ON THE ROAD 2023 TARLAC RALLY SEASON OPENER PAUL SANTOS EMERGES AS LEG 1 OVERALL WINNER

FURTHER championing the return rally racing in the Philippines, the Tarlac Rally hosted its season opener last June 24 to 25, 2023 at the New Clark City in Capas, Tarlac. The iconic 2019 Southeast Asian Games venue served as the parc fermé and service park of the rally.

The first round of Tarlac Rally contained 11 exhilarating special stages (SS), all of which were accessed through the stretch of the O’Donnell Road, which served as the main thoroughfare of the Tarlac Rally’s transport stages. 12 entrants participated in the challenging yet exciting rally event. Out of the 12, only six teams were able to achieve the rewarding feeling of crossing the finish arch which signifies the completion of over 100 km. rally.

Group 2 classification’s Paul Santos together with navigator Ansley Sarmiento emerged as the overall champion of the first round of the 2023 Tarlac Rally. The 2022 Philippine Rallycross Group 3 Champion and 2022 AAP Driver of the Year for Rallycross finished the rally using his no.1 Honda Civic EK with an overall time of 45 minutes and 14 seconds. Participating in the Rear-wheeldrive (RWD) class, the veteran rally driver Jun Magno finished second-overall using his 3S-GE Beams-powered BMW E36. The champion rally driver together with his co-driver Kalvin Sumagui clocked in a total rally time of 45 minutes 30 seconds.

Off-roader and dirt bike rider Devor Andres along with co-driver Rommel Ocoy were hailed as the third-overall winner. With the oldest car in the rally in the form of a 1980’s Toyota Corolla KE70, the duo clocked in a total rally time of 50:22, earning them the Group 4 win. On the other hand, Touge Battle race organizers E.Z. Ligaya and Stephen Alunan finished the rally using the Debest Autofix BMW 316i E36 with a total time of 53:14. The Full Throttle Weekend duo finished fourth overall in the rally and took home second place in the RWD class. Group 1 was dominated by Marvin Susara together with navigator Charlie Cruz in the team’s 2NZ-powered Corolla E100. In a dramatic SS11 finish which saw their Corolla barely crossing the line, the veteran racers were able to clock in a total rally time of 55:31 which earned them the fifth-overall finish. Meanwhile, Automobile Association Philippines (AAP) CEO Mark Desales together with co-driver Ricxie dela Cruz were able to complete the rally despite

JETOUR AUTO PH: AFFORDABLE SERVICE

ESSENTIAL TO SMOOTH, WORRY-FREE TRAVELS

ALONG with its investment in the aftersales and technical training of its dealerships, Jetour Auto Philippines, Inc. (JAPI) introduces an innovative sixyear Preventive Maintenance Service payment schedule designed to be light on its customers’ budgets. This PMS schedule goes hand-in-hand with JETOUR’s TRAVEL+ philosophy which aims to ensure JETOUR owners create lasting memories with their drives and journeys.

The aftersales experience, including PMS, is essential to the car ownership experience. This is why JETOUR Auto Philippines has mapped out a comprehensive expenditure chart covering the first six years of owning a JETOUR crossover. Through this PMS plan, JETOUR owners and future customers will be able to prepare in advance for the servicing needs of their cars.

JETOUR Pre-planned maintenance challenges mid rally. The duo clocked in the total time of 59:59 which earned them Group 1 second place and sixth-overall finish.

JETOUR vehicles are easy to maintain as they require only twice-a-year Periodic Maintenance Servicing divided into 5,000-kilometer intervals to ensure long-term reliability and optimum performance.

The first year of JETOUR ownership shows two servicing schedules at 5,000 and 10,000 kilometers. A quick oil change is done at each service interval.

The 2023 Tarlac Rally was made possible through the support of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), New Clark City, Tarlac province, Capas LGU, San Jose LGU, Cleanfuel, Ravenol, Autoplus Sport, Isuzu Philippines Corporation, Accelera Tires, Aguila Auto Glass, AC Delco, JS Mina Sound System, Print & Mount, Method Race Wheels, and Tyron Runflat.

Caltex Opens 18 Delo Sports Oil Change Centers

CALTEX—through Chevron Philippines, Inc. —continues to expand its presence in the Do-It-For-Me (DIFM) car services market with the opening of Caltex Delo Sports Oil Change Center in various locations in the Philippines.

Caltex DIFMs workshops are designed and built to provide convenient, reliable, high-quality products and services to customers of diesel vehicles to help keep their cars in tip-top shape. Delo Sports Oil Change Center offers engine oil change, fluid change, 22pt check, car wash and car detailing, tire change, wheel balancing, and alignment to their valued customers.

Since the opening of the first and biggest Caltex Delo Sports Oil Change Center located in Digos City, Davao del Sur, Caltex opened 18 more DIFM centers in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. Caltex DIFMs provide motorists with high-quality lubricant products, dependable maintenance check, and world-class service for an enjoyable drive.

Last year, Caltex also opened 59 new Caltex Havoline autoPro and 67 Caltex Havoline bikePro workshops, bringing the current network of Caltex-branded DIFM workshops to 274. Caltex will continue to build its network of Caltex Delo Sports Oil Change Center, Caltex Havoline autoPro, and Caltex Havoline bikePro sites in the country to cater to more customers nationwide.

MITSUBISHI MOTORS PHILIPPINES INTRODUCES FIRST-EVER CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD

NORIAKI Hirakata was appointed as the inaugural Chairman of the Board of Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corporation (MMPC) and has taken office since July 1, 2023. The strategic hire underscores MMPC’s stronger dedication to advancing corporate governance and fostering long-term commercial success. In order to secure the continued success of the brand in the nation, Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) is shifting its focus to the Philippines. MMC also seeks to solidify a mid- to long-term business plan for the Philippine market. At the same time, Hirakata is employed by MMC as an assistant executive officer. He will be able to work more closely with MMC and MMPC to ensure the successful execution of business plans for the Philippines because he oversees Corporate Strategy Management at the Tokyo Head Office.

Hirakata’s primary duty as MMPC Chairman of the Board is to supervise the Executive Management Committee’s execution of strategic business plans in order to further establish the brand’s dominance in the Philippine market. On the other hand, the MMPC President and CEO will continue to be in charge of managing the company’s daily operations.

JETOUR Auto Philippines’ trained technicians will inspect various car components at the 10,000-km interval to ensure they are all in optimum working condition. The two service visits in year one will only cost an owner around P8,000 plus. At the 20,000-kilometer interval, PMS will include the replacement of spark plugs, the cabin filter, Automatic Transmission Fluid, coolant, and other fluids. A JETOUR owner will spend a little over P15,000 in year two for the 15,000 and 20,000-km service intervals.

ALL-NEW CLICK160: ENJOYABLE EVERYDAY CITY RIDING

DAILY long rides around the city comes with its own set of needs which makes choosing the right motorcycle something to take just a bit more seriously. This is particularly true when your daily commute in and around the city takes as much as the entire day.

To this end, Honda Philippines, Inc. (HPI) brings The All-New CLICK160. Going by its looks alone, this motorcycle is sure to give you and any rider for that matter, a premium presence on the road everywhere you go. With its bigger scooter look, premium sporty image, a sportier muffler design and colored cast wheel is sure to impress. Even its 3D emblem features adds to its already classy look. Its All LED Lighting System ensures that you clearly see the road when riding at night and its New Headlight and Taillight Design combine a bold look and while enhancing road visibility. Loaded with features that allow you to tackle everyday riding challenges with relative ease. First worth mentioning is its power-house of an engine. The All-New CLICK160 uses a 4-Stroke, 4-Valve, SOHC, Liquid Cooled, eSP+ engine capable of 11.3kW of max power @ 8,500rpm, and 13.8Nm of max torque @ 7,000rpm. These factors give you the ability to traverse the tight and winding city roads – and breeze through traffic easily no matter what the road conditions are!

By Peter Atencio

NO Philippine Team. No Problem. Even in the absence of local competitors, Filipino volleyball fans come in droves to watch, cheer, and adore their favorite foreign players in the Week 3-Philippine leg of the Volleyball Nations League (VNL) at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

After basketball, volleyball is the most watched sporting event among Filipino sports fans.

A visiting fan from Japan said: “This is the rst time I come to the Philippines to watch volleyball games. I want to see this country because last year volleyball games in the Philippines are very popular. People like volleyball games very much. It touches my heart.”

Fans show their support to their teams-win or lose—and wait for them at the fans’ corner to have their photos with their favorite players.

Japan is among the teams that gained a big following among Pinoy fans who came in throng to support the team against China on the opening day.

A big Filipino crowd came to watch as Kento Miyaura ended a closely fought contest by scoring match point in the fth set for Japan in one of the opening games that kicked o the start of Week 3 of the Volleyball Nations League (VNL) at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

The fans cheered loudly as Japan went on to upend China, following Kento Miyaura’s final attack that handed the Japanese their ninth straight overall win.

That big win gave Japan the rst slot in the prestigious league’s grand nals set in Gdansk, Poland.

Japan is attracting young Filipino followers, since it is currently the topranked Asian squad playing in Manila, next to the world’s top squads like Poland and Italy.

In that game Yuki Ishikawa struck with 19 points for Japan, and in a match which Japan has remained unbeaten since winning three straight matches during Week 2 in