I honestly believe that one day all vehicles will run on electricity.

The year 2020 is more than three months away and yet major automotive distributors have started to jockey for position, most especially in the C segment category of the industry. The opening salvo was fired by Mazda launching its all-new 2020 Mazda3 last month. Toyota followed suit and raised the bar further by launching the Toyota Corolla Altis Hybrid this month.

Let’s talk about the Toyota Corolla Altis Hybrid. Hybrid/ electric vehicles are close to my heart. Prior to my retirement last year, I was heavily involved in the development of electric vehicles. I honestly believe that one day, all vehicles will run on electricity. But as I mentioned in my previous article, there is still a lot of work to be done in order for electric vehicles to be the norm in daily transportation especially in the area of public transportation. I commend the move of Toyota to bring in the Toyota Corolla Altis Hybrid. Toyota has taken the first in a thousand steps in our journey to total electrification of vehicles. Positioning the Corolla Hybrid in the crowded C segment of the automotive market is a stroke of marketing genius. First of all, the C segment accounts for the major volume of passenger car sales next to the B segment. Second and most important is the price point of this model. At P1.580M, the 2020 Corolla Hybrid is priced just right.

Well, the main reason for this is that starting 2020, hybrids and electric vehicles are exempted from the excise tax. Last and most important of all, the batteries of the 2020 Toyota Corolla Hybrid come with a five-year warranty. The five- year warranty is really a game changer. Not even Mercedes-Benz does this for its S Class hybrid model. A friend of mine who owns a Mercedes-Benz S Class Hybrid replaced the batteries of his car after four years of use. He almost fainted when he saw his bill. Cost of the batteries amounted to P300,000 is almost the price of a brand new A segment car.

I hope that the cost of the replacement batteries of the 2020 Toyota Corolla Hybrid will come down to a more affordable level come year 2025 when the batteries hybrid car will be out of warranty. Cost of replacement batteries will always be a main issue in the propagation of hybrid and electric vehicles. With the impressive worldwide sales growth of hybrids and electric vehicles the past several years, I expect the cost of batteries to come down to a reasonable level due to economies of scale in producing these batteries. Still on my wish list for electric vehicles is the long awaited charging infrastructure. Unlike its cousin, the hybrid vehicle that can charge its batteries on its own, the electric vehicle will rely on a charging infrastructure outside of one’s home in order to prevent range anxiety. This is a major requirement for electric vehicles. It would be risky for major automotive companies to carry plugin electric vehicles without a well-planned charging infrastructure that can be relied upon by owners of electric vehicles whenever they need to charge the batteries of their EV while on the road.

While Toyota has been disturbing the C segment of our automotive market with the introduction of the Corolla hybrid, another brand is doing the same in the B segment. MG Philippines launched last September 13 its entry into the B segment — the 2020 MG 5. In my previous article, I mentioned that the marketing team of MG Philippines has this uncanny ability to fill in the gaps in the market segment they choose to participate. A very good example is the MG 5. The MG 5 is a latecomer in the B segment category of our automotive market. It is banging heads with the segment’s top-seller, the Toyota Vios. How then can a late comer successfully join the party in the B segment? The answer is fill the gaps. MG should outdo the current members of the B segment class in every aspect of its new product. And that is what MG Philippines did. The new MG 5 brings to you the best in class features not normally found in the B segment class of cars. This model can readily compete in both the B and the C segment of the car market. With a starting price of P 658,888 for its basic manual model to its top of the line 1.5L DEL CVT at P938,888, the MG 5 straddles the best of both worlds of the B and the C segment of the car market. This is product positioning at its best!

Incidentally, last 5 September, Hino Motors Philippines (HMP) inaugurated its new Technical Support and Training Center. This facility sits in a 1.5 hectare area. At the heart of this facility is a 5,800 square meter floor area that houses a two story building that includes a service workshop, a technical workshop, a parts warehouse and the new corporate office. This significant investment of HMP in its aftermarket operations is a solid assurance that the Hino brand of commercial vehicles will be in the Philippines for the long term. Congratulations to Hino Motors Philippines led by its chairman, Mr. Vicente T. Mills Jr. and president, Mr. Mitsuharu Tabata!