Automotive

Toyota Tamaraw MPUV Leads Auto News as Road Deaths Mount

Toyota previewed its Tamaraw modern public utility vehicle ahead of an October 22 launch, while Jetour opened a Cabanatuan dealership and GAC priced a hybrid against Toyota. Road crashes killed riders and passengers across several provinces, and the LTO suspended drivers' licenses over viral violations.

By the MMI Automotive Desk

Toyota Motor Philippines put its Tamaraw modern public utility vehicle on display at its Santa Rosa, Laguna plant on October 16, three years after a prototype of the same conversion first appeared locally, and set the public launch for the Philippine International Truck Summit on October 22 to 24 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City. The vehicle is a passenger-carrying conversion of the next-generation Tamaraw, certified as a "Modern PUV" by the Department of Transportation earlier this year — a designation that lets it be sold into the government's Public Transport Modernization Program, which is replacing older jeepneys with vehicles that meet set standards for safety, emissions and passenger capacity. The preview drew the widest coverage of any single automotive item in the material gathered for the day: a Malaya Business Insight Weekender feature on the unveiling carried an estimated ₱674,544 in advertising-equivalent value, the cost of buying the same space as paid advertising, and the Zigwheels report on the same event was valued at ₱265,221.

That launch sat inside a broader day of product and dealer news. Jetour Auto Philippines announced a dealership in Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija, in partnership with Royce Motor Group, with the site along Maharlika Highway in Sumacab Este. GAC Philippines positioned its 2027 GAC E8 HEV, a seven-seat hybrid people mover, directly against the Toyota Zenix HEV at the same price point, with the top-spec GX variant at ₱1,998,000. Honda Philippines rolled out a lightly updated Click 160 scooter at a suggested retail price of ₱110,000, and Honda Cars Philippines paired with Philippine Savings Bank on a zero-percent interest financing program for the HR-V, City and BR-V. A new Chinese brand, JOYEE, said it will enter the Philippine market on October 22 with three electric and hybrid SUVs.

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