Cagi begins third executive car testfest

By Jude Morte

THE Car Awards Group Inc. (Cagi), an organization of motoring journalists behind the Philippine Car of the Year (Coty-P) Awards Group, recently held its third executive car testfest at the Forest Hills Golf and Country Club in Antipolo, Rizal, on November 25 and 26.

This testfest featured five vehicles introduced as 2006 models—the Toyota Camry 3.5L V6, the Honda Accord 3.0L V6, the Subaru Legacy 2.0L station wagon, the Mazda 6 2.3L (the 2005 Coty-P and the defending champion in the 2005 Coty-P executive car category) and the Mitsubishi Galant 240M.

As with the previous Coty-P testfest weekend (held on November 11 and 12, 2006, also at Forest Hills), the third Coty-P luxury car testfest featured two phases: an instrumented test and a qualitative test around a predetermined route around Forest Hills. In the instrumented test, all seven entries were subjected to a zero to 60kph acceleration test, followed by a test of 60kph to zero braking ability, with each vehicle’s performance recorded on a GTech meter (supplied by Speedlab) and tabulated on a computer.

Making sure motoring journalists followed the rules and regulations of the testfest were Applied Leisure in Sales and Operations (Also) group members (and former rally racers) Raul Asuncion, Joey Lanuza and Barry Ortiz.

In an interesting twist, this writer was given the privilege among the different Coty-P members to test all five executive cars in the quantitative acceleration sessions. With Also Group member Joey Lanuza as this writer’s test supervisor, he was given a warm-up zero to 60kph acceleration test in which he accelerated the cars from rest one by one and maintained a 60-plus kph speed before braking to a standstill, making a U-turn at the end of the designed Forest Hills course’s straight and promptly began acceleration testing proper.

He managed to log the following personal zero to 60kph acceleration times—3.878 seconds for the Camry, 5.892 seconds for the Galant, 5.811 seconds for the Mazda 6, 5.404 seconds for the Accord and 6.151 seconds for the Legacy station wagon.      

Then journalists drove each vehicle to gauge matters such as ergonomics, ride, handling, ventilation, safety, audio system performance and visibility in a qualitative test that showed the various preferences of the motoring scribes present.

“The testfest course for Coty 2006 at Forest Hills is longer [specifically, 6 km] and more challenging with many steep uphill and downhill segments, twists, bends, esses and curves.
There is a flat straight of 400 meters where the acceleration and braking tests are done.

For cars, the testfest course is the moment of truth as it brings out the best—or the worst—in performance, handling and drivability. The course is isolated and distant from the golf course with no houses beside it, so the test drivers generally do not disturb anyone,” said Cagi president Aida Sevilla-Mendoza.

The recently concluded executive car testfest followed a price-based classification scheme implemented last year. In the November 11 and 12 compact car testfest, models considered were compact cars priced at P750,000 to P1.099 million. The November 25 and 26 executive car testfest featured vehicles priced at P1.1 million to P2.599 million.

The 2006 to 2007 Coty-P testfest series is sponsored by Philippine Allied Corp. (official distributor of Bridgestone tires in the country), Automobile Association Philippines, Rockwell Land Corp., Petron Corp., Sony Ericsson, Manila International Auto Show, Forest Hills Golf and Country Club, eStandard Insurance, SGV (Sycip, Gorres and Velayo) and Co. and Manila North Tollways Corp.

The next testfest, which will be held on January 6 and 7, 2007, at the Forest Hills Golf and Country Club, will shine the spotlight on the luxury car (P2.6-million to P3.99-million) and ultra-luxury car (P4-million to P6-million) segments. The unveiling of the 2006 Philippine Car of the Year will be on March 7, 2007, at the Rockwell Tent, The Power Plant Mall, Makati City.