the Chinese influx. Just half a decade later, there are now more Chinese brands than Japanese, Korean, and American brands combined.
The influx sparked a strange phenomenon. Consumers seemed to suddenly be divided into two groups — those who were ready to explore the new brands and those who would resolutely stick to a proven brand. It’s the only reason why Toyota managed to grow its market share from the low-to-mid 40% before the Chinese brands’ influx to its current high of 47% to 48% of total Philippine automotive sales.
But there is yet another subset that’s capturing the hearts of Filipinos during this time — the subcompact seven-seater MPV. Almost everyone now has any of the following: Mitsubishi Xpander/Xpander Cross, Toyota Avanza/Veloz/Rush, Hyundai Stargazer/Stargazer X, Suzuki Ertiga/XL7, or Honda BR-V.
MOVING FORWARDAt the current rate Filipinos are buying cars, expect more electrified vehicles (HEVs, PHEVs, and BEVs) to hit the roads. The omnipresence of cars like the Toyota Corolla Cross HEV, Nissan Kicks, and BYD Sealion, as well as the growing number of charging stations in and outside the metro, are testaments to this. Crossovers will continue to dominate the landscape, thanks to their advantages in space and versatility/flexibility. Subcompact sedans and hatchbacks will still sell to the lower end of the market, while the long-time Filipino fave, the pickup-based SUVs, will fight tooth and nail against the onslaught of the more refined car-based midsize seven-seat crossovers, mostly from China.
The local car market is the scene of multiple battles in every size and price range. It’s truly a buyer’s market now; a stark contrast to four decades ago when a car buyer had only three car brands to choose from and there were less than 50,000 cars sold in a year. This year, the industry expects to sell 500,000 cars.
So, either you go out there and shop for that new car — or just pass me the popcorn.